My judgement is based on following grounds:

Volkswagen Polo:
All you need.
Toyota iQ:
By far the most innovative car of the Year. The concept is very clever and there are many revolutionary technical solutions; the trend towards smaller cars is obvious, and the iQ is a smart trendsetter. But at the end of the day, there is a lack of perfection, the engines are disapointing, the price is much too high, the handling is pretty good for such a small car but not where it could be. Design, both outside and interior, could be much smarter.
Citroen C3 Picasso:
Another very clever monospace concept from Citroën; the French are doing very well in this field, they find space where other manufactureres not even dare to look. The C3 Picasso is a fair priced car, with a lot of charming details and pretty good quality. The handling could be better, breaking also, but this is not race-car. But for every-day use, for a young family with children, this is one of the smartest solutions of the last few years.
Skoda Yeti:
Probably one of the biggest surprises of the Year. Very well executed, a cool concept, good quality with a decent price, nice design. Very good handling and modern engines (from Volkswagen) are other positive factors. A compact SUV without the bad image of a typical SUV. Many clever details for every-day use.
Peugeot 3008:
The Peugeot is a quite strange car. The design is strange, the concept is strange – it is a SUV without being a SUV (no 4x4 at all). But the French made great progress in quality, materials and interior design– and one can look forward to the first diesel-hybrid in the market.
 
Mercedes-Benz E-Class:
Nice, beautifully crafted car. But there are no surprises, especially no positive ones. How about Hybrid?
Opel Astra:
The first impression is much better than the second look. Too much design for nothing, the car is much too big for its interior space. And the engines are far away from being state of the art, no hybrid, not even a Stop&Start-System.