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Mortefontaine test 2019

04/02/2019 - Car of The year
As a prelude of the final vote for Car of the Year 2019 award, Jury members gathered for a special test session with the seven nominees two weeks before the winner will be announced in Geneva International Motor Show.

In the proving grounds of UTAC CERAM outside Paris, the Jury has again had access to the finalist models and the management teams backing each of the seven manufacturers to point the highlights of their products. Either in the safety of the ‘routier’ track of Mortefontaine, or in the surrounding open roads, CotY jurors driving an array of different versions had the chance to check the outstanding agility of Alpine A110, the potential for family use of Citroën C5 Aircross, the affordable functionality of Ford Focus, the sporty personality of the zero-emission Jaguar I-Pace, the European focus and body-style variety of Kia Ceed, the enhanced refinement of Mercedes A-class or the fresh sporty style in Peugeot 508.

There also were some extra items to assess the interesting model range of some nominees, with new powertrains or body derivatives likely to enter the market in a near future. This meeting usually hosts the yearly General Assembly of the Jury. On top of discussing future operating details in CotY institution, the attendants gave a standing ovation to appreciated colleagues that will soon leave the Jury for age reasons. Urs Bärtschi, from Switzerland, has been a CotY juror since the 1989 edition, and John Simister, from the UK, has served 16 years as a member.

Now it’s time for the 60 Jury members from 23 European countries to decide the single winner. Each juror will apportion 25 points among at least five nominees, and will also provide a written explanation of his/her decision, what will be shown in the voting grid of this site. The winner will be announced in Geneva’s Palexpo in the afternoon of 4 March 2019.

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