A panel of 65 judges have settled on the Toyota iQ for Japan's Car of the Year. Of the judges, 39 awarded the Toyota maximum points, meaning that the iQ roundly outscored the competition. The total points tally for the iQ came to 526, with the second-placed vehicle in the judging -- the Citroen C5 -- recording 223 points from the judges. Third place went to the Nissan GT-R (201 points), followed by the Audi A4 (180 points).

Judges lauded the Toyota for its packaging; which accommodates four passengers in a vehicle less than three metres in length. The Toyota was up against 40 other vehicles entered in the competition. For vehicles to be eligible, they had go on sale in Japan between November 1, 2007 and October 31, 2008. The judging was concluded on November 10, after the judges had briefly driven the short-listed vehicles.

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