COTY

The panel of 59 automotive journalists which decide each year's European Car of the Year have narrowed down their selection from the initial list of 38 contenders to just seven finalists, which have now been announced. Along the way, some noteworthy new vehicles have been forsaken, among them the new Audi A4, BMW 7 Series, Honda Accord, Jaguar XF and Volkswagen Scirocco, but not everyone could make the short-list. Otherwise it wouldn't be a short list.

Motor Trend says on its blog that they are busily putting 17 new or newly redesigned cars through an "exhaustive evaluation process" that will result in 10 finalists for their Car of the Year award. With cars like the BMW 1 Series, Nissan GT-R, Audi A4, Acura TSX and Pontiac G8, we'd have a hard time choosing five more. Wildcards are the Hyundai Genesis, the Mazda6, the Volkswagen CC and the Dodge Challenger.

They'll be competing with the Acura TL, Honda Fit, Jaguar XF, Lincoln MKS, Nissan Maxima, Pontiac Vibe, Toyota Corolla, and the Toyota Matrix.

Isn't it nice when everyone gets along? Every year, rather than naming their own selection, several of the largest automotive publications in Europe get together and pick their Car of the Year. A list is compiled of all eligible bachelors nominees, then the list is narrowed down to a handful (usually seven or eight) finalists before the single winner is announced.