The new Fiat 500 has won the EuroCarBody 2007 award, the world’s most prestigious prize for car bodies. The ninth edition of the Forum organised by Automotive Circle International was held in Bad Nauheim/Frankfurt from October 16 to 18, attended by about 600 experts in the development of the design, materials, processes and manufacture of car bodies.

The 600 specialists, from 15 international carmakers, gave the award to the Fiat 500, assigning it 38.33 points out of a possible 50. This enabled the “small” Fiat – the only segment A model present – to defeat the other 11 candidates from Japan, the United States, Europe and Russia.

The experts particularly appreciated the contribution made by the innovative bodyshell to the car’s NCAP 5-star rating (with a total score of 35 points), and class 11 “Insurer Impact” assessment: this is a record that puts the Fiat 500 at the top of its class in the safety field, and is even more extraordinary if we remember that it has been achieved by a car that is only 3.5 metres long.

The Fiat 500 is a car designed to reach the highest quality and safety standards, as the EuroCarBody 2007 award underlines; it is an important award that highlights the mixture of “creativity and skill” that is necessary to develop an innovative, winning bodyshell. Nor must we forget that the final competition is part of a vaster programme, that sees Automotive Circle International organising numerous congresses every year for the exchange of information and experience in the field of automotive manufacturing processes.

All international carmakers can compete, with a maximum of two cars per brand. The indispensable requirement is that they must be standard production cars, manufactured within 12 months of the official launch. For the final voting, the bodyshells must be displayed so that they can be analysed during presentations and in depth debate, and judged on the basis of 23 evaluation criteria grouped in 5 macro areas: development and application of innovative materials; innovative solutions for development and design; innovative concepts applied to the industrial manufacturing process; values that are significant for the customer, such as safety, ergonomics, acoustic comfort and quality, and, finally, the comprehensiveness and quality of the presentation of the required technical/technological content.