For the first time in the history of the competition is chosen completely electric car.
Nissan Leaf - Japanese eco car charge 257 points, which earned the prestigious Car of the Year 2011 .
After him in the top rank respectively Alfa Romeo Giulietta with 248 points and Opel Meriva by 244 points.
Outside foreheads were three Ford C-Max/Grand C-Max (224 points), Citroën C3/DS3 (175), Volvo S60/V60 (145) and Dacia Duster (132).
The winner Car of the Year 2011 is chosen by a jury of 59 automotive experts from 23 countries.
"Nissan Leaf is my winner this year, so I'm fascinated by his victory," said Steve Cropley - part of the jury and editor at the magazine Autocar.
"I am disappointed for the Dacia Duster - my number two. Offers a lot of style and practicality for amazingly little money. And yet I am glad to see among the leaders Alfa Giulietta - the best car from Alfa for many years," he added.
Last year the winner was the Volkswagen Polo.
Under the hood of this year's winner of the title Car of the Year works with electric power 109 hp, which accelerates the car from 0 to 100 km / h to 11.3 seconds. Top speed is 145 km / h. Torque of 280 Nm is comparable to the diesel engine of about 2 liters or gasoline of about 2.5 liters.
Unlike other electric Leaf was conceived entirely as the E-model, ie is not based on a modified platform of the model engine.
Five-seater compact car class of the Golf was released in Japan and the U.S. in December and the beginning of 2011 and start deliveries to Europe.