European Car of the Year 2010 first round shortlist revealed

The first round of nominations for the European Car Of The Year Awards for 2010 has been revealed, with the Japanese and Koreans the big winners in the initial round.

Toyota has no less than five cars in the shortlist, with their iQ city car, new Prius, Avensis saloon and Verso and Urban Cruiser MPVs. Their Lexus RX450h hybrid SUV makes the list as well.

Koreans Hyundai and Kia each have two nominations, with one SUV and one hatchback each. Hyundai's entries are the i20 hatchback and ix55 soft-roader, while Kia has the new Sorento and funky Soul nominated. Nissan has three nominations, with the exciting 370Z sports car, wacky Cube and a joint entry with Suzuki with their Alto/Pixo supermini.

The rest of the entries consist of a wide mixture from a variety of makes. Honda's Insight makes it three hybrids in the list, while sporty German models like the BMW Z4 and the Porsche Panamera share space with the likes of the Mazda 3, VW Polo, Mercedes E-Class and Mitsubishi Colt.

Full list:

BMW Z4
Chevrolet Cruze
Citroen C3 Picasso
Ford Ka
Honda Insight
Hyundai i20
Hyundai ix55
Kia Sorento
Kia Soul
Land Rover Discovery IV
Lexus RX450h
Mazda 3
Mercedes E-Class
Mitsubishi Colt
Nissan 370Z
Nissan Cube
Opel/Vauxhall Astra
Peugeot 3008
Porsche Panamera
Renault Scenic
Seat Exeo
Skoda Yeti
Subaru Legacy
Suzuki Alto/Nissan Pixo
Toyota Avensis
Toyota iQ
Toyota Prius
Toyota Urban Cruiser
Toyota Verso
Volkswagen Polo