(March 3, 2011) GENEVA —  Designers around the world have chosen cars from Pininfarina and Land Rover to receive awards as the best of 2010 as judged by their peers. A presentation in Geneva earlier this week revealed the cars as:

    • Pininfarina Duettottanta     Car Design of the Year 2010 – Concept
    • Range Rover Evoque        Car Design of the Year 2010 – Production

The two were selected by a poll of readers of Car Design News. For the fifth year running, the design community was asked to select the designs which impressed them the most among the shortlists in two categories — concept and production — truly a ‘by designers for designers’ choice.

The top three in the concept category were

    • 1st : Pininfarina Duettottanta
    • 2nd : Jaguar C-X75
    • 3rd : Renault Dezir

… and an overwhelming 40 percent per cent of readers voted the two-seat roadster, a vision of a future Alfa Romeo sports car, into the top spot.

 
Pininfarina Duettottanta                                               Range Rover Evoque

Collecting the award, which was made during Car Design Night in Geneva, company chairman Paolo Pininfarina said: “Winning the Car Design of the Year award makes us particularly proud because it represents the viewpoint of car design experts, who include the chief designers of the most important international companies.

“Our design team has earned this prize with the great passion it has put into a particularly ambitious project,” he added.

The Jaguar was a clear second favorite, followed by the Renault Dezir, Bertone Pandion and Kia Pop concepts to round out the top five.

For production vehicles, the first three were:

    • 1st :   Range Rover Evoque
    • 2nd :  Alfa Romeo Giulietta
    • 3rd :   Audi A7

 … and again the top choice was the clear winner.

"I am delighted to accept this prestigious award on behalf of the Land Rover Design team," said Gerry McGovern, Design Director and Chief Creative Officer. "This is a particularly special accolade as it is represents recognition from peers in the industry."

Officially unveiled at the 2010 Paris motor show, the production Evoque is faithful to the Land Rover LRX concept created under the direction of Julian Thomson.

"The Evoque represents the best translation from concept car to production vehicle we have seen in recent times,” said Car Design News Editor, Eric Gallina. “It's clear to see why it was chosen." He noted the Evoque’s exceptional stance, dynamic proportions and crisp graphics which made it a clear favorite from the outset.

"The Evoque translates the brand identity of Range Rover to a smaller, very relevant product, without becoming retro or derivative," added Joe Simpson, Associate Editor.

Behind the Evoque, the Alfa Romeo Giulietta narrowly edged the Audi A7 into third place, followed by two from Kia, the Sportage and Optima, in fourth and fifth places.

The strong showing from Kia in both categories of the 2010 Awards gives evidence to the growing respect among the design community for the developments behind the brand.

Previous winners are:

2009: Aston Martin Rapide (production); Cadillac Converj (concept)

2008: Chevrolet Camaro (production); BMW GINA (concept)

2007: Fiat 500 (production); BMW Concept CS (concept)

2006: Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione (production); Saab Aero X (concept)

2005: Aston Martin DB9