Car of the Century facts for kids

The Car of the Century (COTC) was a special international award. It was given to the most important car from the 20th century. A group called the Global Automotive Elections Foundation managed the whole process. The winner was the Ford Model T. It was announced at a big party on December 18, 1999, in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

1st place: Ford Model T

How the Best Car Was Chosen

Choosing the Car of the Century was a very detailed process. It began in October 1996. First, a committee suggested a list of 700 cars. These cars were recommended by experts from the car industry and car clubs.

Narrowing Down the Choices

In February 1997, a list of 200 cars was announced at a car show in Amsterdam. These cars were chosen from the original 700 by a special group of independent and respected car experts.

Next, a jury of 133 professional car journalists from 33 countries took over. They reduced the list to 100 cars. This result was shared at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1997.

The Final Nominees

The process continued with two ways to pick more cars. People could vote online to choose 10 cars. At the same time, the jury of professionals selected 25 cars. It turned out that 9 of the 10 cars chosen by the public were also on the journalists' list! The AC Cobra was the one extra car chosen by the public. So, a total of 26 cars were announced as nominees in March 1999 at the Geneva Motor Show. These 26 cars would go on to the next round.

2nd place: Mini

3rd place: Citroën DS

4th place: Volkswagen Beetle

5th place: Porsche 911

The 26 Nominated Cars

Make	Type	Year	Country
AC	Cobra	1965–1967	UK/US
Alfa Romeo	Giulietta Sprint Coupé	1954–1968	Italy
Audi	Quattro	1980–1991	Germany
Austin	Seven	1922–1939	UK
BMW	BMW 328	1936–1940	Germany
Bugatti	T35	1926–1930	France
Chevrolet	Corvette Stingray	1963–1967	US
Citroën	Traction Avant	1934–1957	France
	2CV	1948–1990	France
	DS19	1955–1975	France
Ferrari	250 GT SWB Berlinetta	1959–1962	Italy
Fiat	500 Topolino	1936–1948	Italy
Ford	Model T	1908–1927	US
	Mustang	1964–1968	US
Jaguar	XK120	1948–1954	UK
	E-Type	1961–1975	UK
Land Rover	Range Rover	1970–present	UK
Mercedes-Benz	S/SS/SSK	1927–1932	Germany
	300 SL Coupé	1954–1957	Germany
Morris/Austin	Mini	1959–2000	UK
NSU	Ro 80	1967–1976	Germany
Porsche	911	1964–present	Germany
Renault	Espace	1984–present	France
Rolls-Royce	Silver Ghost	1907–1925	UK
Volkswagen	Beetle	1938–2003	Germany
	Golf	1974–present	Germany
Willys	Jeep	1941–1945	US

From these 26 cars, the jury had to choose five finalists. They used a points system to decide. The names of the final five cars were announced at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1999.

The Top 5 Cars of the Century

The jury members each ranked the five finalist cars in their favorite order. Then, all the results were combined using a points system. Here are the final results, showing which cars were chosen as the most important of the 20th century:

See also

In Spanish: Automóvil del Siglo para niños

• Car Designer of the Century
• Car Engineer of the Century
• Car Entrepreneur of the Century
• Car Executive of the Century
• List of motor vehicle awards