The Toyota iQ has won the Japan Car of the Year award, scoring more than double the points of the runner-up.
The iQ, which with its three-metre length is claimed to be the world's smallest four-seater passenger car, received top marks from 39 of the 65 jurors who voted.
It scored more than double the points awarded to its nearest rival, Citroën's C5 executive sedan, and also out-voted the fiery Nissan GT-R, which is due in SA during the course of 2009.
In romping to victory, iQ was praised for its design and space efficiency as well as its safety equipment and low CO2 emissions.
In Japan Car of the Year, each of the jurors has 25 points, of which 10 are given to one car and the remaining 15 points are divided among four other cars.
Forty one cars were nominated in the contest's 29th year.
The results:
Toyota iQ - 526 points
Citroën C5 - 223 points
Nissan GT-R - 201 points
Audi A4/A4 Avant - 180 points
Jaguar XF - 115 points
Daihatsu Tanto - 100 points
Fiat 500 - 90 points
Honda Freed - 62 points
Mazda Atenza (Mazda6) - 60 points
Suzuki Wagon R/Wagon R Stingray - 37 points
Subaru Exiga - 31 points