(Thu 15 Dec 05)

The Kia Rio has won the Autobest 2006 award voted for by a panel of journalists from Eastern Europe. The Rio won for being "the new car most suitable for the needs of the population of the region, thoroughly modern with new technology and affordable to buy."

The countries represented by the panel include Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Romania, Poland, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine -  a total market of more than 200 million people.

Announcing the 2006 winner, Autobest Chairman Mr Dan Vardie commented, "This year's competition was very tight, and the Kia Rio emerged as the winner thanks to its fantastic value for money, great versatility, and the important strides made by Kia in developing an excellent dealer network across all of Europe."

The other shortlisted cars were the Ford Focus, the Renault Clio, the Chevrolet Spark  known as Matiz in some markets) and the Suzuki Swift.

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