To be eligible for an award, the vehicles had to be in production, and sold, on at least two continents during 2008. The cars were shortlisted from an original field of 39 new models by a panel of 47 judges comprised of automotive journalists and industry officials from 24 countries. The top three finalists in each category are as follows:
World Car
Ford Mondeo
Mazda2 / Mazda Demio
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
World Performance Car
Audi R8
Audi S5 Coupe
BMW M3
World Green Car
BMW 118d with Efficient Dynamics
SmartForTwo cdi
Volkswagen Passat 1.9 TDI
World Car Design
Audi R8
Mazda2 / Mazda Demio
Volvo C30