The Peugeot 3008, a new kind of car competing in a new category, sensationally walked off with the car of the year title at the 33rd annual motoring 'Oscars' - the What Car? Awards.

The Peugeot 3008, a new kind of car competing in a new category, sensationally walked off with the car of the year title at the 33rd annual motoring 'Oscars' - the What Car? Awards.

The 3008 is a crossover which blends the looks and high driving position of a 4x4 with elements of a family hatchback and an multi-purpose vehicle (MPV).

It also claimed victory in the new crossover class introduced by What Car? this year, while the Peugeot 5008 was named best MPV.

What Car? editor Steve Fowler said: 'Crossover cars will be big news in the next few years with people who want the look and feel of a 4x4, but without the financial and environmental costs.

'The 3008 fills that brief perfectly - it's got the looks people want, the space they need, it's great to drive, and it's well priced and cheap to run.'

Peugeot UK managing director Jon Goodman said: 'This is a fantastic result for all the Peugeot UK team and its dealer network, coming as it does in the year that the Peugeot brand celebrates its 200th anniversary. Both the 3008 and the 5008 will broaden the appeal of the Peugeot brand to customers old and new, and the ultimate endorsement of three What Car? awards will help both new cars to even greater success.'

Eleven brand new or heavily-revised cars unseated 2009 award winners this year.

British honour was upheld by the refreshed Jaguar XF and Land Rover Discovery, which won the executive and 4x4 categories respectively.

Audi joined Peugeot in picking up three titles, for best coup� (TT), best performance car (R8 V10) and the security award.

There were double wins for Volkswagen (Polo and Golf in the supermini and small family car classes); Mazda, which collected the family car and estate car prizes with different versions of the Mazda 6; BMW, triumphant in the open-top class with the Z4 and the compact executive category with the 3 Series; and Mercedes-Benz, which won the safety award to go with the luxury car prize for the updated S-Class.

Finally, Renault dominated the hot-hatch award with three contenders, and the thrilling Renault M�gane Renaultsport Cup taking the category win.

The Audi A1 won the reader award for the most exciting new car of 2010 after an online poll on the What Car? website - whatcar.com.

2010 ROLL OF HONOUR

Overall car of the year: Peugeot 3008 1.6 THP Sport.

Supermini: VW Polo 1.4 SE, �12,720.

Small family: VW Golf 1.4 TSI SE, �17,456.

Family: Mazda 6 2.2D 163 TS, �18,708.

Estate: Mazda 6 2.2D 163 TS, �19,382.

MPV: Peugeot 5008 1.6 HDI 110 Active, �18,794.

Hot-hatch: Renault M�gane Renaultsport 250 Cup, �22,473.

Coup�: Audi TT 2.0 TFSI, �25,972.

Open-top: BMW Z4 sDrive23i, �29,272.

Performance: Audi R8 V10, �101,744.

Crossover: Peugeot 3008 1.6 THP Sport, �18,399.

4x4: Land Rover Discovery TDV6 XS, �41,375.

Compact executive: BMW 320d ES, �25,936.

Executive: Jaguar XF 3.0D V6 Luxury, �34,636.

Luxury: Mercedes-Benz S350CDI Blue Efficiency, �57,110.

Security: Audi.

Safety: Mercedes-Benz Attention Assist system.

Reader award: Audi A1.