The investment made by Fiat Group Automobiles SpA in Serbia, to create one of the most modern car factories in Europe, has just been recognised by a leading awards jury.

Autobest, the motoring organisation of the emerging markets of Europe, voted unanimously in favour of Fiat, heralding the company’s transformation of an old factory into today’s state of the art Kragujevac plant, the largest car-making facility in south east Europe.

The factory has just begun production of the new Fiat 500L compact  MPV, which will soon be exported to 100 markets worldwide, including the US.

The 500L has also been named in the Autobest awards, alongside the Dacia Lodgy, Ford B-Max, Peugeot 301 and Skoda Rapid. The five finalists of Autobest 2013 will undergo a final assessment in the first week of December, with the winning announcement being made later that month.

“The transformation of this old factory is incredible,” says Ilia Seliktar, Autobest President. “Fiat deployed the latest technologies available today in the industry. It is one of the most modern car factories in Europe.”

The Autobest organization is the only international independent jury focusing on ‘best buy’ cars available on the European markets. It also monitors the efforts made by the automotive industry. Investments, new job opportunities, spending funds for ecological initiatives, and the support for the emerging regions of Europe are all checked by the jury, who this year come from 15 European countries.