The Middle East region has always seen the popularity of Asian and American cars. The first ever CAR ME Awards however saw the emergence of recognition for the European manufacturers. The inaugural CAR ME Awards had a total of 14 categories, out of which ten were claimed by European manufacturers. The CAR ME awards function was an impressive ceremony with glitterati from the automotive industry.

The editor of CAR ME magazine, Shahzad Sheikh expressed his surprise about the domination of European manufactured models despite a good collection of cars from all over the world. He further went on to add that the image, style and performance of the European cars were far superior to all other competitors. Most of the categories had no competition at all. The judging process depended on factors like market positioning, innovation and quality and these attributes in particular contributed to the winners. The awards were decided under the patronage of Mohammed Ben Sulayem- 14 time FIA Middle East Champion.

The cars of the UK manufacturers surpassed in the performance category. The German cars were on the top in the luxury category. The European and UK cars had first class rating in the SUV and passenger rankings.  The most coveted title of the Car of the Year was bagged by a UK manufacturer. Chevrolet Lumina SS stood first in the performance section. Mercedes C- Class came first in the luxury section. The Car of the Year went to Aston Martin V8 Vantage Sportshift. The Concept Car of the Year was awarded to VW Golf W12-650.