Because Audi and Mercedes cars performed well, German manufacturers took first place in five out of seven categories. The Audi A2 had the lead in the small cars, the Audi A6 in the upper class and the Audi convertible in the sports cars. In the lower middle class, the Mercedes-A-Class won, and the M-Class turned out to be the most reliable off-road vehicle. The Japanese were only able to choose the middle class with the Mazda 6.http://www.sueddeutsche.de/,tt2m2/automobil /articles/111/52059/ And by the way in the last AMS :