Among the seven finalists for the “Car of the Year 2025” award, five of them are electric cars. These include the Kia EV3, Hyundai Inster, Citroën e-C3, Alfa Romeo Junior, and the French duo Renault 5 / Alpine A290. This was the result of the preliminary round of the international competition. The expert jury, consisting of 59 automotive journalists from 23 European countries, selected these seven vehicles from the original 42 new models introduced in 2024. The finalists will undergo extensive technical and dynamic tests in the coming weeks. The winner of the “Car of the Year 2025” award will be announced on January 10, 2025, at the Brussels Motor Show in Belgium.
In addition to the five electric cars, the Cupra Terramar, which is also available as a plug-in hybrid, and the Dacia Duster, the only model in the final round that is not an electric car or at least a part-time electric vehicle, are also part of the final round. All powertrain options will be considered during the tests, including the combustion engine versions of the Alfa Romeo Junior and Citroën C3.
One noticeable aspect is that, apart from the Terramar, which measures around 4.5 meters, the finalists are mainly small cars. The Renault 5 and Hyundai Inster are less than four meters long, and the Citroën e-C3 is just above this mark. This shift towards more efficient and affordable cars is evident when comparing the current finalists with the top models from previous years, which were often larger and more expensive vehicles like the BMW 5 Series, VW ID.Buzz, Kia EV6, Porsche Taycan, and Volvo XC 90.
Interestingly, Germany and China, known as leading automotive nations, are absent from the final round. Instead, Italy, France, Spain, Romania, and Korea are represented. Germany and China had promising candidates on the longlist, such as the Audi A5, A6 e-tron, Q6 e-tron, BMW X3, Ford Capri, Explorer, Opel Grandland, Frontera, Porsche Macan, and Volkswagen Passat, which did not make it to the final round. The Chinese models BYD Seal U, Nio EL8, and Xpeng G6 were also not considered by the judges. The high-quality competition highlights the achievement of the seven finalists.
If an electric car wins the award – and the chances are quite good – it would not be the first time. In 2011, the Nissan Leaf won as the first-ever electric car. The Jaguar iPace, Kia EV6, Jeep Avenger, and Renault Scénic E-Tech have also been previous winners of the “Car of the Year” award. If an electric car wins this time, it would be the fourth consecutive victory for electric vehicles.
