The winners of the 2026 World Car Awards were announced today during a special ceremony at the New York International Auto Show.
Six categories are part of the prestigious global automotive awards program, now in its 23rd year. The jury, comprised of 98 international automotive journalists from 33 countries, evaluated each eligible vehicle as part of their regular work throughout the year. The votes were compiled by the firm KPMG.
After two years of success for Kia with the EV9 (2024) and EV3 (2025), the BMW iX3 took the top honor in 2026 as the World Car of the Year, beating out the Hyundai Palisade and Nissan LEAF. It also won the title of World Electric Vehicle of the Year, surpassing the LEAF and the Mercedes-Benz CLA.
This new electric SUV, expected to arrive in the summer of 2026, marks the beginning of BMW’s revolutionary “Neue Klasse” line. Comparable in size to the X3 petrol model, the iX3 competes directly with the Tesla Model Y. In the 50 xDrive version, the two electric motors deliver a combined power of 463 horsepower, and the 108.7 kWh battery provides an estimated range of over 650 km. The vehicle’s maximum charging capacity of 400 kW is unprecedented for a vehicle sold in Canada.
Another electric SUV, the Lucid Gravity, was awarded the title of World Luxury Car of the Year. Powerful and refined, it impresses with its capabilities, including fast charging, driving performance, and efficient technologies. Spacious and well-equipped, it offers a range of 542 km with an 89 kWh battery. The Grand Touring version goes even further with 724 km thanks to a 123 kWh battery. The other finalists in this category were the Cadillac Vistiq and Volvo ES90.
In the category of World Performance Car of the Year, another all-electric model took home the trophy, the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N. It was preferred over the BMW M2 CS (petrol) and Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray (hybrid) by the jury.
The winning Urban Car of the Year was the Chinese Firefly from the new Nio brand, beating the Baojun Yep Plus/Chevrolet Spark EUV and Hyundai Venue. The Firefly is not expected to come to Canada.
Finally, in the World Car Design of the Year category, another model sold in China and Europe won the award: the Mazda EZ-6/6e. This stunning Japanese sedan, embodying a new evolution of Mazda’s Kodo design language in the electric era, outshone the Kia PV5 and Volvo ES90.
