Kia, Tesla, Volvo among winners in Auto Trader New Car of the Year Awards for 2023

From a vote of 220,000 car owners the Kia EV6 has been crowned the UK’s New Car of the Year 2023 in the seventh annual Auto Trader New Car Awards.

In addition to the Kia EV6 taking this year’s most prestigious Award, other notable electric wins include the Best Car for Families category (Tesla Model Y), as well as Best Car for City Drivers (Nissan Leaf), Best Car for New Drivers (Renault Zoe), Most Loved Car (Hyundai IONIQ 5), and, highlighting just how reliable its charging infrastructure is, Tesla’s Model 3 won the award for Best Car for Long Distances.

With climate concerns high on the world stage and in the public’s consciousness, electric vehicles (EV) dominated the Awards once again in 2023, with an EV taking the top spot for the fourth consecutive year. 

This year nine electric models won one of the 23 different award categories, the highest number since the inaugural Auto Trader New Car Awards in 2017, and with two hybrid models winning their respective categories, 58% of the model specific awards this year were low-emission vehicles.

Given the growing popularity of electric, this year Auto Trader introduced a Best Home Charger Category, which was won by myenergi. 

Erin Baker, Auto Trader’s editorial director, said: “With so much choice in the market, it can be a challenge for people to find the right car, which is where our awards can help.

"With such an enormous number of owners telling us exactly how they feel about their car, they’re the most accurate indicator of consumer opinion. And with categories based on how owners actually use their cars in the ‘real-world’, it offers buyers invaluable insight into which makes and models could best suit their lifestyle.”

The full list of winners is

• New Car of the Year – Kia EV6 *electric vehicle
• Best Car for Families – Tesla Model Y *electric vehicle
• Best Car for City Drivers – Nissan Leaf *electric vehicle
• Best Value New Car – Dacia Sandero Stepway
• Best Car for Long Distances – Tesla Model 3 *electric vehicle
• Most Fun to Drive – Ford Mustang
• Best Car for New Drivers – Renault Zoe *electric vehicle
• Best Car for Dog Owners – Toyota RAV4
• Best 7-Seater Car – Peugeot 5008
• Best Car for Towing – Volvo V90 Cross Country
• Most Loved Car – Hyundai IONIQ 5 *electric vehicle
• Best Hybrid – Honda CR-V
• Best Value Electric Car – Kia Soul *electric vehicle
• Best Premium Electric Car – BMW iX3 *electric vehicle
• Best Luxury Car – Bentley Bentayga
• Most Loved Brand – Porsche 
• Most Reliable Brand – Lexus
• Car brand with the best tech – Tesla *electric vehicle
• Best Value Brand – Dacia
• The Erin Baker Award – Hyundai IONIQ 6 *electric vehicle
• The Rory Reid Award – Porsche 911 GT3 RS
• Sustainability Initiative Award – Citroen (voted on by the Carbon Literacy Trust)
• Best Home Charger - myenergi

Auto Trader said the huge number of consumer votes not only makes the Awards a genuine and accurate reflection of car owner sentiments, but it also marks one of the largest automotive votes of its kind, with 2023 far exceeding last year’s then record of 156,500 votes.