The shortlist for the 2026 UK Car of the Year award have been announced with Vertu brands taking all eight nomination positions for the overall title.
The title is essentially the UK equivalent of the prestigious European Car of the Year award, which for 2026 was clinched by the Mercedes CLA.
Where it differs from its counterpart is devising a shortlist that will go through to battle for the overall crown via nominating the best model of the year in eight categories.
As a result, the big winner already from the nominations is Audi, which topped the standings in two of the eight segments; the Audi A6 in the Executive Car category and the Audi A6 Avant in the Estate Car ranking.
Despite having two nods, Audi still faces tough opposition from rivals in the remaining six categories with the multi award-winning Renault 5 up for honours in the Small Car section, while the sister Alpine A290 goes forward as a representative of the Performance Car class.
The top Family Car was the Kia EV4, which will now attempt to make it three-in-a-row for the Korean manufacturer after the EV9 and EV3 were victorious overall in 2024 and 2025.
Elsewhere, the new Citroen C3 and C3-Aircross were recognised in the Small Crossover category, while the Skoda Elroq emerged top of the Medium Crossover category.
With the Renault 5, Kia EV4 and Skoda Elroq already highlighting the growing popularity of electric vehicles, the shortlist is rounded off by another zero emissions vehicle in the Hyundai IONIQ 9, which was the best Large Crossover.
Established in 2014, the UK Car of the Year Awards are voted for by a 33-strong panel of esteemed motoring journalists. The overall winner will be announced on 26th February 2026.
Full list of UK Car of the Year Awards 2026 category winners:
Small Car – Renault 5
Family Car – Kia EV4
Small Crossover – Citroen C3 and Citroen C3-Aircross
Medium Crossover – Skoda Elroq
Large Crossover – Hyundai IONIQ 9
Executive Car – Audi A6
Estate Car – Audi A6 Avant
Performance Car – Alpine A290
- New Cars
- Hyundai
- Citroen
- Renault
- Audi
- Skoda
- Kia