Victory for voltage as electric dominates Auto Trader New Car Awards 2023
23 award categories, with finalists and overall winners determined by the real-world opinion of 220,000 UK car owners.
Yesterday the Kia EV6 was crowned the UK’s New Car of the Year 2023, according to a consumer vote featuring the real-world opinions of 220,000 car owners at the seventh annual Auto Trader New Car Awards. 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 exceeding last year’s then record of 156,500 votes.
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. In fact, 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.
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.
Kia wasn’t the only South Korean brand that won big this year. Hyundai’s IONIQ 6 won the much-coveted Erin Baker Award which is chosen personally by Auto Trader’s Editorial Director. Rory Reid, Auto Trader’s YouTube Director opted for something with a little more old-fashioned oomph under the bonnet for his Rory Reid Award category, the Porsche 911 GT3 RS.
The Auto Trader New Car Awards are different from other car awards as the winners aren’t decided on by the opinions of motoring journalists or ‘industry insiders’, but by the people whose opinion matters most to automotive brands: car owners. This year, over 220,000 UK car owners completed an online survey sharing exactly what they think of their car, with their thoughts and opinions (obtained from real-world experience) determining the winners of 20 of this year’s 23 award categories, with the exception being The Erin Baker Award, The Rory Reid Award, and the Sustainability Initiative Award.
The winners for the Auto Trader New Car Awards 2023 are:
Erin Baker, Auto Trader’s Editorial Director, said: Erin Baker, Auto Trader’s Editorial Director, said: “After a challenging few years, we’ve seen the new car market bounce back from recent lows with May marking the 10th consecutive month of sales growth. This is not only the result of supply taps reopening, but also the wave of exciting new models and updates released over the last year, which have really captured the attention of car buyers. 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.”
Within the survey, car owners who have bought, driven and lived with their cars were asked to rate them according to a range of lifestyle factors. This methodology ensures that these awards are a true reflection of what UK consumers think of their car and what they want from it. People were asked to rate their cars across 16 different criteria, from reliability and performance to appearance and running costs. They were also asked about their overall satisfaction with their car and how likely they would be to recommend it to others. Independent analysts then used this data to determine the finalists for 20 of the categories – the full list of which can be found below.
A full list of winners and finalists can also be found here: www.autotrader.co.uk/new-car-awards
Notes to Editors:
Full New Car Awards Shortlist:
About Auto Trader
Auto Trader Group plc is the UK’s largest automotive marketplace. It listed on the London Stock Exchange in March 2015 and is a member of the FTSE 100 Index.
Auto Trader’s purpose is Driving Change Together. Responsibly. Auto Trader is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive culture, it aims to build stronger partnerships with its customers and use its voice and influence to drive more environmentally friendly vehicle choices.
With the largest number of car buyers and the largest choice of trusted stock, Auto Trader’s marketplace sits at the heart of the UK car buying process. That marketplace is built on an industry-leading technology and data platform, which is increasingly used across the automotive industry. Auto Trader is continuing to bring more of the car buying journey online, creating an improved buying experience, whilst enabling all its retailer partners to sell vehicles online.
Auto Trader publishes a monthly used car Retail Price Index which is based on pricing analysis of circa 800,000 unique vehicles. This data is used by the Bank of England to feed the broader UK economic indicators.
For more information, please visit: https://plc.autotrader.co.uk/
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Andrew Nankervis | Andrew.Nankervis@autotrader.co.uk 07720 896760
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