Affordable electric cars and compact SUVs set the tone for the 2026 Car of the Year

The Car of the Year nominees always represent the current state of the year’s car market as they compete and are carefully evaluated to assess how well they adapt to the needs of drivers, in mechanical, aesthetic and comfort terms.

Through the versions, you can clearly see what kind of engines and silhouettes the manufacturers are proposing to the market, and for the 2026 award, you can see that of the 12 cars presented, all of them have some kind of electric propulsion assistance, and only two of them do not offer a zero-emission version.

Another noticeable trend is the design: there is no sedan among the candidates, and 10 of them are SUVs, most of them in the most popular segment of the market, the small car segment. Moreover, 2026 marks the final arrival of the type of model that was expected on the European market: affordable electric cars – the first of which was embodied by the Renault 5 last year. Thus, three of the cars competing this year are zero-emission and priced at less than €26,000 before purchasing incentives apply, making decarbonisation within reach of a large part of the population.

Although Chinese brands have already entered the competition, it can be seen that they account for a larger share this year, in line with the market reality. Thus, BYD, Chery Group (Ebro) and Leapmotor come to stand against their European competitors.

Candidates

BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer, arrives as a rival to a small urban model, the Dolphin Surf, which has the biggest selling price, starting at 18,870 euros. This, coupled with a range of up to 322 kilometers in its most capable version, highlights the brand’s commitment to the mass market.

The Citroën C5 Aircross is Chevron’s largest SUV and has hybrid – mild and plug-in – and electric versions. It also represents a new, more futuristic design language for the brand.

The Dacia Bigster represents the Romanian manufacturer’s entry into a new segment for itself, the mid-sized SUV segment. In addition, it is the first time that it has “luxuries” such as electrical seat adjustment.

With an SUV silhouette but a more compact size comes the Ebro S400, which comes from the Chery Group factory in Barcelona. It is only available with a hybrid engine, and its price is very low.

Stellantis, in addition to Citroën, also presents Fiat, Leapmotor and Opel as candidates. The first of these is a compact, urban SUV, an evolution of the popular Panda’s design with hybrid and electric engines, while the second, larger one, offers an extended-range hybrid system that uses gasoline as a generator but behaves like an electric one.

Frontera is distinguished by its versatility and efficiency. This SUV is 4.38 meters long and offers a large boot capacity of 460 liters, which can reach 1,600 liters by folding the seats. It is available in hybrid and 100% electric versions.

The Leapmotor C10 is the first model of the Chinese brand distributed by the Stellantis Group in Spain. This 4.73 meter long SUV offers a large trunk with a capacity of 435 liters and a versatile front boot with a capacity of 32 liters. The C10 comes in two versions. The electric model (BEV) with 218 horsepower has a range of 420 kilometers. The Range Extended Edition (REEV) combines petrol and electricity, achieving an impressive total range of 970 km.

The Inster represents Hyundai’s entry into the affordable electric vehicle segment, condensing it into a compact size, futuristic design and a spacious, versatile interior. Its industry group sibling, the Kia EV3, offers only a decent 204bhp but can be optioned with ranges in excess of 600km.

At the top of the range of candidates is the Lexus RZ with build quality that has enhanced brand recognition and 408 horsepower.

The Renault 4 is based on the architecture of last year’s winner, but instead of being ultra-compact, it has SUV proportions and a design reminiscent of the legendary model of the past.

Finally, the Skoda Elroq represents the VW Group’s commitment to an electric compact SUV. It is 4.49 meters long and has a large 470-litre boot, ideal for families.

It is offered with several engine options, from the 170 hp Elroq 50 with 376 km of autonomous, to the powerful Elroq 85 with 286 hp and 578 km of autonomous.

Vote

Starting today at 9:00, voting for the best car of the year 2026 will be opened via the “mejorcoche.abc.es” page, which will close at midnight on December 5, 2025. The jury is divided into 29 journalists specialized in the field of cars, whose participation will constitute 70% of the final decision.

The remaining 30% will be distributed to ABC readers: 25% to newspaper subscribers, and the remaining 5% can go to any registered user. Each registered user will be able to vote once per day during the specified period. For their part, ABC Premium subscribers will only be able to cast one vote in the entire contest. The professional jury, for its part, will have to send an email containing its considerations to the notary, who will be responsible, at the beginning of December, for revealing the winner of the 54th edition of the ABC Car of the Year award.