The seven-strong shortlist has been named for the 2026 Car of the Year.
The list includes the Citroën C5 Aircross, Dacia Bigster, Fiat Grande Panda, Kia EV4, Mercedes-Benz CLA, Renault 4 and Skoda Elroq.
A total of 59 jurors from 23 countries each selected seven cars from a long list of 35 cars. The seven cars with the most votes each made the shortlist.
The winner will be announced at the Brussels motor show on 9 January after final testing from jurors and an additional round of voting.
Notable models overlooked from the shortlist include the Nissan Leaf, Toyota C-HR+, Hyundai Ioniq 9, Jeep Compass and BYD Dolphin Surf.
The current holder of the Car of the Year title is the Renault 5 and related Alpine A290. Renault will be looking to claim the title for a third straight year with the 4, after the Renault Scenic won the Car of the Year title in 2024.
Dacia and Skoda are the only brands on the shortlist to have never won Car of the Year. The Dacia Duster was shortlisted last year and came fourth overall. The most recent Skoda on the shortlist was the Skoda Enyaq iV in 2022.
Kia won the 2022 edition with the Kia EV6 and has since made the shortlist with the Kia EV9 and Kia EV3 models.
Mercedes-Benz last won the title in 1974 with the 450SE. The new CLA is the first Mercedes to make the shortlist since the Mercedes A-Class in 2019.
Fiat is a serial winner of Car of the Year, having scooped the prize with the 124 in 1967, the 128 in 1970, the 127 in 1972, the Uno in 1984, the Tipo in 1989, the Punto in 1995, the Bravo/Brava in 1996, the Panda in 2004 and most recently the 500 in 2008.
Citroën has frequently made the shortlist but has won the overall prize on only three occasions: the GS in 1971, the CX in 1975 and the XM in 1990.
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Lots of good cars on that list but I think Dacia should win it. A practical, well equipped, good looking car with a decent price that redefines low cost in its class.
The C5 also looks interesting but in electric with the larger battery - a good looking, comfortable car and not very expensive.
The CLA is a leap forward technology wise but some design choices are at the very least questionable, particularly inside.
The EV4, as already mentioned by superstevie, is ugly and not much above the EV3 which is excelent.
The Skoda is a decent car, robust, well priced.
It would be great to see the Dacia win it, it is a lot of car for not a lot of money. Would be cool to see a hatrick from Renault as well, though. The only car I am not fussed on in this list is the EV4. It is quite an ugly car, and doesn't offer much over the EV3
That's a lot if good cars and a good list. No easy pick.
While I would love to see Skoda win ( Ye about that. How the hell have they not won it yet? They make great cars. The Octavia should have won it long ago the perfect family car) anyway as I was saying I would love to see Skoda win but dont think it will be this year.
I think a small car needs to win. Would love to see Renault win it again and get a Hattrick that would be great but the Grande Panda could win either or maybe the slightly larger KIA EV4.