9:32 am, June 23, 2025
Auto Trader has been honouring the best new cars in Britain following a huge survey of more than 225,000 consumers.
The automotive giant last week hosted its ninth ‘Drivers’ Choice Awards’ which dishes out gongs based on the real world opinions of its drivers.
Formerly known as as the Auto Trader New Car awards, the night aims to reflect ‘genuine and accurate car owner sentiments’.
The results showed a growing love from the public for EVs, with 10 of the 25 winners being electric, including the overall car of the year.
Notable winners included the BMW i4, which won ‘Best Car for Families’; the Omoda 5, which won ‘Best Value New Car’ and the Hyundai Ioniq 5, which scooped the ‘Best Car for City Drivers’ gong.
There were also accolades for the Porsche Macan, which was named ‘Most Fun to Drive’ and the Skoda Enyaq, which drivers voted the ‘Best Car for Dog Owners’
Electric models were also crowned as the winners of the much-coveted Editor’s Choice awards, which were personally picked by Auto Trader’s editorial director Erin Baker and YouTube director Rory Reid.
Baker picked the Renault 5 as her car of the year, while Reid plumped for the Ferrari 12Cilindri.
Reacting to the results, Baker said: ‘It’s been an exciting time recently for car buyers as many brilliant and unique models including fully electric options have been released or updated by well-known automotive brands.
‘Not only this but new entrants from across the globe have emerged over the last twelve months that have started to capture the attention of consumers and challenge the more established brands.
‘That’s why we wanted to gather the expert opinion of over 225,000 car owners up and down the country to truly understand what makes these cars great both from a driving and ‘real world’ owning experience.
‘Whether it’s to take a family of four on a staycation, navigate the busy streets of an urban city or transport four legged friends, our survey was able to reveal the cars that truly led the way across different lifestyle factors.
‘It was fantastic to be able to crown so many deserving winners across 25 competitive categories.’
The winners were selected after UK consumers 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.
A full list of winners can be seen below:
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- Car of the Year – Kia EV3 (*Electric vehicle)
- Best Car for Families – BMW i4 (*Electric vehicle)
- Best Car for City Drivers – Hyundai Ioniq 5 (*Electric vehicle)
- Best Value New Car – Omoda 5
- Best Car for Long Distances – Renault Scenic E-Tech (*Electric vehicle)
- Most Fun to Drive – Porsche Macan (*Electric vehicle)
- Best Car for New Drivers – Volkswagen Golf
- Best Car for Dog Owners – Skoda Enyaq (*Electric vehicle)
- Best 7-seater – Hyundai Santa Fe
- Best Car for Towing – Volvo XC60
- Most Loved Car – Land Rover Defender 110
- Best Plug-in Hybrid Car – Toyota RAV4
- Best Mainstream Electric Car – Kia EV3 (*Electric vehicle)
- Best Premium Electric Car – BMW iX3 (*Electric vehicle)
- Best Luxury Car – Porsche 911
- Most Loved Brand – BYD
- Most Reliable Brand – Lexus
- Car Brand with the Best Tech – Tesla
- Best Value Brand – Dacia
- Editor’s Choice Erin Baker – Renault 5 (*Electric vehicle)
- Editor’s Choice Rory Reid – Ferrari 12Cilindri
- Sustainability Initiative Award – Renault
- Best Home Charger – Myenergi
- Most Anticipated Car – Jaguar 00 (*Electric vehicle)
- Media Campaign of the Year – JLR ‘House of Brands – RR Sport Editon 1’
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