World Car of the Year 2027: the 56 contenders for the title

The race for the 2027 World Car of the Year title has already begun. This week, the World Car Awards organisation officially launched the 23rd edition of the awards.

Over the coming months, 100 journalists and editors from around the world will drive, assess and vote on next year’s major new models. The process starts with a provisional list and concludes on 24 March 2027 at the New York International Auto Show.

Portugal will be represented on this international panel by Guilherme Costa, Co-founder and Publisher of Razão Automóvel. He is the only Portuguese juror among the 100 members taking part in the 2027 edition.

World Car Awards 2027 timetable

First finalists announced in January

One of the most significant stages of this process will take place in Pasadena, California, at the L.A. Test Drives. During this initial phase, running from 16 to 18 November, jurors will be able to drive and compare a number of the competing models under identical conditions.

Once the first voting round closes on 28 December, the World Car Finals will follow on 5 January. This is when the 10 finalists for the “World Car of the Year” title will be revealed, alongside the TOP 5 in each of the following categories: Urban Car, Luxury Car, Performance Car, Electric Car and Car Design.

During February, the World Car Person of the Year will be announced, while the three finalists in each category will also be confirmed.

According to the official timetable, the winners in every category will ultimately be announced on 24 March at the New York International Auto Show. This is when we will discover which contender succeeds the BMW iX3, winner of the 2026 World Car of the Year award:

The 2027 edition will also see the debut of the World Car Achievement of the Year, a new award intended to recognise a significant contribution to the automotive industry.

56 contenders for the main award

To qualify, models must be built in annual volumes exceeding 10,000 units and be available in at least two major markets on different continents between 1 January 2026 and 19 March 2027.

The provisional shortlist in the main category contains 56 models. It reflects the global scale of this award, bringing together cars from European, Chinese, American and South Korean brands. Meet the 56 contenders for the 2027 World Car of the Year title:

• BMW i3;
• Buick Electra E7;
• BYD Ti7;
• Changan Nevo Q05;
• Chery Q;
• Chevrolet Aveo;
• Chevrolet Captiva EV / PHEV;
• Cupra Raval;
• Deepal S05;
• Deepal S07;
• DS N°7;
• Exeed Exlantix ET;
• Exeed RX;
• GAC Aion UT;
• GAC Aion V;
• Geely EX2;
• Geely Starray EM-i;
• Hyundai Bayon;
• Hyundai IONIQ 3;
• Hyundai Tucson;
• iCAUR v23;
• Infiniti QX65;
• Jetour G700;
• Jetour T2;
• Kia EV2;
• Kia Seltos;
• Kia Syros EV;
• Kia Telluride;
• Leapmotor B10;
• Leapmotor C10;
• Leapmotor T03;
• Lepas L6 EV;
• Lepas L8 PHEV;
• Lexus ES;
• Lincoln Corsair;
• Lynk & Co 900;
• Mazda CX-5;
• Mazda CX-6e;
• Mercedes-Benz electric C-Class;
• Mercedes-Benz electric GLC;
• Mercedes-Benz GLA;
• MG4 Urban;
• Nissan Frontier Pro;
• Nissan NX8;
• Omoda 4;
• Onvo L90;
• Polestar 4 SUV;
• Renault Filante;
• Subaru Trailseeker;
• Subaru Uncharted;
• Volkswagen Atlas / Teramont Pro;
• Volvo EX60;
• XPeng G6 2026 Edition;
• XPeng L03;
• XPeng P7+;
• Zeekr 8X;

According to AITASTIC data cited by the organisation, the World Car Awards were the automotive awards programme with the greatest worldwide media visibility for the 14th consecutive year. The 2026 edition reached more than 493 million people.