TOMORROW is a big day in the car world.
Really big day.
Sixty jurors from 23 countries, including yours truly, will award points to seven finalists to decide the 2026 European Car of the Year.
Think Eurovision Song Contest for cars. But with fewer sequins.
The contenders are:
- Citroen C5 Aircross
- Dacia Bigster
- Fiat Grande Panda
- Kia EV4; Mercedes CLA
- Renault 4
- Skoda Elroq
I’m not allowed to tell you how I divided my 25 votes just yet. People bet on these things, apparently.
But I can tell you my rankings. I reckon this year’s contest is W-I-D-E open after Renault went back-to-back in 2024 and 2025.
The winner will be announced at the Brussels Motor Show.
1. MERCEDES CLA: The car I’d buy with my own money. Efficient. Intelligent. Quiet. Sophisticated. Effortless. And so hovercraft-smooth you’d think it has air suspension. It doesn’t.
Steel. That’s engineering at its best for you.
The CLA has a 484-mile battery by the WLTP test and a clever two-speed auto gearbox for added efficiency. We nudged 400 in the real world. Rapid 800v charging sucks up 200 miles of juice in just ten minutes.
So it’s a proper long-range cruiser that’s easy to live with. The “Hey Mercedes” personal assistant is the best in the business. Like having a proper conversation with a car. The galaxy of illuminated stars in the front grille is too Burberry for me — but you can’t see them from the driver’s seat.
2. KIA EV4: Another peach from Kia’s ever-growing EV line-up. EV4 is an impressive five-door hatchback that looks great and drives sweetly.
Multi-link rear axle. Smooth acceleration. Braking regen paddles on the steering wheel to mimic changing down gears for a bend.
The chassis could easily handle more power. The biggest 81kWh battery will do 390 miles by the official WLTP test. Closer to 320 miles in the real world.
Way more than a Vauxhall Astra Electric can manage.
The cabin is a copy-and-paste of Kia’s other award-winning EVs. Which means a nice mix of screens and hard controls, cup holders and chargers for everyone, lots of recycled materials and lots of space.
EV4 has 10cm more legroom in the back than a Tesla Model 3 and a wide-opening boot that swallows loads more stuff than a Focus, Golf or Astra.
3. RENAULT 4: Put one of these through an X-ray machine and you’ll see it has the same bones as a Renault 5, 2025 European Car of the Year. Good start.
It drives like an R5. Feels like an R5. Makes me happy like an R5. The difference being that R4 is a bit longer and taller and has a bigger boot. So it’s more practical. Better for dogs.
It also has a low, flat loading sill like the Sixties original. As much as 10cm lower than the competition.
Also, there’s a four-wheel drive R4 in the pipeline for people who might actually do “lifestyle-y” things with it at the weekend. Plus, a cool canvas rollback roof.
My only real frustration with this car is the range. The 52kWh battery will do up to 247 miles and recharges to 80 per cent in a 30-minute tea-and-pee break. But it could do with a bit more.
4. CITROEN C5 AIRCROSS: The comfy one. C5 Aircross is all about family life.
Sofa-like seats. Suspension that’s pillow soft. But with a second layer of springing, so it doesn’t pitch like a dinghy on dipping roads.
There’s plenty of room in the back for tall adults, plus sockets and pockets for all, so everyone’s happy.
Up front, the “waterfall” centre console looks great and carries loads of technology (the only Stellantis motor with an upright touchscreen). Yet there’s simple controls for things like volume and disabling the bleedin’ annoying lane-keep assist.
It’s almost like this car was designed by an actual person who leads an actual life.
Families also have the choice of three power types — petrol mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid or pure electric — all at sensible prices.
5=. DACIA BIGSTER: Dacia makes factory-fresh motors at second-hand prices. Duster was a deserved 2025 finalist and now we have Bigster, which is a leeetle bit bigger and a leeetle bit plusher than a Duster.
Good car. Drives nicely enough. Does good numbers. Looks chiselled, tough and cool. The 1.2-litre petrol turbo has the option of 4WD, so it won’t get stuck taking the kids to Scout camp.
Serious alternative to the mega-selling Sportage and Qashqai at a price more people can afford.
5=. FIAT GRANDE PANDA: I’m fully expecting Grande Panda to score well with other jurors — and probably win. But I was disappointed.
Fiats should always be ABC — affordable but cool — and Grande Panda absolutely is. Especially on white steel wheels. And I really like P-A-N-D-A stamped in big letters on the doors.
But the soundproofing is poor. Fit and finish should be better. And the EV goes half as far as you tell your friends it does. Like 120 miles in the real world.
I’d only recommend the petrol hybrid.
5=. SKODA ELROQ: I’m a big fan of the Elroq — basically a cut-price Enyaq with a smaller boot.
It has the same wheelbase. The same in-car tech and soft-touch textiles. The same menu of batteries. The same smooth acceleration and supple suspension.
Also, being a Skoda, there’s lots of clever touches including a charging cable net under the parcel shelf. At the start of 2025, Elroq was a truly impressive EV for the money. Then Kia’s EV4 and the Nissan Leaf rocked up.
