56 Car of the Year nominees announced, including 27 Chinese brands

The initial 56 models that will compete in the main category of the prestigious 2027 World Car of the Year awards have been announced. A notable feature of the list is that 27 of the nominees belong to Chinese brands.

To compete in the award’s main category, a vehicle must meet certain requirements. According to the criteria cited by the source, the model’s annual production must be at least 10 000 units, it must be priced below luxury cars in its main market, and it must officially go on sale in two major markets on at least two continents between 1 January 2026 and 19 March 2027.

The nominees include the BMW i3, Hyundai IONIQ 3, Kia Telluride, Mazda CX-5, Volvo EX60 and Mercedes-Benz’s new electric models. Chinese manufacturers are represented by the BYD Ti7, Chery Q, Deepal S07, Geely Starray EM-i, Leapmotor T03, Lynk & Co 900, Onvo L90, Zeekr 8X and other models.

2027 World Car of the Year nominees

No. | Make and model | No. | Make and model | No. | Make and model

1 | BMW i3 | 2 | Buick Electra E7 | 3 | BYD Ti7

4 | Changan Nevo Q05 | 5 | Chery Q | 6 | Chevrolet Aveo

7 | Chevrolet Captiva EV / PHEV | 8 | Cupra Raval | 9 | Deepal S05

10 | Deepal S07 | 11 | DS N°7 | 12 | Exeed Exlantix ET

13 | Exeed RX | 14 | GAC Aion UT | 15 | GAC Aion V

16 | Geely EX2 | 17 | Geely Starray EM-i | 18 | Hyundai Bayon

19 | Hyundai IONIQ 3 | 20 | Hyundai Tucson | 21 | iCAUR V23

22 | Infiniti QX65 | 23 | Jetour G700 | 24 | Jetour T2

25 | Kia EV2 | 26 | Kia Seltos | 27 | Kia Syros EV

28 | Kia Telluride | 29 | Leapmotor B10 | 30 | Leapmotor C10

31 | Leapmotor T03 | 32 | Lepas L6 EV | 33 | Lepas L8 PHEV

34 | Lexus ES | 35 | Lincoln Corsair | 36 | Lynk & Co 900

37 | Mazda CX-5 | 38 | Mazda CX-6e / EZ-60 | 39 | Mercedes-Benz Electric C-Class

40 | Mercedes-Benz Electric GLC | 41 | Mercedes-Benz GLA | 42 | MG4 EV Urban

43 | Nissan Frontier Pro | 44 | Nissan NX8 | 45 | Omoda 4

46 | Onvo L90 | 47 | Polestar 4 SUV | 48 | Renault Filante

49 | Subaru Trailseeker | 50 | Subaru Uncharted | 51 | Volkswagen Atlas / Teramont Pro

52 | Volvo EX60 | 53 | XPeng G6 2026 Edition | 54 | XPeng L03

55 | XPeng P7+ | 56 | Zeekr 8X

The organizing committee also announced the nominees in three additional categories alongside the main award.

World Urban Car of the Year

No. | Make and model

1 | Chery Q

2 | Cupra Raval

3 | Exeed Exlantix ET

4 | Geely EX2

5 | Hyundai Bayon

6 | Hyundai IONIQ 3

7 | iCAUR V23

8 | Kia EV2

9 | Kia Syros EV

10 | Leapmotor T03

11 | Mercedes-Benz GLA

World Luxury Car of the Year

No. | Make and model

1 | Audi Q7

2 | Audi Q9

3 | Avatr 07

4 | BMW X5

5 | Genesis GV80 Hybrid

6 | Jaguar Type 01

7 | Polestar 5

8 | Range Rover EV

9 | XPeng X9

10 | Zeekr 9X

World Performance Car of the Year

No. | Make and model

1 | Alpine A390 GTS

2 | Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 / ZR1X

3 | Genesis GV60 Magma

4 | Kia EV4 GT

5 | Lotus Eletre X

6 | Lynk & Co 02

7 | Mercedes-AMG Electric GT 4-Door Coupé

8 | Porsche Cayenne Turbo Electric

9 | Zeekr 7GT

The presence of 27 models from Chinese brands on the list demonstrates the country’s growing participation in the global automotive market. Chinese manufacturers are represented not only in the main category but also in the urban car, luxury car and performance car categories.

The award winners will be determined by a vote involving more than 100 automotive journalists from countries around the world. The results will be officially announced at the awards ceremony on 24 March 2027.