What Car? Reader Award: vote for the most exciting new car of 2026
Our annual Reader Award goes to the upcoming model that people are most excited about, and this year's voting is now open...
Will it be an SUV, an executive car or a hatchback that you're most excited about seeing in 2026? Well, the What Car? Reader Award, held in association with Driftrock, will give us the answer, because it's decided by a public vote.
That vote is now open, and will close in two weeks' time, at 9am on Monday 1 December. You can vote using our dedicated voting form, and you can find out more about the cars shortlisted for the award below. These draw from a wide variety of car classes, budgets and power options, and all are due to go on sale in the UK before the end of 2026.
The winner of the What Car? Reader Award, as well as our second and third-place cars, will be revealed as part of our annual Car of the Year Awards ceremony on Thursday 22 January 2026.
Last year's What Car? Reader Award was won by the Kia EV4.
Cars in this list are presented alphabetically.
What Car? Reader Award 2026 contenders
BMW i3
The next generation of BMW's class-defining executive car will be available with both combustion and electric power. And given the tax incentives afforded to company car drivers for choosing the latter, we suspect it'll take the lion's share of sales. Likely badged as the i3, it'll offer a headline-grabbing official range of up to 500 miles between charges – enough to ensure that even longer trips on the motorway won't be off the table.
It should be fast, too, with base versions getting 464bhp from two electric motors, which will send their power to all four wheels. And when you need to plug it in, an 800-volt electrical architecture will allow drivers to take advantage of the fastest public chargers.
For buyers wanting to stick with combustion power, a heavily reworked version of today's 3 Series, featuring petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid power, will also be offered.
Read more about the 2026 BMW 3 Series
Cupra Raval
Cupra's take on the burgeoning small electric SUV market is based on the same underpinnings as two other VW Group models – the Skoda Epiq and Volkswagen ID Polo. And like those cars, it'l be available with 38kWh and 56kWh battery options.
Previewed by 2023's UrbanRebel concept car, the Raval should be capable of at least 273 miles between charges, which is similar to what's offered by the Kia EV3 in Standard Range form. Power for the Cupra will come from a single front-mounted motor which will put out 223bhp in its most potent form – enough to cover the 0-62mph sprint in 6.9sec.
Inside, you'll find a floating centre console, a wide infotainment touchscreen angled towards the driver, and – we hope – physical controls to aid usability.
Read more about the Cupra Raval
Dacia C-Neo
Dacia is preparing a new estate car to take on the big-selling Skoda Octavia, and unlike most of the models being launched right now, it'll solely be offered with petrol power.
Keeping with the brand's budget ethos, the C-Neo is expected to cost less than £25,000, making it one of the cheapest cars of its kind. The C-Neo – which won't be the car's name – will borrow its oily components and engines from the larger Dacia Bigster.
That means a brace of mild hybrid petrol engines will form the core of the line-up, with at least one option also bringing four-wheel drive. There will also be a regular hybrid, with an electric motor and 1.8-litre petrol engine working in tandem.
Honda Super-N
Destined to face rivals including the Fiat 500e and upcoming Renault Twingo, the Super-N will serve as an effective replacement for today's Honda E electric city car. Its tiny battery is expected to yield an official range of just 183 miles, while its 63bhp electric motor drives the front wheels. The Super-N won't be very fast nor will it be able to cover big distances on a charge, then, but remember, this car is about city driving rather than the motorway. The car can accept charge at a rate of 50kW.
Inside, you'll find a large central infotainment touchscreen perched on top of the dashboard, with proper physical buttons and dials below to control commonly-used functions. There's also a digital driver's display.
Read more about the Honda Super-N
Hyundai Ioniq 3
This Hyundai Concept Three will influence the designs of the next generation of cars to come from the Korean brand, starting with the Ioniq 3 that's due next year.
While technical details are still under wraps, we'd expect the new family car to be offered with the same choice of 55kWh and 78kWh batteries as the Kia EV3. In that car, they deliver official ranges of 270 miles and 375 miles respectively, and given its more aerodynamic shape, the Ioniq 3 should improve on those figures. Fans of hotter Hyundais can rest easy knowing that a sporty Ioniq 3 N is already on the cards, too.
While the concept's modular interior isn't likely to make production, it tells us a lot about what the Ioniq 3 might look like –for one, with each element treated in isolation rather than being part of a larger, more cohesive design, it's likely that the Ioniq 3 will be quite minimalist. Despite that, the concept features pysical controls for the air-con.
Read more about the Hyundai Ioniq 3
Mazda CX-5
Mazda's family SUV has grown up, quite literally – it's now longer, wider and taller than the car it replaces, and its wheels have been pushed further into each corner with the aim of improving interior space.
Inside, you're meant to feel a combination of space, balance and harmony. And while only you can decide if you feel any of that, we've sat inside the new CX-5 and can confirm that it feels pleasantly spacious and plush, with soft-touch surfaces found in all of the right places. There's also a new Google-based infotainment system presented on a screen which measures up to 15.6in, depending on which trim level you choose.
There's only one engine option available at launch – a 139bhp 1.5-litre petrol with mild hybrid assistance to help lower your fuel bills. Buyers will be able to choose between front and four-wheel drive, but there's no plug-in hybrid or fully electric variant in sight.
The car which helped to kick-start the small SUV craze is entering a new generation, with styling inspired both by the latest Nissan Leaf and Micra, as well as 2023's Hyper Punk concept car.
The new Juke will also borrow the Leaf's underpinnings, meaning 52kWh and 74kWh battery options, and an official range of up to 375 miles. If you don't want electric power, then the new car will be sold alongside the current Juke, which is available in petrol and hybrid forms, for a short time.
It's good news for prospective Juke buyers that the new car will qualify for the full £3750 EV Grant which was announced back in the Summer.
Read more about the new Nissan Juke
Mercedes-Benz GLC EV
Mercedes' premium SUV is getting electric power, which means its field of rivals will now include the BMW iX3, Porsche Macan Electric and Tesla Model Y. And since the GLC will share its underpinnings with the new Mercedes CLA, which has already impressed us, our hopes are high.
The sole model available at launch is the GLC 400 4Matic, which gets 483bhp from two electric motors. That version gets a 94kWh battery, giving it an estimated range of 435 miles. That's considerably more than the current iX3 can manage, as well as the top-spec Macan Electric.
And if you like to waft along the road, the GLC can be ordered with the same pillow-soft air suspension as the Mercedes S-Class luxury car.
Read more about the new Mercedes GLC EV
Porsche Cayenne EV
We've known that Porsche would sell an electric version of its largest and most luxurious SUV for some time, and the upcoming Cayenne Electric will actually be sold alongside the combustion-engined model.
While most technical details are still under wraps, we do now that range-topping versions of the Cayenne Electric will offer more power than the current range-topping petrol models, which means at least 730bhp. Indeed, given that there's already a Turbo GT version of the Porsche Taycan with 1020bhp, we wouldn't be surprised if that was offered in the Cayenne.
The Cayenne's battery will be capable of charging at 280kW, matching the rate of the Audi Q6 e-tron and Porsche Macan Electric. And speaking of the battery, an official range of 400 miles between top-ups should be possible.
Read more about the new Porsche Cayenne EV
Toyota RAV4
The newest version of Toyota's Nissan Qashqai rival will be available with plug-in hybrid power and the option of four-wheel drive, with the latter giving you a power boost to 300bhp – enough to get up to motorway speeds in a nippy 5.8sec.
Perhaps of more interest is the official 62-mile range that the RAV4 PHEV is capable of. That's a big improvement on the 46-mile range of the current RAV4, and means you might be able to complete your daily commute on electric power alone. Topping up the battery from 10-80% can take as little as 30 minutes, too.
All RAV4s will now get a 12.3in digital instrument panel and a 12.9in infotainment screen, alongside proper physical controls for the climate system.
Read more about the new Toyota RAV4
Volkswagen ID Polo
Previously dubbed the ID 2, we now know that Volkswagen's smallest electric model will take the ID Polo name instead – and that alone tells us plenty about both where it will sit in the line-up, and the sales hopes the German car giant is pinning on it.
Using a shortened versions of the ID 3's underpinnings – which will also be shared with the Cupra Raval and Skoda Epiq – the ID Polo will be offered with the same 38kWh and 56kWh battery options, with the latter expected to offer around 275 miles of range.
While buyers will initially have two power outputs – 180bhp and 223bhp – to choose from, a sporty ID Polo GTI hot hatchback is already planned to crown the line-up. The latter will offer more power than the Alpine A290 electric hot hatch.
Read more about the new Volkswagen ID Polo
Volvo EX60
This electric counterpart to the Volvo XC60 family SUV will offer up to 434 miles of range – more than enough for the needs of most families. Using the same underpinnings as the Volvo ES90 and EX90 luxury models, it will count the Audi Q6 e-tron and BMW iX3 among its key rivals, as well as the Mercedes GLC EV further up this list.
An 800-volt electrical architecture will allow the EX60 to charge at speeds of up to 350kW, meaning a 10-80% top-up could take as little as 20 minutes if you can find a suitably powerful charging point. Inside, we're expecting to see a 14.5in infotainment touchscreen, a 9.0in digital driver's display, and a head-up display to put the most useful information right in front of you.
Prices are expected to start at around £60,000, making the EX60 pricier than a Tesla Model Y.
Read more about the new Volvo EX60
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