What Car? Used Car of the Year Awards winners revealed

What Car? has named the popular Seat Leon its Used Car of the Year in our 2018 Used Car Awards, with the family hatchback fending off stiff competition from 14 other category winners to scoop our top prize.

The winners were unveiled live on the What Car? website and Twitter feed this evening, with the 2013-onwards Seat Leon winning the Best Used Family Car award before going on to take the overall Car of the Year prize.

Our judges praised it for its sharp looks, enjoyable handling and smart interior, as well as for its practicality and dependability, all factors that combined with the Leon’s unbeatable forecourt value to make it a truly desirable used buy.

What Car?’s used cars editor, Alex Robbins, commented: “The Seat Leon had to fend off tough competition from the winners in other categories, including the Ford Fiesta, the Mazda CX-5 and the BMW 5 Series, but in the end it was a worthy winner of our 2018 Used Car of the Year award. The Leon not only offers outstanding value for money but also manages to cram in a dash of flair; it’s a very compelling choice.”

Other awards went to a trio of Audis, with the Q7, TT and R8 taking the Best Used Luxury SUV, Best Used Coupé and Best Used Sports Car gongs, and to Ford and BMW, each of which also scored three category wins. Renault’s electric Zoe small car carried off the Best Used Green Car award in a category that has grown in size in recent years as EV sales increase on the new car market.

There were 15 separate categories in the What Car? Used Car of the Year Awards, ranging from city cars to luxury and sports cars, with a winner being chosen by our judges in each of three age groups, covering models from one to 10 years old. We weighed up the merits of each car against the criteria we’d laid down for that class, including price. At the end of that process we had a winner in each age group, from which we then chose one overall category winner.

In addition, there were two extra categories. The What Car? Best Used Car Website was won by Volvo for its informative and functional layout, and the Best Used Car Scheme award was won by Jaguar Land Rover for its generous 24-month, unlimited-mileage warranty and thorough mechanical checks.

What Car? has been bringing you the most complete and incisive used car content offered by any publication in the UK for years. We’ve condensed all that know-how and specialist knowledge into our awards, which can also be seen as an expression of our commitment to covering the used car market just as thoroughly as we do with new cars, all with the aim of bringing the reader the best buying advice.

Find out about all of our Used Car of the Year Awards winners here