After winning the 2024 Car of the Year title with its Scenic E-Tech, is Renault preparing to win the European trophy once again with its electric R5? Not everything is won, as among the seven finalists chosen by the jury for the Car of the Year (COTY) 2025 election, several models appear to be cut out to take home the award.
Thus, from the forty-two pre-selected models, the sixty automotive journalists from twenty-three different European countries who make up the jury for the COTY election had to select only seven finalists, the list of which is:
- Alfa Romeo Jr
- Citroën C3/ë-C3
- Cupra Teramar
- Dacia duster
- Hyundai Inst
- Let’s go to EV3
- Renault 5/Alpine A290
Who are the favorites to win the 2025 Car of the Year title?
The Alfa Romeo Junior, the brand’s first model to have an electric version, is one of the reasons it was praised by the jury. This city SUV, however, is not revolutionary beyond that position, it is just another similar model offered by Stellantis.
The Citroën C3 inaugurated a new positioning for the city car. It lowers its prices, which is especially rare for a new model, and for the first time offers an electric version ë-C3. While earlier models have been riddled with all sorts of flaws, the ë-C3 retains a certain edge thanks to its relatively aggressive pricing. In fact, this is particularly true in the French market, where it benefits from an environmental bonus that its Asian rivals do not.
The Cupra Terramar is one of only two finalist models to drop an electric version. It was well received by the press, but the SUV probably lacked a truly innovative edge to attract the jury of the Car of the Year election.
The third generation Dacia Duster, for its part, shows up with many advantages in our opinion. Although it doesn’t offer an electric version either, it is available for the first time with a hybrid engine to suit it. It manages to remain one of the rare new cars at affordable prices for families and its features have improved greatly over the previous generation, like the rest of the Dacia range.
The majority of the automotive press has yet to get behind the wheel of Hyundai’s small electric crossover Inster. The latter, derived from the Casper sold in Korea, however seems well-equipped to find a place in the affordable electric car category. It will be sold at the entry level for around €25,000 and will boast a range of up to 350km with its largest battery.
The Kia EV3, although more expensive, is another electric SUV from the HMG Group that has the potential to sway the COTY election jury. Its strong argument is its range of up to 605 km, thus becoming the new benchmark in the B segment.
Finally, the Renault 5 E-Tech is undoubtedly one of the favorite models in this election. It was named alongside its cousin the Alpine A290, which is none other than its sports version. The electric R5 was well received by the press, as a product with a strong design and interesting positioning. It’s certainly not without its flaws and its prices are higher than expected, but it ticks most of the boxes to appeal to the COTY jury.
You’ll have to wait until January 10, when the results of the Car of the Year 2025 election are announced at the Brussels International Motor Show to find out the big winner of this election.
