2025 World Car of the Year: Kia EV3 Wins Top Award
The winners of the 2025 World Car Awards were announced earlier today during a special ceremony at the New York International Auto Show.
The votes from a jury of 96 automotive journalists representing 30 countries around the globe—including The Car Guide’s Gabriel Gélinas, The Globe and Mail’s Mark Richardson and Autonerve’s Regina Chan—were tallied by KPMG.
- Also: Kia Takes Comical Jab at Tesla’s Elon Musk While Promoting All-New EV3
- Also: 2026 Kia EV3: A Game Changer if the Price is Right
The main award, World Car of the Year, went to the Kia EV3. The small electric crossover beat the BMW X3 and Hyundai Inster/Casper Electric. Styling is largely inspired by the three-row Kia EV9, which secured the same award in 2024.
The EV3 is slated to launch in Canada early in 2026, but The Car Guide has gotten the opportunity to drive it twice already and we can tell you this one’s going to be a game changer—provided the price is right. Find out why in our EV3 review.
Strangely enough, it was the Hyundai Inster that was crowned World Electric Vehicle of the Year, ahead of the EV3. Our colleague Gabriel Gélinas, who managed to take it for a spin a couple of months ago, presented the trophy to Hyundai president José Munoz.
The other award winners for 2025 include the Volvo EX90 (World Luxury Car of the Year), Volkswagen ID. Buzz (World Car Design of the Year), Porsche 911 Carrera GTS (World Performance Car of the Year) and BYD Seagull/Dolphin Mini (World Urban Car of the Year).
