Volkswagen’s ID. Polo has won the budget category in the German Car of the Year awards, the first award for the hugely important new small electric supermini. Along with the Kia PV5, electric Mercedes-Benz GLC, Xpeng X9 and Hyundai Ioniq 6 N, it’s now in with a chance of winning the overall German Car of the Year award, which will be announced on 3 November.
An independent jury of 47 German and international automotive journalists including myself, The Independent’s electric vehicles editor, selected the winners from new models launched over the past 12 months. There’s another round of judging ahead, with two days of test drives to decide which of the five takes the overall title.
For now, each of those models has a trophy in its own part of the market. The ID. Polo’s Budget award covers new model ranges with starting prices below €25,000, while the Kia PV5 – in spite of its size and van origins – takes the Compact category, for ranges starting between €25,000 and €40,000.
Read more: Volkswagen ID. Polo review
Further up the price ladder, the electric Mercedes-Benz GLC has won in the Premium category, covering starting prices from €40,000 to €70,000. The Luxury award went to the Xpeng X9, in the category for model ranges starting above €70,000, while the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N completes the final five as the Performance Car winner.
There’s more to this year’s results than those five cars, though. For the first time, the jury has also chosen winners for individual qualities across all classes, covering areas including value, design and the technology inside the car.
The Geely E2 (EX2 in the UK) took the value award, earning the jury’s vote as the best-value car across all classes. It’s a different award from the ID Polo’s Budget trophy: the Volkswagen wins in a particular price bracket, while the Geely’s recognition comes from a comparison across the field.
Renault’s Twingo picked up the exterior design award, while the BMW iX3 is recognised for interior design and infotainment. There was also a win for the Porsche 911 Turbo S, which received the award for best powertrain, while the Skoda Peaq was named Family Car of the Year.
Skoda has another reason to celebrate – sort of. It’s chief executive Klaus Zellmer was named Automotive Person of the Year 2027. The jury was asked to choose the most outstanding figure in the industry and selected Zellmer in recognition of his achievements, adding a people prize to the awards for the cars themselves. However, just 24 hours before the awards ceremony, Zellmer announced that he was leaving Skoda to go and head up Volvo.
