Kia EV6 crowned ‘Car of the Year’

The all-new Kia EV6 electric car has been crowned What Car? Car of the Year 2022.

It’s the second time Kia has won the overall What Car? Car of the Year Award – and the second time it has won with a new electric car, having taken its maiden victory in 2019 with the Kia e-Niro.

The Kia EV6 stood out for setting new benchmarks for electric vehicles, offering an official range of 328 miles, and managing 224 miles on a charge when What Car?’s testers ran it in near worst-case low temperature conditions. It is also capable of super-fast, 800V charging, with its battery capable of going from 10-80% in as little as 18 minutes.

In addition, the EV6 earned praise from the judges for being hugely spacious, very refined even by electric car standards and for being sold with the reassurance of a standard-setting seven-year warranty.

What Car? editor Steve Huntingford said: “Once again, Kia has set a new benchmark for an electric vehicle. The EV6 is a terrific all-rounder that answers electric car buyers’ questions around range and charging times brilliantly, and which offers terrific space, refinement and value for money.

“Kia’s progress has long been impressive, but it is the way that it has seized the opportunity offered by the transition to electric cars that has made it a leader in the market. Coming hot on the heels of its victory with the e-Niro in 2019, this Car of the Year win cements its position alongside Tesla as one of the most exciting electric car makers on the planet.”

The What Car? Car of the Year 2022 winners

Car of the Year – Kia EV6 RWD GT-Line

Small car – Honda Jazz SR
Family car – Seat Leon 1.5 TSI 130 Evo FR
Small SUV – Ford Puma 1.0 Ecoboost Hybrid (mHEV)
Family SUV – Volvo XC40 Recharge T4 Plus (Dark Theme)
Electric SUV – Kia EV6 RWD GT-Line
Large SUV – Hyundai Santa Fe 4WD Premium
Luxury SUV – BMW X5 xDrive45e M Sport
Sports SUV – Ford Puma ST 1.5 ecoboost 200 Performance Pack
Hybrid (plug-in) – Lexus NX 450h+ F Sport Premium Plus Pack
Small electric car – Cupra Born 58kWh V2
Large electric car – Tesla Model 3 Long Range
Executive car – BMW 3 Series 330e M Sport (M Sport Pro Package)
Luxury car – BMW 5 Series 530e M Sport (M Sport Pro Package)
Estate – Skoda Superb Estate 2.0 TDI 150 SEL
MPV – Volkswagen Touran 1.5 TSI 150 SE
Pick-up – Ford Ranger 2.0L EcoBlue 213PS Wildtrack auto
Hot hatch – Mercedes-AMG A45 S Plus
Performance car – Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo 4S
Coupe – BMW 4 Series 420i M Sport (M Sport Pro Package)
Convertible – BMW 4 Series Convertible 420i (M Sport Pro Package)
Sports car – Porsche Cayman GTS

Special Awards

Reliability Award – Lexus
True MPG Award – Toyota Yaris Cross 1.5 petrol hybrid
Innovation Award – Gridserve
Safety Award – Nissan Qashqai
Tow Car Award – Kia Sorento 2.2 CRDi 3 DCT
Reader Award – All-new 2022 Range Rover