German Car of the Year 2027: five electric finalists and category winners
Volkswagen ID. Polo, Kia PV5, Mercedes-Benz GLC, XPeng X9 and Hyundai Ioniq 6 N won the five main GCOTY 2027 classes. The overall winner will be named on November 2.
An unusual situation has emerged in Germany’s German Car of the Year 2027 awards: electric vehicles won all 5 main categories. But it is too early to call any of them the overall car of the year — the jury will name the absolute winner only on November 2.
In the most affordable Budget category, with a starting price below €25,000, the Volkswagen ID. Polo took first place. Kia PV5 won Compact, for cars priced from €25,000 to €40,000. The electric Mercedes-Benz GLC won Premium, covering vehicles from €40,000 to €70,000.
In Luxury, for cars costing more than €70,000, the jury selected the seven-seat XPeng X9. Hyundai Ioniq 6 N claimed the fifth main category, Performance. That means the GCOTY 2027 final five consists entirely of battery-powered vehicles — from the relatively affordable urban Volkswagen to the high-performance Hyundai and the large Chinese minivan.
The jury also handed out awards for specific qualities. Geely E2 was recognized for value for money, Renault Twingo for exterior design, BMW iX3 for interior design, Skoda Peaq was named family car of the year, and Porsche 911 Turbo S received the engine award.
The preliminary stage was extensive: during the summer, more than 60 new and upcoming models from 25 manufacturers completed over 750 test drives. The five class winners now move on to the final comparison. So the key result on September 22 is not the name of Germany’s best car, but the rare situation in which only electric vehicles have reached the decisive stage.