Scotland's car of the year awards 2025

This year’s awards witnessed a strong showing from Chinese brands with nominations for BYD, Xpeng, and Jaecoo-Omoda, with one manufacturer edging just ahead in various categories.

Electrified cars continued to make their mark in the 2025 Scottish Car of the Year Awards in association with Arnold Clark as the Renault 5 took home the Small Car prize, the Jaecoo 7 claimed the best Family Car and Newcomer award, and the Kia EV3 lifted the trophy for Compact Crossover/SUV.

Mazda’s brilliant new CX-80 won the Large Car title, and the Genesis GV70 Electrified was named Premium/Executive Car of 2025.

Used cars are tremendously important to the ASMW and drivers across Scotland. The under £18,000 trophy was won by the MG HS, while the over £18,000 was taken by the well-deserved Hyundai Tucson.

The hotly contested Performance category was won by the amazing Alpine A290, so the Renault 5-based model gave the French brand a double victory. At the other end of the scale and going back to basics with the much adored Utility category, the Toyota Land Cruiser Commerical won over the judges.

Ally Ballingall, ASMW president, said: “To say competition for this year’s Scottish Car of the Year was tough is an understatement. After a whole year, scores of cars, and thousands of miles, it all comes down to one decision and our judges said the winning car had to make financial sense in these tough times, but it also must appeal to our heart strings just as much as our wallets.

“The overall winner also had to be practical, capable, great to drive, and look the part. That’s a big ask, but the one car did it all and plenty more, and that was the Renault 5.”

Adam Wood, Managing Director and Country Head Renault Group UK, said: “It's a huge honour to become the first manufacturer to win the overall ‘Scottish Car of the Year’ title two years in a row. It’s a clear signal of the fun, accessibility and sheer style that the Renault 5 brings to the UK market, and, following last year’s success for Scenic E-Tech electric, underlines the strength and depth of our new pure electric line-up.”