Published at: 19th March 2021
– New Fiat 500 named Car of the Year and Best Small Electric Car
– 20 awards celebrate the best of electric and electrified motoring
– Full details online at DrivingElectric.com
The all-new, all-electric Fiat 500 has been named Car of the Year by leading electric-car website, DrivingElectric.
The third incarnation of Fiat’s iconic model impressed DrivingElectric’s judges by offering an unrivalled blend of desirability, chic looks, a smooth ride and an enticingly low price tag to “move the game on in a big way”.
As well as winning the coveted Car of the Year trophy, the new Fiat 500 also scooped the Best Small Electric Car award; one of 20 trophies to celebrate the best electric and electrified cars, and related technology, on the market today.
The Volkswagen Group was among the big winners, with the Volkswagen ID.3 named Best Electric Family Car, the SEAT Leon e-Hybrid awarded Best Small Plug-in Hybrid and the Skoda Superb iV Best Family Plug-in Hybrid, while the Porsche Taycan scooped Best Electrified Performance Car.
Reflecting the growth in the market for used electric, plug-in hybrid and hybrid cars, DrivingElectric named the Nissan Leaf, Kia Niro PHEV and Toyota Prius the best used choices for their respective powertrains in a trio of awards in association with BuyaCar.co.uk.
Richard Ingram, DrivingElectric editor said: “The winner of our Car of the Year title has to be more than just a good electric car: it needs to move the game on in a big way and really stand out from the competition.
“The brand new, electric-only Fiat 500 does just that, with its tastefully updated styling, high-tech interior and usable range. The icing on this impressive cake is a satisfyingly affordable price: the new Fiat 500 starts from less than £20,000 – and as such, is a truly worthy winner of DrivingElectric’s overall Car of the Year.”
Francesco Vanni, country manager for Fiat and Abarth, said: “We are very excited to be launching the New 500 and winning awards even before the first UK customer deliveries have been made is testament to the hard work of our engineers and designers. We can’t wait for our customers to try it out for themselves when cars arrive early next year.”
The awards mark the latest step in the evolution of the DrivingElectric brand. Last month, DrivingElectric.com was relaunched on a new platform, designed to deliver best-in-class usability and visibility in major search engines. And the quarterly DrivingElectric magazine continues to go from strength to strength, while DrivingElectric events are scheduled to return in 2021.
DrivingElectric Car of the Year 2021: Fiat 500
Best small electric car: Fiat 500
Best family electric car: Volkswagen ID.3
Best premium electric car: Tesla Model 3
Best small plug-in hybrid: SEAT Leon e-Hybrid
Best family plug-in hybrid: Skoda Superb iV
Best premium plug-in hybrid: BMW X5 xDrive45e
Best small hybrid: Honda Jazz
Best family hybrid: Toyota Corolla Touring Sports
Best premium hybrid: Lexus RX
Best electrified performance car: Porsche Taycan
Best electrified commercial vehicle: Vauxhall Vivaro-e
Best used electric car: Nissan Leaf
Best used plug-in hybrid: Kia Niro PHEV
Best used hybrid: Toyota Prius
Best universal charging provider: InstaVolt
Best EV innovation: Octopus Energy: Electric Juice Network
Best EV app: Zap-Map
Future electric car (reader award): Ford Mustang MACH-E
Favourite electric car (reader award): Mazda MX-30
