World Car of the Year: 27 of 56 contenders come from China
Chinese brands fill half the World Car longlist, and they did last year too
The World Car Awards have named 56 early candidates for the 2027 title, and 27 carry Chinese badges, from BYD and Chery to Leapmotor, Lynk & Co and Zeekr. The winners will be announced at the New York International Auto Show on 24 March 2027. The share looks like a landslide, but it is a repeat, and last year's result shows what usually happens next.
BYD, Geely and Leapmotor lead 27 Chinese entries among 56 World Car contenders
The 56 names cover the main award and the urban, luxury and performance classes. Chinese entries for the overall title include the BYD Ti7, Chery Q, Deepal S07, Geely Starray EM-i, GAC Aion V, Lynk & Co 900, Leapmotor T03, MG4 Urban, Onvo L90 and Zeekr 8X. Europe answers with the BMW i3, the Cupra Raval, the Volvo EX60 and the electric Mercedes C-Class and GLC. Audi and Porsche appear only in the luxury and performance classes, with the Q7 and the Cayenne Turbo Electric.
In 2026, 24 of 48 early candidates were Chinese and one reached the top ten
The same share appeared a year ago. The provisional 2026 list, published in September 2025, counted 48 cars, 24 of them Chinese, and grew to 58 before the vote. When 98 jurors from 33 countries cut it to ten in January 2026, one Chinese car survived: the BYD Seal 6 DM-i, alongside four Korean models from Hyundai and Kia. The BMW iX3 won, ahead of the Nissan Leaf and the Hyundai Palisade.
BYD Seagull and Nio Firefly took the World Urban Car title two years running
Chinese cars already win where they are strongest. In April 2025 the BYD Seagull, sold in Europe as the Dolphin Surf, became the first Chinese car to take a World Car Award, in the urban class. In April 2026 the Nio Firefly did the same. The 2027 urban list leans Chinese again, with the Chery Q, Geely EX2, Leapmotor T03, iCaur V23 and Exeed Exlantix ET facing the Cupra Raval, Kia EV2 and Hyundai Ioniq 3.
The two-continent rule explains World Car's 48 percent Chinese share
Eligibility explains most of the gap between a Chinese-heavy longlist and a Chinese-light final. A World Car candidate must be built at 10,000 units a year, sit below luxury pricing and be on sale in two major markets on two continents between 1 January 2026 and 19 March 2027. China counts as one of those markets, so a car sold at home and in Latin America qualifies without ever reaching Europe. Europe's own Car of the Year demands dealer availability in five European countries, and its 2027 list, open until 28 October, currently holds eight Chinese models among 35.
The World Car top ten arrives on 5 January 2027, the winners on 24 March
The 100 jurors drive the cars at the LA Test Drives in Pasadena in November, then vote. The top ten for the overall title and five finalists in each class follow on 5 January 2027, the top three in early March, and the winners at the New York show on 24 March. The reigning champion, the BMW iX3, shares its Neue Klasse platform with the BMW i3 now on the 2027 list, so BMW enters as the team to beat.
AutoNext Take
The longlist measures reach and the final measures quality, and the distance between the two is shrinking. Two years ago no Chinese car had won anything at the World Car Awards. Since then Chinese brands have taken the urban class twice and put a plug-in hybrid saloon into the overall top ten. That is a real gain, earned in the segments where Chinese makers build the best cars on sale: the small and the affordable.
The overall title is where the gap remains. With 27 entries this time, at least three Chinese cars should make the top ten on 5 January 2027. If only one does again, the jury is saying that Chinese brands win on price and packaging but not yet on the complete car, and that verdict will stand until the 2028 season.
