{"id":40359,"date":"2025-10-03T11:47:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T10:47:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tyretrade.ie\/?p=40359"},"modified":"2025-10-08T14:33:24","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T13:33:24","slug":"evs-dominate-2026-irish-car-of-the-year-field-of-runners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tyretrade.ie\/index.php\/evs-dominate-2026-irish-car-of-the-year-field-of-runners\/40359","title":{"rendered":"EVs dominate 2026 Irish Car of the Year field of runners"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>A total of 46 new car models will fight it out for the coveted title of Irish Car of the Year 2026, in association with Continental Tyres.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>And for the first year in the history of the awards, the majority of eligible models are electric-powered vehicles.<\/p>\n<p>Voted on by jury members drawn from the Motoring Media Association of Ireland (MMAI), a group made up of 29 of Ireland\u2019s most experienced motoring journalists, including Automotive Publications editor Eoin Cuttle, the Irish Car of the Year awards highlight for Irish motorists the best cars launched in the country each year, taking into account the particular requirements of the Irish market.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_76249\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-76249\" style=\"width: 648px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.autotrade.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Car-of-the-Year-2026-EVs-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"648\" height=\"589\" class=\" wp-image-76249\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-76249\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Charging on: Mark Noble, chairman of the MMAI (left), and Tom Dennigan of Continental Tyres Ireland, getting to grips with the increased number of EVs in this year\u2019s Irish Car of the Year awards programme<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Mark Noble, chairman of the MMAI, said: \u201cThe fact that over half of the eligible cars for the 2026 Irish Car of the Year awards are electric is a clear reflection of where the market is going. Just a few years ago, EVs were a niche category \u2014 today, they are leading the field.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This year\u2019s line\u2011up shows the breadth of choice now available to Irish motorists, from compact city cars to large SUVs, all powered by electricity. It\u2019s a milestone moment for the awards and for the Irish car market.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Tom Dennigan of awards sponsor, Continental Tyres, added: \u201cContinental Tyres is proud to once again support the Irish Car of the Year awards, which shine a spotlight on the very best cars available to Irish motorists. The dominance of electric models in this year\u2019s field underlines the pace of change in the industry.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;For car buyers, it means more options than ever before to choose sustainable, high performing vehicles \u2014 and for us, it\u2019s exciting to see how far the market has come in such a short time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Last year\u2019s winner of the title of 2025 Irish Car of the Year, in association with Continental Tyres, was the Renault Scenic E-Tech Electric, continuing a strong run for EVs in the competition.<\/p>\n<p>Whether the 2026 title will once again go to an electric model remains to be seen, but with more than half of the entrants now battery powered, the odds have never been higher.<\/p>\n<p>The winners from the 2026 Irish Car of the Year awards programme will be revealed at a gala event at The Conrad Hotel, Dublin, on Friday, 14th November.<\/p>\n<p>The full field of candidates for the Irish Car of the Year 2026 awards is as follows:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.autotrade.ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screen-Shot-2025-10-02-at-11.37.36-AM.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"602\" height=\"321\" class=\"size-full wp-image-76250 aligncenter\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A total of 46 new car models will fight it out for the coveted title of Irish Car of the Year 2026, in association with Continental Tyres.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":104,"featured_media":40360,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56,654,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-continental","category-irish-news","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - 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