Car of the Year 2024: every nominee detailed

Welcome to an Autocar group test designed by committee. If we had it solely our way, you would be about to read a group test between the BYD Seal, Honda CR-V, Kia EV9, Lucid Air, Renault Scenic, Toyota Prius and Volkswagen ID 7.

Instead, of those, only the Seal, EV9 and Scenic are among the cars gathered at Silverstone one breezy February morning for a final round of testing for the 2024 Car of the Year (COTY) award.

They are joined by the BMW i5, Toyota C-HR, Volvo EX30 and not quite the Peugeot e-3008 (that's some Photoshop trickery on the opening spread, about which we will explain shortly).

Autocar is a sponsor of COTY, the winner of which this year will be announced at the returning Geneva motor show on 26 February. But our ballot paper is one of only 58 from jurors from 22 countries across Europe.

As you may recall in a story in our 6 December 2023 issue on the long list testing, each juror nominates seven new cars that were driven and on sale before the end of the previous calendar year and the seven cars with the most combined votes then make up the final shortlist. And here they are.

It's a democracy we're happy and proud to be part of, and three out of seven of our original picks is not so bad - and regardless, each car on the shortlist is worthy of its place and we start this last round of testing afresh and without preconceptions.

To qualify for COTY, cars must be all-new. So no facelifts are permitted, nor are derivatives allowed (for example, a new estate version following a year after the hatchback).

According to the COTY statutes, "the main criteria on which a car should be judged are the following: general design, comfort, safety, economy, handling and general roadworthiness, performance, functionality, general environmental requirements, driver satisfaction and price. Technical innovation and value for money are major factors." The last bit explains why the award is rooted firmly in the mainstream market.

It's yours truly who has his name on the voting paper but I consider the votes very much those of Autocar, which is why road test editor Matt Saunders has joined me alongside the other five UK jury members (regular Autocar contributors Andrew Frankel and Vicky Parrott among them) at Silverstone for the day.

2024 Car of the Year nominees at a glance

Matt Saunders (MS): It's a fairly varied bunch at a glance, this: a couple of pretty trad saloons, small SUVs, big SUVs and a couple of crossovers. It should be interesting. I'm glad the Kia EV9's here, and I expect plenty of the Renault, but I'd have had a Volkswagen ID 7 instead of the BMW.

I'd also have liked to see the Fisker Ocean and the new Tesla Model 3 included - it's about as new as the Toyota, after all. And in a world where its engines had come along in a different order, I wonder if Mazda's innovative and efficient CX-60 diesel might just have squeaked into contention, rather than missing its chance in PHEV form. Then again, I'm sure the Peugeot's very deserving...

Mark Tisshaw (MT): Ah yes, the Peugeot e-3008 is so new that Peugeot couldn't get the ones it has got built to the UK in time for this test and then back to Mortefontaine, near Paris, for the final tests and presentations to the entire jury in the week in which our votes are due. So that'll be for me alone to slot into the pecking order.

Renault's revived Scenic could be a contender...

MS: Shall we start with the Renault and Kia? They look like quite similar designs, don't they? Similar surfacing language and proportions, the Scenic E-Tech just a couple of sizes smaller than the EV9.

I thought the Volvo EX30 would out-compete everything else here for static appeal, but these two have other ideas. Considering the price, I'd say the Renault probably deserves the most credit for that. Both are impressively spacious and well-packaged cars - although it's the Scenic that has the marginally more innovative interior features.

There are some slightly disappointing aspects to the material quality and tactile finish in its cabin. But I like the way it drives. It's smooth- and fluent-riding, but not soft or limp.

It's light and precise through the controls, and quite quick on the road - even if, at times, you certainly know that it's front-wheel drive. I'm impressed with the dynamic job they've done using the same kit of bits that made the Nissan Ariya, which doesn't feel nearly as dynamically sophisticated.

Even so, I would want a lower-end wheel anc nodel trim. The Esprit Alpine variant didn't ride nearly as well - and I bet it won't go as far on a charge.

MT: I put the Scenic on the original shortlist after a toss-up between that and the e-3008. On very first impressions, the Renault was an easier car to get on with.

It rides well in non-Esprit Alpine trim on what is a very challenging test loop near Silverstone. It's a shame not to be able to test the e-3008 on the same route for a straight comparison between direct competitors.

Any votes for the e-3008 are still going to have to come with some caveats and trepidation, having not had the opportunity to test it in the UK. I've gone through lots of different feelings about the EV9 based on the way it drives.

I still can't quite get past the near-£80,000 price of the dual-motor versions, but the £65,000 entry-level Air model we have at Silverstone for the first time does wear its price more comfortably.

And from here, you don't have to make an excuse for the fact that the interior materials and base design are the same as in most other new Kias. Instead, you can just appreciate what an immensely practical, hugely interesting and really rather relaxing car to drive it is.

MS: I agree - for the most part. The Single Motor car certainly seems a little more efficient than the Twin Motor one we've just road tested. Being lighter, it might even ride slightly better on a like-for-like tyre.

I was worried that it might feel a bit slow, but on A- and B-roads I wouldn't say it does at all. It's a big family car and you drive it like one. Simple as that. Deserves to rank, I'd say.

So let's move on to the saloons. The BMW i5 and BYD Seal are both fascinating cars. But, for different reasons, I'm not sure I could justify a four-star road test verdict for either of them (he said, hastily checking autocar.co.uk for what we actually gave them. Phew, what a relief).