Slovenia unveils Car of 2026
Renault 5 has been picked as the Slovenian Car of the Year for 2026 in what is the first time since the campaign started over 30 years ago that the title went to an electric vehicle.
Renault 5 won the highest number of points from five of the nine media outlets involved in the selection as well as the combined vote of their audiences, to edge out Audi A5 in second and Dacia Bigster in third. Two more EVs rounded off the list, Kia EV3 and Hyundai Inster, CE Report quotes The Slovenia Times.
The winner was announced at an event in a not as yet opened tunnel near Slovenia's Velenje that will make part of a future north-south expressway.
The new Renault 5 is a reincarnation of a very popular small car first launched over 50 years ago. Between 1972 and 1996, Renault produced over nine million Renault 5s, many of them in Revoz, its Slovenian subsidiary in Novo Mesto.
The competition saw nine media outlets that report about the automotive industry and cars making a shortlist of five finalists. Each outlet then voted, along with their audiences. The competition featured 26 new models that hit the market last year.
This year's was the the 34th edition of the Slovenian Car of the Year. So far, the award has gone to 12 different makers. Renault has won the title four times, as has Škoda, followed by Volkswagen in third place with two titles.
According to Chamber of Commerce figures, new car sales in Slovenia rose by 8.5% to 57,557 last year.
Renault Clio was the most popular model (2,446), followed by Škoda Octavia (1,957), Renault Captur (1,756) and two other Škoda models, Kamiq (1,335) and Kodiaq (1,257). But Volkswagen remained the top car make, capturing 15% of the market.
