The Hyundai Ioniq 6 has swept the 2023 World Car Awards by driving away with three prestigious awards – World Car of the Year, World Electric Vehicle and World Car Design of the Year. The World Car Awards results were announced at a ceremony held at the New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) yesterday.

The Ioniq 6 is the second model in Hyundai’s dedicated all-electric line-up brand, Ioniq. Built on the Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP) platform, it offers 800-V, ultra-fast charging capabilities for a 10 to 80% charge in just 18 minutes and a spacious interior.

With an ultra-low drag coefficient of just 0.21, the Ioniq 6 is one of the most aerodynamic and energy efficient EVs and has a WLTP-rated range of 614km on a single charge.

2023 World Car Awards winners
World Car of the Year: Hyundai Ioniq 6
World Electric Vehicle: Hyundai Ioniq 6
World Car Design of the Year: Hyundai Ioniq 6
World Luxury Car: Lucid Air
World Urban Car: Citroen C3

The Ioniq 6 was lauded by an international jury for its unique aerodynamic design and outstanding all-electric range. A jury of 100 automotive journalists from 32 countries, including Autocar India’s editor Hormazd Sorabjee and Renuka Kirpalani, executive editor, Video Content at Autocar India. The jury chose the Ioniq 6 from the top three finalists including the BMW X1 / iX1 and the Kia Niro, all launched in 2022. The Kia Niro reecently won the Women’s World Car of the Year 2023 title.

This is Hyundai’s second straight triple honours at the World Car Awards. Last year, the jury had named the Ioniq 5 the winner in the same categories.

“We are thrilled to receive this prestigious honour two years in a row, which recognises the tremendous talents and unrelenting efforts of everyone at Hyundai Motor Company to bring EVs like Ioniq 6 to market,” said Jaehoon Chang, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company.

"The daring streamliner styling combines strong emotional appeal with aerodynamic efficiency to give exceptional range,” said SangYup Lee, Executive Vice-President and Head of Hyundai Global Design Center. “Inside, we set-out to create a personal studio which offers the mindful space and calm functionality which, we believe, elevates EV design.”

Hyundai has another win in SangYup Lee as the 2023 World Car Person of the Year for his vital contribution to the most stunning and innovative concept and production cars unveiled in 2022, including the Ioniq 6, the new Kona EV and the N Vision 74 rolling lab. 

Meanwhile, the Lucid Air took home the 2023 World Luxury Car award, the Kia EV6 GT the 2023 World Performance Car Award, while the Citroen C3 was the 2023 World Urban Car award winner. Each of the winners was picked from a list of the top three, which was announced last month. 

While Hyundai hasn’t announced plans for the Ioniq 6 in India it did showcase the car at this year’s Auto Expo in Delhi. The Citroen C3, meanwhile, is a version based on the CMP platform – the car sold in India – and not the PF1 platform-based European model. 

Vehicles eligible for the overall World Car of the Year award must be produced in volumes of at least 10,000 units a year, must be priced below the luxury-car level in their primary markets and must be “on sale” in at least two major markets (China, Europe, India, Japan, Korea, Latin America, USA) on at least two separate continents at some time within the January 1, 2022 and March 30, 2023 period.