2026 World Car Awards: Hyundai Ioniq 6 N Wins World Performance Car Award

At the World Car Awards 2026, the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N won the World Performance Car title, beating the BMW M2 CS and the Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray. The winners were announced at the New York International Auto Show. This marks Hyundai’s second win in this category after the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N in 2024. The Ioniq 6 N uses an 84.0kWh lithium-ion battery and produces up to 641bhp and 770Nm with N Grin Boost. It can accelerate from 0–100km/h in 3.2 seconds and has a top speed of 257km/h. The setup includes dual motors, specialised thermal management, and N e-shift for simulated gear shifts.

Also Read: 2026 World Car Awards: BMW iX3 Named World Electric Vehicle

Jose Munoz, President and CEO of Hyundai Motor Company, said: 'This recognition from the World Car Awards jury means a great deal to the thousands of people at Hyundai who designed, engineered, and built this vehicle. Customers appreciate great design, advanced technology, and real-world value that the Hyundai Ioniq 6 N offers.

'We are grateful to the jury for this honor. And we are grateful to the customers around the world who choose Hyundai every day and inspire everything we build. This award belongs to them and to the team that earned it,'

2026 World Electric Vehicle Award: Who Chooses the Winners?

The winners of the World Car Awards were picked by a jury of 98 automotive journalists from around the world. For the 2026 edition, the jury went through months of real-world testing, including hands-on evaluations, test drives, and detailed comparisons to finalise the best cars across categories. The panel also included Dhruv Behl, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of autoX.

2026 World Electric Vehicle Award: Eligibility Criteria

The finalists for the 2026 World Performance Car title were evaluated based on a clear set of rules defined by the World Car Awards. Eligible cars must have a minimum production of 1,000 units per year and should focus strongly on performance in their overall design and character.

To qualify, a model must be on sale in at least two major automotive markets (China, Europe, India, Japan, Korea, Latin America, USA) across two continents between January 1, 2025 and March 30, 2026. The awards also consider significantly updated versions of existing models, provided the changes are aimed at improving performance and meet the organisers’ criteria.