The Honda Civic e:HEV is the Parkers Car of the Year for 2023 after sweeping to victory in the hard-fought Best Medium Family Car category.
Honda’s latest model shows that the firm hasn’t lost its touch for integrating cutting-edge engineering that genuinely benefits the driver – most notably, its hybrid tech that delivers phenomenal fuel consumption and excellent performance.
Now in its 11th generation, the Civic e:HEV is outstanding. Starting with the interior, it’s perfectly sized for families, with a large boot and plenty of room front and rear. Build quality and trim are first-rate, feeling genuinely premium and refreshingly unfussy in its design – it even has physical controls for the climate control system.
Why we rate the Civic so highly
On the road, the new Civic makes a very convincing case for itself. It may only be offered as a hybrid – and a relatively large 2.0-litre, at that – but you really do get the best of all worlds here. It’s powerful and good to drive, yet also ludicrously efficient, with 60mpg achievable without trying too hard.
The Parkers car reviews team concluded: ‘The Civic catapults itself to the top of the hatchback class for driving dynamics – to get better handling than this in a family car, you’d need to opt for a fully-blown hot hatch.’
Keith Adams, Editor of Parkers, added: ‘Taking the top honours in the Parkers New Car Awards 2023 is a remarkable achievement for a fuel-sipping family hatchback in an increasingly electrified world. It’s a reflection of just how effective the Japanese firm’s excellent hybrid drivetrain is, proving you don’t need to plug in to get great efficiency and low running costs. In short, the Honda Civic is an outstanding Parkers Car of The Year – and we think you’ll agree, too.’
Ford wins big in the Van awards
Just as it did in 2022, Ford takes the spoils in the Van of The Year award, but with new technology in a familiar shape. Tom Webster, Van and Pickups Editor, said of the new E-Transit: ‘It’s rare that there is a vehicle that moves the game on quite so notably as the Ford E-Transit has managed this year.
‘The fundamental elements of the Transit are unchanged and as impressive as ever, but they are enhanced by the seamless addition of some seriously impressive electric technology. This is the large electric van that shows the rest of the class how it should be done.’
The best of the rest
Other big winners at the Parkers New Car Awards 2023 include the Renault Group, which takes home four awards. It wins the Best Medium Electric Car award for the excellent Megane E-Tech, the Best Value Car for the Dacia Jogger, the Best Fun Car for the Alpine A110, and bags the Best New Car Finance award for its consistent ability to offer great value deals across the board.
Notable repeat winners from last year include Ford, which wins the Best Small Family Car award for a third year in a row with the excellent Puma. The Land Rover Defender remains unchallenged for the Best Off-Roader, and Fiat’s small-car skills keep the 500 Electric at the top of the Best Small Electric Car category.
Aside from the 500, it’s a changing of the guard for electric car winners, with Renault’s new Megane E-Tech being joined by the brilliant Kia EV6 in the Best Large Electric Cars category. For the Best Company Car, BMW remains at the top, but the electric i4 topples the plug-in hybrid 330e as overall victor.
A word on electrification
Keith Adams said: ‘Although the tide of electrification is rapidly gaining momentum, and increasingly excellent EVs are being launched on an almost daily basis, we’re more than happy to showcase a petrol hybrid as our Car of The Year. There’s still massive work to do when it comes to public charging, which if anything has taken a backward step in the past couple of years.
‘New charger rollouts are not keeping pace with the increase in EV sales, and that is adversely affecting ease of use. The cost of fuelling is also moving away from EVs as electricity costs continue to soar – especially on public chargers, where at many sites it’s now more expensive to charge up than it is to fill up with diesel. As we’re on the side of car buyers, we need to reflect the real-world concerns of today’s drivers.’
Full details of all the Parkers New Car Awards winners and runners-up can be found at: www.parkers.co.uk/car-awards/
