Renault 5 wins Scottish Car of the Year Award (2025)

For the second year running, Renault have taken the title of Scottish Car of the Year with an electric car. Last year, Scottish motoring journalists from the Association of Scottish Motoring Writers (ASMW) agreed the family-friendly Renault Scenic ticked all the boxes for the prestigious award. This year, the Renault 5 won by a landslide.

The Scottish Car of the Year awards in association with Arnold Clark was held at the Dalmahoy Hotel and Country Club in Edinburgh on Thursday 27th November 2025. We were delighted to welcome manufacturers to the ceremony, where we announced the overall winner, alongside individual category winners.

Why Did The Renault 5 Win?

The Renault 5 electric city car impressed the judges with its blend of nostalgic charm, modern technology and confident driving dynamics. Its compact design and strong value-for-money made it an obvious fit for Scottish roads.

Ally Ballingall, ASMW president, said: “It all comes down to one decision and our judges said the winning car had to make financial sense in these tough times, but it also must appeal to our heart strings just as much as our wallets.”

While Adam Wood, Managing Director and Country Head Renault Group UK, added:
“It’s a huge honour to become the first manufacturer to win the overall ‘Scottish Car of the Year’ title two years in a row. It’s a clear signal of the fun, accessibility and sheer style that the Renault 5 brings to the UK market, and, following last year’s success for Scenic E-Tech electric, underlines the strength and depth of our new pure electric line-up.”

Another win for the Alpine A290 as the best performance car in 2025 reinforces confidence in the EV platform. However, judges also noted strong competition from a wave of new electrified arrivals, particularly from Chinese brands that entered the UK market this year, including Omoda/Jaecoo, BYD, XPENG and others.

Scottish Car of the Year 2025 Category Winners