All-New Nissan LEAF crowned 2026 Car of the Year by Auto Express

Building on more than 15 years of Nissan EV expertise, the new LEAF fought off intense competition to be crowned the winner of three separate categories in the publication’s prestigious awards.

Firstly, LEAF’s unbeatable combination of technology, ride comfort and impressive range were recognised by the Auto Express team as making a compelling case for fleet and business customers, resulting in the category win for Small Company Car of the Year.

Prestigious title

Next, LEAF picked up the winner’s trophy for Affordable Electric Car of the Year, testament to its competitive starting price of £28,849 (including the full £3,750 Electric Car Grant), and echoing LEAF’s original mission statement (and acronym) of being a Leading, Environmentally friendly, Affordable Family car.

Finally, LEAF was awarded the prestigious title of 2026 Auto Express Car of the Year, fighting off both electric and combustion-engined models from across the automotive landscape and broad range of price-points to scoop the overall win.

Auto Express is one of Britain’s most influential and authoritative motoring media brands, with a history that stretches back almost 40 years, and a weekly audience of more than 25,000 people.

Blue Nissan Leaf, Auto Express Affordable Electric Car of the Year 2026 award displayed.

The new LEAF is the latest in a long line of Nissan models to be recognised at its respected annual New Car Awards, with ARIYA picking up overall Car of the Year in 2022 and, in 2018, Qashqai’s crossover segment-creating legacy being highlighted as 2018’s ‘Car of the Past 30 Years’ award, plus the Technology Award for the second-generation LEAF.

Richard Ingram, Deputy Editor of Auto Express, said “Against every yardstick, Nissan’s LEAF is an outstanding Car of the Year. Rivals can’t beat its mix of long range and keen pricing and a powertrain that blends performance and efficiency like few others.

“Add in a premium ride quality, tight handling and an interior that offers impressive space and packaging wrapped in a dynamic design its victory is richly deserved. Engineered and manufactured in Britain, it’s a homegrown triumph to boot.”

James Taylor, Managing Director of Nissan Motor GB, said: “We’re over the moon that All-New, British-built LEAF has been recognised with not just one, but three awards from Auto Express. A big thanks to the team for recognising the hard work that’s gone into making this third-generation model the best yet!

“To see LEAF recognised as Auto Express Car of the Year is something all of us at Nissan can be incredibly proud of – not least the incredible team at our Sunderland plant, which has now built three generations of award-winning LEAFs.

“Winning Small Company Car of the Year is also great recognition of LEAF’s appeal for fleet and business customers, and scooping Affordable Electric Car of the Year only goes to show the incredible value proposition that LEAF represents.”

Blue Nissan Leaf awarded 2026 Small Company Car of the Year by Auto Express.

With a spacious interior, range of up to 386 miles (WLTP) and helpful technologies like Google built-in, All-New LEAF is more appealing than ever before. It’s also the most advanced British-built Nissan to date, with technologies such as vehicle-to-grid (V2G) and vehicle-to-load (V2L), offering added uses for the car’s 52kWh or 75kWh battery packs.

All-New LEAF is on sale now in four grades – Engage, Engage+, Advance and Evolve – with prices starting from £28,849* for versions with a 52kWh battery, and £32,249* for the 75kWh battery (*both prices include £3,750 Electric Car Grant).

Source: https://nissaninsider.co.uk/all-new-nissan-leaf-crowned-2026-car-of-the-year-by-auto-express/