The Kia Niro reigns supreme as the Women's World Car of the Year for 2023

The Niro, a crossover SUV from Kia has won the approval of 63 women motoring journalists from 43 countries and has been crowned the 2023 Women’s World Car of the Year. The Kia Niro was crowned on International Women’s Day, a special day dedicated to providing women a voice and bringing attention to issues such as reproductive rights, gender equality, and most importantly, violence and abuse toward women. 

To come to a conclusion on which car is worthy to hold the title of Women’s World Car of the Year, the jurors extensively tested and evaluated 59 cars. During the final part of the judging process, six cars reached the end, all winners of their specific category, each of them being worthy contenders for the award.

In their official statement, the cars were tested on various parameters, such as safety, driving, comfort, technology, design, efficiency, impact on the environment, and value for money. According to the WCOTY group, these factors are major considerations that buyers look for when purchasing a car.

In the end, the Kia Niro, now in its second generation, was chosen as the winner. Pitted against the Niro were five other rivals, they were the Nissan X-Trail. Jeep Avenger, Ford Ranger, Citroen C5, and the Audi RS 3. 

According to the panel of judges, they shared that the Niro as a car is flexible, has an attractive design, has a functional interior, comes with a wide range of powertrains, and is a good choice for daily driving. Sabrina Parant of Belgium has this to say about the Niro, “Kia continues to impress me... After the EV 6 and Sportage models, the Kia Niro offers a flexible vehicle, an attractive design, quality/luxury, and a range of engines where all drivers can match their mobility needs. I especially appreciate the comfortable space and the technology. A car that has everything to please,”

The inspiration behind the Kia Niro’s styling comes from Kia’s HabaNiro concept back in 2019, as for the powertrain choices, customers could have the Niro as a Hybrid, a Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV), or a pure electric powertrain. Kia claims that the EV powertrain Niro can achieve a range of 463 km while the PHEV powertrain can provide 63 km when on battery power alone.

The Kia Niro is not on sale here in the Philippines since the Kia Seltos is currently the brand’s B-segment SUV offering in the country. With the recent move to make EVs and hybrids more affordable and appealing to buy, there’s always hope that Kia can bring the winner of the 2023 Women's World Car of The Year here in the Philippines.