THE Skoda Enyaq has got off to an electrifying start by being crowned Scottish Car of the Year.

The all-electric SUV lifted the top title as well as four category awards in the annual contest.

The Skoda Octavia was named Best Family Hatchback, Best Plug-in Hybrid and Best Estate in a fantastic hat-trick.

Meanwhile, the long range iV80 Skoda Enyaq took the Best £35,000+ EV Award before going on to secure the overall Scottish Car of the Year title.

The Scottish Car of the Year Awards are held every year by the Association of Scottish Motoring Writers (ASMW).

Dacia and Mazda were among the other big winners.

The Dacia Sandero won Best Small Car while its crossover sibling the Sandero Stepway took home the Small SUV/Crossover title.

Mazda's MX-30 was Best Sub-£35,000 EV, while the Mazda CX-5 picked up the Best Used Car award.

The Hyundai Tucson was Best Family SUV and the Kia Sorento won Best Large SUV. BMW took home the trophy for Best Executive Car for the handsome new 4 Series.

Suzuki's Swace was Best Hybrid and the fiery i20 N was a worthy recipient of Hyundai's second category win, taking the Best Hot Hatch award.

Newcomer Genesis stole a march on rivals taking home the Best Luxury SUV trophy for the GV80.

The Design and Innovation Award was won by Ineos for its exciting 4x4 throwback, the Grenadier.

Commenting on winning Scottish Car of the Year, Kirsten Stagg, head of marketing for Skoda UK said: "This means a huge amount to us because we believe the Enyaq iV really is a remarkable car.

"Electrification presents us with an incredible opportunity. As a brand, we have become known for delivering a high quality ownership experience without the premium price tag. We want to continue that as we transition into electric cars."

ASMW President Jack McKeown said: "It has been an incredible year for the motoring industry with a great crop of amazing new cars for our members to drive.

"Congratulations to Skoda. The Enyaq saw off some tough competition to be crowned Scottish Car of the Year. Its styling, practicality and value were all factors in its win, but it was the way it made switching from petrol to electric feel so easy that most impressed us.

"Skoda had an amazing run, winning no fewer than three categories with a single car - a first for SCOTY. That it took home three awards shows the depth of the Octavia's talents.

"Indeed, every one of our category winners is a superb vehicle in its own right and even being shortlisted for a SCOTY award is an impressive accomplishment for any manufacturer."

The full list of SCOTY 2021 winners:

Small Car: Dacia Sandero

Family hatchback: Skoda Octavia

Small SUV/Crossover: Dacia Sandero Stepway

Family SUV: Hyundai Tucson

Large SUV: Kia Sorento

Executive: BMW 4 Series

Estate: Skoda Octavia iV/vRS

Sub-£35,000 EVs: Mazda MX-30

£35,000+ EVs: Skoda Enyaq iV80

Plug-in Hybrid: Skoda Octavia iV

Hybrid: Suzuki Swace

Luxury SUV: Genesis GV80

4X4: Ssangyong Rexton

Hot Hatch: Hyundai i20 N

Used Car: Mazda CX-5

Design and Innovation: Ineos Grenadier