KIA and Hyundai have dominated this year's Auto Trader New Car Awards with each of the Korean brands scooping two top honours.

They came as Nissan, Dacia, Ford, Citroen, Renault, Peugeot and BMW all scored highly in the prestigious automotive listings.

The overall Car of the Year for 2023 was the Kia EV6 which was praised for its versatility, comfort, quality and the advanced technology with a range of over 300 miles.

In a contest which was voted for by some 220,000 new car buyers the Best Value New Car was the Dacia Sandero Stepway while the Nissan Leaf took the honours in the Best Car for City Drivers.

The Ford Mustang carried off the Most Fun to Drive award while the Best Car for New Drivers was the Renault Zoe.

The Peugeot 5008 was voted the Best Seven Seater while the Most Loved Car award went to the Hyundai Ioniq 5 with the Kia Soul topping the list for the Best Value Electric Car.

Hyundai also carried off the special award from Auto Trader editorial director Erin Baker for the Ioniq 6 which was described as the best new all-rounder to go on sale this year.

The Premium Electric Car award went to the BMW iX3 while the Most Loved Brand was Porsche.

Other awards went to the Tesla Model Y, the Tesla Model 3, Toyota RAV4, the Volvo V90 Cross Country, the Honda CR-V and the Bentley Bentayga while Lexus came out on top in the Most Reliable Brand category.

Citroen was praised for its efforts to reduce the impact of its business on the environment with a Sustainability Initiative Award which was judged by experts from the Carbon Literacy Project.

The French company was said to be ‘thinking outside of the box' with creative transport solutions such as the city-focused Ami electric quadricycle to a broader programme of electrifying its regular range with a choice of affordable models aimed at keeping people moving as efficiently as possible.

Erin Baker said the Kia EV6 was hugely deserving of this year's New Car of the Year, impressing both consumers and the industry alike.

"It took the market by storm when it was launched, with an innovative design, great range, incredible interior space, tonnes of features and fantastic peace of mind for owners thanks to outstanding brand reliability, " she said. "As one happy EV6 owner so aptly summed it up: ‘It's the best all-round car: the combination of technology, range, quality, charging speed and drive of the car makes it the most satisfyingly complete car. It's not just a brilliant electric car, it's just a brilliant car, full stop'."