Kia secured three titles at the fiftieth anniversary of the Golden Steering Wheel awards in Berlin, outpacing BMW and Škoda as German automotive publications Auto Bild and Bild am Sonntag announced the winners on Thursday.
The Korean manufacturer led the competition with victories for the EV5 in the compact SUV category, the K4 Sportswagon among compact cars, and the new EV2 in the segment priced below 30mila euro. BMW followed with a double victory, claiming the D-segment sedan award with the new i3 built on the Neue Klasse platform and the sports car category with the M2 CS.
Opel added to its record with the Corsa GSE winning among subcompact cars, bringing the manufacturer’s total Golden Steering Wheel count to 23. Škoda secured two prizes with the Epiq for small SUVs and the Peaq for family cars, while higher segments went to the Genesis GV60 Magma and the Mercedes S-Class.
- Kia secured three distinct category wins with the EV5, K4 Sportswagon, and EV2.
- BMW and Škoda each claimed two awards across the compact, luxury, and electric vehicle segments.
- Ferrari received an innovation prize for the Luce during the Berlin ceremony.
Polo for vehicles under 25mila euro and the Mazda CX-5 for models priced up to 35mila euro. The Audi A4 Avant prevailed in the used car category, while the Mercedes SL from the R129 series took the historic vehicle honor ahead of the Porsche Carrera GT and Audi 100 C3.
The all-new Mazda CX-5 was named Best Car for Under 35k Euros in the 2026 Golden Steering Wheel Awards – one of Germany's leading automotive awards run by Auto Bild and Bild am Sonntag. 🏆🇩🇪 https://t.co/ZT6H4PrmKb pic.twitter.com/r5PpONH0Np
Ferrari received the innovation award for the Luce, its first electric vehicle, recognized for its technological solutions and design approach. In motorsport, the Golden Steering Wheel went to Toto Wolff, team principal and amministratore delegato of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 team.
| Manufacturer | Model | Category |
|---|---|---|
| Kia | EV5 | Compact SUVs |
| Kia | K4 Sportswagon | Compact Cars |
| Kia | EV2 | Under €30,000 |
| BMW | i3 | D-Segment Sedans |
| BMW | M2 CS | Sports Cars |
| Škoda | Epiq | Small SUVs |
| Škoda | Peaq | Family Cars |
The awards event marked fifty years of the competition organized by Auto Bild and Bild am Sonntag in Berlin.
The Golden Steering Wheel 2026 has been awarded, in the prize's 50th year. Kia took three awards, and the Opel Corsa GSE won the small-car class. A prize given by a trade magazine for 50 years does not only measure cars. It measures which expectations the industry took for…
Ferrari Luce Wins 2026 Golden Steering Wheel Innovation Award#Ferrari #FerrariLuce #Ev #Supercar #GoldenSteeringWheel #AutoBild #Tech https://t.co/y6IS5Z4oqT
Follow Kia? Three Golden Steering Wheels in one year, a first for a non-European brand in the award's 50 years. EV2, EV5, K4 Sportswagon: each took its class. Q3 operating profit: +24.3% to 1.82 trillion won. Save this for later. For information only. Not investment advice. pic.twitter.com/HIljd0lMas
