evo Car of the Year 2023

In evo Car of the Year 2023, we put nine incredible contenders head-to-head to find out which is the very best new performance car of the last twelve months. Hold tight, it’s one of the closest results ever...
Get your copy of evo Car of the Year 2023: evo-shop.co.uk/products/evo-c...
Official evo Car of the Year playlist: • evo Car of the Year
eCoty 2023 behind the scenes: www.evo.co.uk/car-pictures/20...
Intro: (0:00)
McLaren 750S: (1:25)
Porsche 911 Carrera T (992): (2:48)
3874bhp alarm clock: (4:17)
Alpine A110 R: (4:39)
BMW M3 CS (G80): (6:00)
Maserati GranTurismo Trofeo: (7:38)
Aston Martin DB12: (9:12)
Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato: (11:18)
Porsche 911 GT3 RS (992): (13:02)
Honda Civic Type R (FL5): (15:14)
The results: (17:35)
Where we stayed: woodenstarcottages.co.uk/
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[@uleertel]

Alpine side to side with Porsche, what an achievement for a brand revived since just a few years.

[@arekb5951]

@@coletrickIe once could have been an accident, twice proves the point. They do a lot of things right in terms of driver enjoyment and handling, too bad many prefer a badge over an exceptional car

[@gaycha6589]

Yes. Light. Agile. Fast.

[@Your_Paramour]

If only they could offer it with a manual and it would be close to perfect.

[@khakipeach2128]

I’d say the same about McLaren competing against other supercar manufacturers

[@IRoss106]

It’s a 100k car. It’s no longer “just an Alpine” at them prices.

[@andrewb325]

I've been reading EVO since I was a kid. I love that a lot of same writers are still together after all this time.

[@bag2963]

I believe Harry is still with them in some ways right?

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@bag2963GENKI HYPER SILVIA RS2 S15 also sounded as heavenly as GT3RS.

[@EvoraGT430]

@@bag2963Henry was Editor in Chief and founder of EVO.

[@bag2963]

@@EvoraGT430 Harry

[@simonbarnes9600]

Me too,

[@who_stole_my_username]

you should do an ECOTY supertest with all the of the 911s that have previously won.

[@Alby911]

Brilliant idea!

[@adrianlukestylist]

Well done all. Ecoty is all of our favorite time of year!!

[@augustinbillam8118]

Including the new ST 🥰

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@augustinbillam81182022 Focus ST?

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@Alby911the Miata with full upgrades should been here also.

[@coachalexwagner]

Happy that the Alpine made 2nd, and by only 1 point too, so it would have won had it benefitted from a tuneful engine and manual gearbox. Here's to hoping other manufacturers get a grip and follow the small footprint light weight template ! ❤

[@EvoraGT430]

Too busy building bling-barges, sadly.

[@Apater6076]

The GT3RS has an Auto as well though? A manual doesn't immediately make it better?

[@john1703]

Colin Chapman is smiling.

[@kingphiltheill]

Congratulations to the Alpine Team! They really did the impossible, having such a tiny budget and developing a super engaging and rather accessible true sports car that goes head to head with the very best money can buy. Im gonna get my A110 GT in March, I can't wait.

[@kraenk12]

How much was the budget?

[@kingphiltheill]

@@kraenk12 according to chief engineer David Twohig it was worth half a shoe string.

[@kingphiltheill]

And I mean, you clearly can't say that about Porsche developing a car.

[@gtclubuk]

ECOTY used to be my motoring highlight of the year, this felt like an afterthought. Very little detail on each car, overall came across rushed and about 2 months behind when it's normally released. I know things change over time, but ECOTY shouldn't be one of them. Fingers crossed the next one will be a bit more substantial, because the cars involved certainly had the potential for it to have been a good one

[@hemantpatel2215]

Exactly a very disappointing presentation

[@Nathan_Shipp]

One of the worst (maybe the very worst one yet) and there were some shockers before, previously they did seem to up their game after negative feedback from a bad one, so one can hope.. I just see how anyone involved can be happy with that as the finished product.

[@darrensurrey]

Great choice of outro music. :D

[@MAS-991]

Could not agree more.

[@fullsendsimracing]

The fact that there's a Honda Civic in the line up speaks volumes for the undisputed king of hot hatches. Oh and Henry thinks that the manual shifter is even better than the one in the Porsche!

[@gazman9468]

The shifter in my partners Civic is better than the one in my Boxster by some margin.

[@MashyAhmed]

Honda did some black magic fuckery with that manual transmission its just exhilarating to shift that car.

[@ASJC27]

Check out the latest collecting cars podcast too. In the 2 car garage segment Chris Harris described the type r as “on the road, it’s about as good a road car as I’ve ever driven”. Makes me damn happy that I managed to grab an fl5. In the same blue seen here.

[@WDLC1911]

I once had a 2000 Integra Type R (number 630). Kept it until last year. GREAT car!

[@kraenk12]

There simply didn’t debut any other hot hatch this year.

[@alecrl1]

Great video but needed longer coverage of the cars individually for me. Lacking the Porsche 718 Spyder RS but I am sure it will be included next year.

[@marcorsxwhite]

I just want that FL5

[@p.h.234]

Great stuff - i'll pop down my local OPC tomorrow and order one...

[@gazman9468]

good luck 😄

[@ACKWV]

You’d better get a Cayenne, two Macans and a brace of 911’s to be in with the chance 😂

[@p.h.234]

@@ACKWV a chance? Porsche ripping the RS out of us.

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@ACKWVadd also the Gordon Murray T50 and HKS CT230R.

[@Apater6076]

Be prepared to either pay massively over the odds or have to buy something like 3 or 4 Taycan's that will immediately lose £50k in value as you get them delivered.

[@Celeritate7]

Thanks evo 🙏🏼 Looking forward to reading the magazine version -A long-time Gen Z reader!

[@4g5y]

This is what EVO does best! I wish there were more machines in this shortlist. :)

[@IRoss106]

I feel short changed for this years Evo car of the year.

[@gavinsullivan9015]

Thanks guys - watched these for years now. I’ll take 750s, DB12, type R thanks 😊

[@HighocHighrev]

I’ll take GT3RS 750s huracan. I had type R it’s fast car but simply putting high-grip tires and stiff suspensions on a turbocharged inline-four front-wheel-drive isn't enough to make it that exciting.

[@gavinsullivan9015]

@@HighocHighrev interesting. I have a Boxster which is definitely interesting. But manual sports cars are few and far between in Australia. A Type R is new with a warranty and a Boxster for the same money is a 2008 car!

[@HighocHighrev]

@@gavinsullivan9015 I've driven many manual cars and converted some to sequential transmission. I don’t think it’s good idea to put a manual transmission in modern high-performance track cars born for lap times; it just ruins the powertrain. However, for some of the best road cars like the Porsche Boxster, a manual transmission would be optimal.

[@HighocHighrev]

@@gavinsullivan9015 I've driven many manual cars and converted some to sequential transmission. I don’t think it’s good idea to put a manual transmission in modern track cars born for lap times; it just ruins the powertrain. However, for the one of best road cars like the Porsche Boxster, a manual transmission would be nice.

[@officiallyisa]

The B-roll in this video is something else

[@victorcandia]

it is beautiful

[@purwantiallan5089]

​@@victorcandiathe 2008 Civic Type R also looks as beautiful as the 2018 Alpine A110.

[@ajayadhiya2010]

Yes, absolutely stunning photography...

[@JimmyDShea]

Seriously

[@sutats]

If the Alpine A110x was offered in manual, it'd be quite the hit.

[@tedt7991]

It is a hit and it does not need a manual, drive one and you will see

[@colin5577]

Agreed. I’d have one for a start. As it is, since the 110s release, I’ve had a Lotus and two Porsches - all manual - the auto only Alpine didn’t even get a look-in.

[@garethmcrae668]

​@@colin5577It's about engagement for me- anything which distinguishes a car from an appliance is a good thing. Interaction matters. The less pedals, the less involved I feel in the relationship. If I want to just get somewhere, I can call a taxi...

[@colin5577]

@@garethmcrae668 Same here. Most people don’t get it at all and as exhausting as it is for some people to have to listen to cranks like me about manuals and ‘tactility and engagement’, I find it equally exhausting having to listen to people on the other side talking about ‘speed and efficiency’. I don’t need a manual gearbox in every single car that I want or own - if it’s a track day only weapon like a BAC Mono or an SUV with 7 seats… fine..I’m happy enough to live with an auto. But if it’s a car designed to be fun and to be enjoyed on the road… if there’s no manual option then I’ve pretty much no interest at all. It’s like fake knockers - the results can be spectacular, the numbers are impressive and I’ve nothing against them, but they don’t feel the same and I’ve no interest in playing with them.

[@garethmcrae668]

@@colin5577 ...an excellent analogy. The Silicone Valley attracts a lot of people but I don't want to work there

[@newtechgs7471]

How amazing that a Civic can stand tall in a list of cars all costing more than double

[@jeromeleroy8196]

Amazing job as always. Didn’t miss an Ecoty since 2002. GT3RS is my dream car. Been lucky to drive a vanilla carrera 992 for 2500 miles across Europe+ a GTS for 500miles. Size is not an issue at all. I owned 993 and 997 before. Felt at home in the 992.

[@cw205mi16]

Yea the 911 has not grown since 2012 when the 991 came out

[@paulstack2431]

Great video, as always a real highlight off the automotive year .

[@tommogun3]

One one review we wait all year for, thank you EVO ❤❤❤

[@paulfairchild8942]

Amazing, thanks Evo team!

[@u187146]

Great video guys. Good to see so many excellent car journos together doing their thing.

[@HaggisNHorsepower]

Really cool to see one of my favourite driving roads featured in this, Mennock Pass! Great video.

[@ruggiebloke530]

I like the Mennock pass, but I think the Dalveen is a better driving road. More flowing and better line of sight.

[@bluewhittington]

The closing shot where the cars are parked up is Holme moss A6024. A great road, especially suited to a hot hatch.

[@J4NOObs]

i love the type r and the hurracan imagine those two in a garage

[@bigstroke2069]

Excellent choice! I really enjoyed the video - thanks.

[@johnedds2327]

The aspirational lottery winner car for me; I've never driven one, but as a Porsche lover for decades, this is the one I'd choose.

[@RealtorGarage]

They aren’t that awesome. Not the exciting experience you’d hope for.

[@bigstroke2069]

They are awesome. Beyond the exciting experience hoped for!

[@midknight]

Owned a 964, 996 and a 997. Next up: 991 targa Don’t need to win the lottery, just keep an eye out for bargains and sell at the right price

[@chadbarbaro]

don't buy one

[@miklas.k]

@@RealtorGarageeveryone says so, that many people cant be wrong

[@Jahhaj6]

Love the Evo guys and loved reading about eCoty 23, but this video confirmed my worst fear After a great video last year, this years was just really boring, maybe it's because Bovingdon wasn't presenting to inject some enthusiasm, maybe if Dickie had presented it would've been a different story. Sorry guys, I dont mean to be negative, but this just didn't hit the spot for me.

[@Mattsmint115]

100% agree

[@eugenux]

yup.. last year was a really return to form. This one wasn't at the same lvl and a little bit "telegraphed" but a good effort nonetheless. The story should have been a little better developed but, yeah, I much pref a weaker ECOTY than no ECOTY. edit. the best of them(ECOTYs), at least those that have remained stuck somewhere in the back of my head are the 458 Speciale one and the clubsport S one; absolutely stand outs, with the 2022 one being added to that small list.

[@pan4632]

totally agree. Really boring and low energy delivery from all these hosts. Not to mention the lack of detailed commentary on how the cars feel to drive.

[@986am]

Exactly the same sentiments. Not sure what it was? Just didn’t seem to be as polished? Harder with the poor weather I’m sure. Re-watched the Ecoty 2022 to compare - that I found way, way more enjoyable and felt like a higher quality - cleaner production. Please see it as constructive feedback - not a whinge. Keep it shiny side up 🏁

[@gson6867]

Fair point, last year was very engaging, should have built on that success as it could have turned into something every car enthusiast put in his calendar looking forward too with anticipation. Lost that momentum now, won’t make much effort to even watch it again. Pointless…… good point 👍

[@DjNikGnashers]

So glad to see sensibility previal, and the 911 GT3 RS at the top. It is the ultimate ice vehicle.

[@markkemmish1]

This is the one we've all been waiting for! This is the automotive cream of the crop.

[@fireblade6756]

and yes the RS is the best thanks for confirming my purchase cheers!

[@jimcallahan4161]

Good stuff Alpine, a resurrected brand and a team who have turned out a driver's car in the same league a car a 750S and GT3RS. Also the Civic with such prosaic roots is cool

[@nitrostackr]

Type R is the best! Love mine!

[@samueldowney2806]

Very well done Evo team on the best video depiction of ECOTY yet. I think you've finally found the format to do it justice. Shame we didn't get to hear from PT, but great to get a snippet of JB's thoughts, and it's a shame old names like Green, Fraser, Goodwin and Hayman are not around or contributing any more, because they were all so dialled into EVOness. Also it would be good to see the individual scoring, unless this is shown in the mag. I thought the 750S would take it out, as it sounds like the perfect supercar. Is it's steering not superior to the 911? Is it not more exciting and engaging? Would you take a 992 RS over a 997 4.0 RS? ..and then, would you take a 4.0 RS over a 750S? That would surprise me. Very surprised (and pleased) to see the Alpine ranked so highly as I thought the R would be too niche and more of an ultimate collectors edition than a well wrought drivers car. To rank it alongside those other two is incredible praise. ECOTY 2024: Honda Civic has better gear shift than a 911. Porsche wins (again, ofc, it just wouldn't be the same otherwise!). Porsche still know how to make a great sports driver's car. ...and pretty amazingly, there are fantastic top tier drivers cars at all price points. Great stuff. Enjoyed!

[@jonathandawe7900]

Another line-up of sublime cars.

[@bartjanssen5897]

@2:00 you’re sitting on the right side of the car, just driving on the wrong side of the road 😂😉 Keep up the good work 👍🏻 Cheers from Holland

[@guyelvy7317]

Epic video production, epic team and epic cars. Fantastic!

[@got_gt3612]

Excellent choice!!!!!

[@mebahiah]

This format must be 1 hour. please would also like comments on the interior and usability.

[@tunanoketchup4285]

That porsche GT3 RS is the stuff of wet dreams! Black on black with black calipers is the dream spec for me🤤

[@purwantiallan5089]

Wish it also has black rubber on the racing super soft tyres.

[@tunanoketchup4285]

@@purwantiallan5089 🤡🤡

[@bluetitan20]

Brilliant film as always. Great to see that you can cobble together nine cars in these days of ever tighter restrictions and emissions legislation. Still, its just a bit depressing when you have to be a very wealthy person to even think about getting even one of these cars.

[@davidemery429]

The civic and the BMW are the only 2 cars you can get 3 in the back and luggage in, so for them 2 to be in the mix and mid table is a testament to the emgineers.

[@rexproctor9293]

These guys do a fantastic job.

[@meowskisvonmewskertons7206]

the spec on the Mclaren 750s is beautiful

[@rodasrodas]

Good one ! Thank you

[@ehtikhet]

20 minutes?! Is there a part 2? 🧐

[@SNAPZ46]

Watched it in 2x speed since it's just a quick presentation of each car followed by a short walk with the rankings. Honestly learned nothing new in this video and couldn't be arsed to watch it all in normal speed.

[@VictorPitstop]

@@SNAPZ46it’s boring at normal speed. Great tip.

[@Lou-f]

It’s in the print addition

[@adambenk0]

The length is a big letdown. No idea why they didnt give each presenter at least 5 minutes to summarize everything from his perspective :(

[@R03333]

Yeah a sentence or two per car is an interesting choice for something that's supposed to be a prestigious award.

[@giptonnick]

Porsche 911 GT3RS engineering perfection

[@AP13P]

Huracan Sterrato is engeneering perfection. Porsche just repeating the same formula.

[@HighocHighrev]

@@AP13P Customers being satisfied despite using the same formula is evidence that the formula is excellent and that the driving dynamics is truly evolving.

[@JuanOne11]

⁠​⁠@@AP13P So a jacked up supercar is now an engineering perfection? It's the opposite of what a supercar should be, you fangirls are so over the moon with your favourite cars!

[@jacobvanderhooft2188]

@@AP13Pan off road huracan that’s been the same since 2014 ok 😂

[@craigyBow]

❤❤❤ loved this!

[@user-go5pc3hl2z]

Awsome video.. Congrats to the Evo team. I'm simply amazed that the humble Alpine came so close to pipping the best of the best ans shaded the best McLaren ever.. !!!!

[@BrendanEvan]

I think this looks a bit like a dream garage. I’ll take one of each please and thanks

[@atkins.8832]

Still great to see a hot hatch mixing it with them cars

[@Reptilianoverlord-jc8mt]

As champ white FL5 owner my dream car was a GT3. Im grateful for the FL5 it’s the best handling car I’ve ever driven 0 body roll, best feeling tactile gearbox, never knew it was a head turner. For the price in Australia it’s worth it.

[@PhillCurtis]

👍 excited to watch this

[@quocanhphanho8969]

This might be one of the best last ECOTY there will be. Let’s cherish it!

[@bloitus]

i hope the that your channel goes from strength to strength now you are owned by carwow. looking forward to more quality content like this video!

[@buckwheatley1520]

Honestly to own any of these is a blessing. We are in the middle of peak automotive greatness

[@jansefran1752]

Great cars ... Great content ... 👍🚙

[@SotesWaine]

Brutal, seguid así

[@ruthlessracing973]

Its a win for the fl5 just to be mentioned with this line-up of cars people really need to drive this car its truly amazing

[@BryanCamposH]

The fact that they have the type r next to these beasts just makes me happy

[@omairsaif5702]

My EVO 2023 Car Of The Year Honda Civic Type-R! Period.

[@DwainDwight]

winner is no surprise. it's total madness. love it. 2nd for me would be the Roma Spyder.

[@fireblade6756]

ah on my local driving roads at Wanlockhead area fantastic roads for fun in my GT RS3 luv it around there enjoy lads!!! and thanks.

[@bartekgruszczak1519]

Ecoty, I’ve been W8ing so long 😍

[@chawezi3852]

quality content

[@Marcus-ex4ef]

The fact there’s a Honda Civic amongst those other cars ends the conversation right then and there.

[@14thCryptonian]

Haha all these people butthurt that a Porsche won. They might not be your cup of tea, but there’s a reason Porsches win all the time

[@crimsonpirate1710]

Top comment. So we all see it. Nice one nobby. You ruined the outcome.

[@robertwoolley8632]

Perhaps the test criteria needs updating: from German, which begins with a P and hasn't changed the body design much in years.

[@c0c0asauce]

​@@crimsonpirate1710 KZbin has been bad about putting spoiler comments and complaints at the top of the comments lately.

[@josephkelly4893]

Yeah, just wrecked the video for me. F u KZbin

[@VoRLiN]

damn lil bro you sound butthurt you don’t daily supercars, let alone Porsches

[@tommywang8229]

I swear to god the Type-R has been out for two years yet somehow it’s still included in COTY 2024.

[@speedsociety9177]

it was revealed in 2022 but released in europe in 2023 and this is COTY 2023, so still works I guess

[@mackie1001]

Would have been in 2022 but it wasn’t available

[@speedsociety9177]

@@mackie1001 Well, it was unveiled late in the year, first deliveries in Jan 2023 and didn't make it to COTY 2022, which had the GR86. So it makes sense to include it here no? Judging by the instagram photos this was filmed in late Nov/early dev of last year so the same is probably true for the 2022 edition.

[@jamesead9095]

What I'm genuinely pleased about here is that no-one seemed to call this exercise, "Eeecohtee", which in past years was pretty excruciating. All round great video! 🙂

[@888mf4]

That shot of the Lamborghini at 11m 38s is incredible.

[@Bmontepeque11]

I found ECOTY 2022's format a little bit more, but this is great! Also, well done Porsche that GT3 RS with tuneable things on the fly is an engineering marvel. Now, I don't like the RS aggresion, so the 911 S/T is my cup of tea but yeah, this is an amazing car. ❤

[@cryptoronindude]

Glad to see such a great car for the mortals like the Type R always be a consideration. Greatest FWD hot hatch in history. The GT3RS is the Pinnacle of car perfection for the driver, it's a no contest. The 750S another mind bending performer, what a beauty.

[@baoquoc3710]

Henry Catchpole in the COTY? From Carfection to Hagerty and now evo, Henry simply having super indepth presentation of how we can feel a car even if it's only through small screen🤩

[@chahalpawanpreet]

u guys rock

[@stephenshepherd5068]

I look forward to this every year. However, you could draw it out a lot more if you wanted to. You could make a video about each car and a final episode about choosing the winner. Love it, just saying you could milk it a bit more.

[@radost0514]

i still remember in 2013 the 991 gt3 won ! Jethro Bovingdon was the driver! it was epic in Alps(at the end you got pure sound and you show exhaust flames ,it was epic)! Now its seems that the budget goes down a bit for production ,but to see porsche win after 11 years ! Porsche still does one of the best cars in the world!

[@riduculous]

Oh man I was waiting for this. Better late than never.

[@Bensonater11]

Im curious to see what everyone thinks of the 992 S/T compared to the 3rs and GT3 touring

[@EmanuelePolimeni]

Ecoty is, still to this day, probably my most awaited video on YT

[@costasgeorgiou5015]

You on the correct side of the car mate. 2:30

[@fletch9702]

That area you parked at in the beginning. Part of one of my favourite roads up from the lead mines. If you only knew how many times I've stopped for a p!ss there, you'd have worn wellies.

[@turboman2019]

Agree on Evo's choices.

[@Carrera-gp9od]

I’m definitely heading to the optician tomorrow , I could have sworn it said that Alpine was £96k !! My eyes MUST be deceiving me 👀

[@Jfromes1]

The Carrera T is cool. My only reservation is that it should come with the bigger horsepower of the S. It's very pricy for a car with "only" 380 horsepower

[@lucaduina2781]

They've more or less already done this with the GTS. The T would be about the same price as the GTS if you gave it that engine -- definitely no need to make the 911 range more complex than it is. Also, aside from the lineage of the T (which means it should have the base engine), it's a nice option for people who want to have some of the track-focused goodies that come with the GTS and GT3 models without the fear of a huge fine hanging over their heads if caught out on a backroad (if allocations/money isn't the limiting factor).

[@JuanAdam12]

Apparently, all it takes is an ECU tune and the base engine is unchained.

[@chadbarbaro]

you can still eat almost anything on the road. 380hp is not weak.

[@ShaiyanHossain]

​@@chadbarbarofor how much it costs, it kinda is. The m3 cs costs the same if not much less with 200 more hp...

[@_que]

Should have offered the cayman/boxter GTS NA 4L non-GT motor with manual

[@MrDddrrrggg]

I knew GT3 would take first place without seeing the result. I'm saving up for that car, hope I can buy it soon.

[@tango22ah]

I love the way this guy talks to us like we are watching Playschool or Jackanory.

[@tomshotter1000]

Waited all year for this. No where near enough time given on each car. Could be 2x maybe 3x longer. ECOTY usually sets the standard!

[@stevenholden2336]

Awesome video

[@summerburst2221]

I drove the 992 GT3RS and it's soooo good

[@JBOsurf]

Can you please post the points here so we can see how close it was. Thanks.

[@ilmelangolo]

That will be on the magazine...😉

[@siquanwu3131]

When GT3RS comes to this video, I already know the King has arrived, it is a true automotive masterpiece, salute to Porsche.

[@spyros9756]

Alpine 110r 🤯

[@armyman3666]

It would be super interesting to see how different car of the year winners compare, and I bet the results would not be so predictable.

[@snowlover71]

Well done

[@user-kv7vw6bk2b]

I think the Honda is the sweet spot for price and performance

[@richardburhouse8725]

Can’t believe they used that scabby car park at the back of Holme Moss for the winner reveal 😮

[@mr.hendricks9976]

❤

[@jhazz024]

The ending is the sound of a GT4 RS

[@mrmotors_uk]

Yes boys! Great video and worthy winner

[@chadbarbaro]

and girls!

[@1991julez]

Love the content as always. But would just mention I’m not a fan of the sound edit from the in car footage. I like to hear the noises the cars make when you’re reviewing. Gives us a sense of how it feels! Not just the engine but the cabin noises are emotive. This sounds like all the new electric cars which is sad