BMW iX3 crowned World Car of the Year 2026 as EVs lead the way
The BMW iX3 has been named World Car of the Year 2026, with the announcement made at the New York International Auto Show on 1 April.
- Industry News
- 2 April 2026
LDV hosted a L.I.F.E (Live Integrated Family Experience) festival at the Benoni Northerns sports grounds that saw nearly 4 000 guests in attendance.
The event brought together a mix of LDV customers, dealers, staff, influencers, media, and fans for the brands first birthday celebration in South Africa.
The main stage saw LDV Max Luxe models were parked side-by-side, forming visual centrepiece. South African music royalty lit up the stage, with performances from Majozi, Matthew Mole SAMA winner), Cinimin, Tamara Dey, Desmond & the Tutus (MK Award winner) and many more, entertaining the crowd.
To add even more excitement to the day, LDV ran two competitions, giving one lucky attendee the chance to win a driving experience in the LDV T60 Max Luxe - the top-of-the-range bakkie for a period of time - and another walking away with a cash prize.
Guests were treated to up-close views of the T60 Bakkie Range and the anticipated Terron 9 and D90 SUV.
Larger than life, the D90 is a SUV in size terms competing against the likes of the Fortuner while the Terron 9 itself a huge vehicle, will have a faceoff with fellow Chinese competitor GWM’s P500 bakkie.
Both these two new additions will reach our shores before the end of the year, says Andrew Hare, Marketing Coordinator at LDV South Africa.
LDV’s range currently consists of a range double cab bakkies with a choice between 4x2 and 4x4 versions with either manual or automatic transmissions.
Power is provided by a 2.0-litre single turbo diesel-engine with 120kW/375Nm or the bi-turbo version of the same engine pumping out 160kW/500Nm.
The BMW iX3 has been named World Car of the Year 2026, with the announcement made at the New York International Auto Show on 1 April.
Retail new vehicle sales continue to surge in South Africa despite global and regional conflicts, local floods and droughts.
South Africa’s new vehicle market delivered a standout performance in March 2026, extending its domestic growth trajectory to the strongest level seen in nearly two decades.