What Car?

What Car?

What Car? magazine cover, July 2001
Editor	Steve Huntingford
Former editors	Jim Holder; Chas Hallett; Steve Fowler; Rob Aherne; Mark Payton; Richard Feast
Categories	Car buyer's guide
Frequency	Monthly
Circulation	70,218 (Jul–Dec 2012)
Publisher	Haymarket Consumer Media
First issue	1973 (1973)
Company	Haymarket Media Group
Country	United Kingdom
Based in	Twickenham
Language	English
Website	www.whatcar.com
ISSN	0307-2991

What Car? is a long-running United Kingdom monthly automobile magazine and website, currently edited by Steve Huntingford and published by Haymarket Consumer Media.

First published in 1973, What Car? is intended primarily as a magazine for car buyers rather than dedicated enthusiasts. In addition to first drives and group tests of the latest models, it contains an extensive buyer's guide section to help consumers choose the right car for their needs and provides tips on how to get discounts on cars.

In 1978, the magazine held its first Car of the Year Awards, giving advice on the best models to buy, and this has since been an annual – and eagerly awaited – feature. In 1996, the website www.whatcar.com was launched.

More recently, What Car? launched another print edition, published in India every two months, which subsequently became a monthly publication. The 8th anniversary edition was published in August 2014.

Every year What Car? hosts an awards ceremony where it names the best cars in each sector of the car market and an overall Car of the Year, with the Renault 20 receiving the inaugural award in 1978.

In 1985, the Volkswagen Golf, in its second generation, became the first model to receive the award twice, having previously won it for the facelifted first-generation car in 1981.

Volkswagen is currently the most successful brand in the history of the awards, having taken the top prize a total of six times. Volkswagen-owned brands such as Audi, SEAT and Škoda have won it a further six times between them.

In April 2012, What Car? launched a new service called 'True MPG', which it claims gives consumers an idea of what they can really expect from a car if they drive it gently and stick to speed limits but don't resort to any unrealistically slow acceleration or special hypermiling techniques.

These True MPG figures are published alongside the official government fuel economy data, that car manufacturers are legally obliged to include in brochures.