2026 AJAC Innovation Award winners announced by Automobile Journalists Association of Canada
VANCOUVER, BC, March 25, 2026 /CNW/ - The three winners of the 2026 AJAC Innovation Awards, presented by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), were announced today during the opening ceremonies of Elevate, the Vancouver International Auto Show.
The newly developed Plug-in hybrid powertrain in the 2026 Toyota RAV4 PHEV is the winner of this year's AJAC Best Green Innovation award. This 6th-generation powertrain is more powerful and more efficient than before and boosts the electric range in the RAV4 to around 80km. It features a larger, higher-voltage battery, DC fast charging and numerous other improvements that impressed our judging panel.
The winner of AJAC's Best Safety Innovation award for 2026 is Volvo's Multi-Adaptive Safety Belt. Volvo has long been associated with improving vehicle occupant safety and this latest development is the next step forward in ensuring that all drivers and passengers are equally protected. To achieve this, the new belt adjusts its restraining force and duration in real time, according to the size and shape of the front-seat occupants, and the circumstances of the imminent impact.
And finally, AJAC's 2026 Best Technical Innovation award goes to the Quad-Motor system in the all-electric Mercedes-Benz G 580 with EQ Technology. Reminding us that we are still only beginning to discover what can be achieved with electric power, this G-Class's four motors make it even more capable off-road than the gas-powered version. It can even climb at a 45-degree angle on suitable surfaces.
"We are always proud to reward the year's best new technologies with our Innovation Awards," said Awards Chair, Graham Heeps. "Sometimes innovation is all about a revolutionary shift in thinking; at other times it is incremental improvement by a diligent team of engineers that delivers the greatest benefit to consumers. There are examples of both approaches among our winners this year."
About the AJAC Innovation Awards
The AJAC Innovation Awards are awarded annually to the best automotive innovations in three categories: Best Green Innovation, Best Safety Innovation and Best Technical Innovation.
The Innovation Awards are conducted by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), a professional association that connects Canada's best auto journalists and provides consumers with unbiased car buying advice. An expert voting panel of AJAC journalists assesses nominations and compiles a shortlist of finalists, which are then presented in detail to the judges. The jury votes for the new technologies they determine to be the year's best.
Innovations are assessed according to their consumer benefit and appeal, originality, cost, and likely impact on the market (new technologies often start out in high-end models before becoming available in more affordable vehicles).
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About Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC)
The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) is an association of professional journalists, writers, photographers, videographers and corporate members whose focus is the automobile and the Canadian automotive industry. Collectively, its primary objectives are to promote, encourage, support, and facilitate professionalism in Canadian automotive journalism and to ensure factual and ethical reporting about the automobile and automotive issues to Canadian consumers. This is achieved through the work of its members and AJAC's annual vehicle testing and evaluation events: the Canadian Car of the Year Awards (CCOTY), AJAC Innovation Awards, and EcoRun.
SOURCE Automobile Journalists Association of Canada
For further information: Graham Heeps, Innovation Awards Chair, [email protected]; Evan Williams, AJAC President, 902-401-1784, [email protected]; Cindy Hawryluk, AJAC Managing Director, 905-978-7239, [email protected]
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