AJAC's 2016 Canadian Car of the Year Awards
Data Driven by Canadian Expertise
2016 Canadian Car of the Year and 2016 Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year
MONTREAL, Jan. 14, 2016 /CNW/ - The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) announced today the top three finalists in two overall award categories that comprise part of the association's Canadian Car of the Year awards program, which is now in its 31st year.
The top 3 finalists vying for the 2016 Canadian Car of the Year title, to be declared on Thursday, February 11, 2016, are (in alphabetical order):
Honda Civic
Volkswagen Golf R
Volkswagen Golf Sportwagon
The 2016 Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year will also be declared on February 11th. The top three finalists in this category are (in alphabetical order):
Kia Sorento
Mazda CX-3
Volvo XC90
Nine "Best New" category winners were eligible for the top honours of Canadian Car of the Year and Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year after they were announced on November 24, 2015. Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz were double winners. Other category winners included Chevrolet, Honda, Kia, Mazda, and Volvo. The nine "Best New" categories cover the full new-model spectrum, including "Best New Small Car," "Best New Family Car," and "Best New SUV/CUV." Most mainstream categories are further divided by price, such as over or under $35,000, to better provide fair and relevant comparison.
The category winners represent the voting results by the largest group of Canada's best-known automotive journalists, who gathered this October in Clarington, Ontario for a four-day test-drive evaluation of brand-new or significantly changed models. The event, known as "TestFest," was hosted by Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, and Shell Canada was the official fuel supplier.
"TestFest is the most intensive new-vehicle evaluation process on the planet," said Gary Grant, co-chair of the Canadian Car of the Year committee. "No other organization employs such stringent testing methods to determine its award winners."
The rigorous testing program includes real-world driving on public roads, exactly where consumers drive, so the test data and vote results are directly relevant to potential car and utility vehicle buyers. The results are not based on the personal opinion of just one or two journalists. Instead, 71 automotive journalists each drove vehicles in their categories back-to-back on the same day, under the same conditions, to ensure fair and objective comparisons.
"Our program is absolutely testing-based," said Justin Pritchard, co-chair of the Canadian Car of the Year committee. "We have experienced vehicle testers driving dozens of vehicles, back to back, over the course of several days. This testing process generated 1,911 test drives, producing over 110,000 data points and 1701 category ballots. It's important to note that every aspect of this testing data is shared online via our website, so shoppers can see how any given vehicle won its category, or how it stacked up to the category winner."
Data driven and Canadian expertise: That's what makes an AJAC winner.
PRESS ROOM FOR MEDIA: You didn't have to be at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park for the Canadian Car of the Year Awards program in order to produce media coverage of the event. AJAC has set up a virtual press room online where you may peruse and download the following:
PHOTOS: the process of evaluating 150 vehicles back-to-back at TestFest is captured in photographs.
VIDEO: B-roll of the 5 day event as well as short 90-second videos, ideal for YouTube
AERIAL VIEW: Drone footage of the event from the sky.
QUOTES & TESTIMONIALS: Comments from our journalists on the cars, trucks, and SUVs driven at TestFest.
FACT SHEET: Including recent press releases.
Link is: http://ajac.ca/web/ccoty/pressroom.asp
SOURCE Automobile Journalists Association of Canada
about AJAC, its annual "TestFest, and the Canadian Car of the Year Awards, please contact Allie Marsh, AJAC Event Coordinator, 289.213.9084, e: [email protected]
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