Canadian Car of the Year winners announced
Every year the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) pick the top new vehicles by category to give their Canadian comrades a reference point for potential purchases. The AJAC tested 177 vehicles in an event at Niagra they call "Test Fest" to come up with their final list, which you can find after the jump.
Even though Canadians have different automotive tastes than us Yanks, they seem to like many of the same cars we do. The AJAC picked the Audi R8 as its "Most Coveted Vehicle", the Honda Accord was honored as best family car, and the Audi S5 took honors for best sports car over $50,000, all of which are fine picks with us. We do, however, question the Nissan Rogue as Best New SUV/CUV under $35,000. It's also interesting to note that no Toyotas made the final list of 12, and GM was the only U.S. domestic to hit the list, impressively taking four categories.
[Source: Auto North]
Best new small car: Saturn Astra
Best new family car: Honda Accord EX Sedan
Best new luxury car: Mercedes-Benz C Class
Best new prestige car: (over $75,000): Audi R8
Best new sports/performance car under $50,000: MINI Cooper S
Best new sports/performance car over $50,000: Audi S5
Best new convertible: BMW 335i Cabriolet
Best new minivan: Hyundai Entourage
Best new pickup truck: Chevrolet Silverado
Best new SUV/CUV under $35,000: Nissan Rogue
Best new SUV/CUV $35,000 - $60,000: Saturn Vue
Best new SUV/CUV over $60,000: Buick Enclave
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
xero 5:37PM (12/06/2007)
Firstly the image above is pure class. Good on audi for getting this award. We have just a couple down here in NZL and I have been in one, can see why this car is a success!
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Mehul 5:45PM (12/06/2007)
I dont know, I agree with the decision on Nissan Rogue.. I know a lot of people disagree but I kinda like the Rogue.
However, I do think it needs a new grille.
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Aki 5:45PM (12/06/2007)
LOL at the image.
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tankd0g 5:48PM (12/06/2007)
Looks like Toyota's well worn blanket of a car lineup is starting to drop off the radar.
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psarhjinian 11:52AM (12/07/2007)
AJAC only tests cars new for the current year. Toyota has very few (any?) models net-new for 2008 at this time. That's why they have nothing in the list.
This, like CarAndDriver's 10Best, is pure marketing schlock. A car cannot compete unless it's new that year, even if it's not as good as other cars in it's class.
For example: If Chery or Brilliance was the only company to release a car in a given class in a given year, they would win that class. It wouldn't matter if the car was the worst piece of drek since Yugo. The point of these awards is to give sponsors^H^H^H^H^H^Hautomakers something to crow about.
Snowdog 5:51PM (12/06/2007)
Who cares about best "new" awards. I care about best in category, not the best of two new models.
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SPF 5:56PM (12/06/2007)
I agree.
tankd0g 5:57PM (12/06/2007)
Awards in general are usually BS, if I'm shopping I'm looking for comparative reviews, not trophies.
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Snowdog 5:57PM (12/06/2007)
This link contains the competitors in each category:
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/cc/testfest08main.htm
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herb 5:58PM (12/06/2007)
wow what happened to the Subaru Impreza. I thought it would win for sure.
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3cubed minus 3squared plus1 6:01PM (12/06/2007)
60,000$ for an Enclave?
Thats like 5,000$ more than the base price of an Escalade here.
So sad.
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Kowell 7:09PM (12/06/2007)
Now you know why there is a crusade to get price lowered in Canada.....
Juan 6:04PM (12/06/2007)
The Nissan Rogue seems like a fine choice for me. It has style (in my eyes) and the interior is quite decent (especially for a Nissan). Sure, the CVT sucks for any kind of fun driving, but under normal situations it does fine. And the fuel economy isn't bad either. Plus this thing looks 100 times better than the Sentra that its based on...
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N_V_D 9:50PM (12/06/2007)
Welcome to 5 years ago. Seriously, it's one thing to turn the perception of a the reliability of a brand around, but Nissan has been making quality interiors for the last few years now. At least on par with everything else out there
herb 6:11PM (12/06/2007)
I think the AJAC is a bit biassed because who in there right mind would ever buy a Saturn 1st of all other then someone who has had there head in the sand for the last 10 yrs. Saturn over an Impreza common lets get real!
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Gavin 6:28PM (12/06/2007)
You, my friend, have had your head in the sand for the past ten years...
VP 7:01PM (12/06/2007)
@Gavin,
You stole my line :)
to the original poster herb, seriously get your head out of the sand, get away from the marijuna or whatever.
herb 6:12PM (12/06/2007)
It must have something to do with which automaker gives these so called journalist the most money
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vdk 8:10PM (12/06/2007)
it has something to do with the new Ope... errr... Saturn Astra...
Tricky dicky 6:26PM (12/06/2007)
yeah what was the best new CUV under 35k canadian then?
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