Canada’s ‘2016 Car Of The Year’ Finalists Announced

Like most other countries around the world, Canada also has its own ‘Car of the Year’ awards and the time has come to announce the finalists for 2016.

The Canadian Car of the Year Awards (CCOTY) are organized by journalist members of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), who came together at the the Tire Motorsport Park, in Clarington, Ontario, for four days of testing before casting their votes.

Each member of the jury took the models on a series of drive routes, which included public roads, a handling course, and a performance course, covering a range of conditions that consumers will likely encounter.

A total of three finalists in each of the nine categories were announced and these include the Honda Civic Sedan, Toyota Yaris Sedan and Volkswagen Jetta 1.4 TSI in the ‘Best New Small Car’. The ‘Best New Family Car’ list includes the Chevrolet Volt, Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and Volkswagen Golf Sportwagon 1.8 TSI, while in the ‘Best New Sports / Performance under $50k’ we can find the Mazda MX-5, the MINI John Cooper Works 3-door and the Volkswagen Golf R.

The ‘Best New Sports / Performance over $50k’ adds the Cadillac ATS-V, Ford Shelby GT350 and Mercedes-AMG C 63 S. The Cadillac CTS-V, Mercedes-AMG GT S and Porsche Cayman GT4 are battling in the ‘Best New Prestige / Performance’ category, followed by the Honda HR-V, Jeep Renegade and Mazda CX-3 in the ‘Best New SUV / CUV under $35k’. The ‘Best New SUV / CUV $35k-$60k’ has the Honda Pilot, Hyundai Tucson and Kia Sorento.

The automotive journalists voted the Lincoln MKX, Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe (GLE 350d 4MATIC Coupe) and the Volvo XC90 in the ‘Best New SUV / CUV over $60k’ as finalists while in the ‘Best New Pickup’, names like the Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Canyon – Diesel and Toyota Tacoma 4×4 Double Cab can be found.

The winners in each category will be announced on November 24, 2015, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and then they will compete for the ‘2106 Canadian Car of the Year’, ‘Canadian Truck or Utility Vehicle of the Year’, ‘Canadian Green Car of the Year’ and ‘Canadian Green Truck or Utility Vehicle of the Year’. All vehicles are new or have been significantly updated for 2016.

Best New Small Car:
– Honda Civic Sedan
– Toyota Yaris Sedan
– Volkswagen Jetta 1.4TSI

Best New Family Car:
– Chevrolet Volt
– Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
– Volkswagen Golf Sportwagon 1.8TSI

Best New Sports/Performance (under $50k):
– Mazda MX-5
– MINI John Cooper Works 3 door
– Volkswagen Golf R

Best New Sports/Performance (over $50k):
– Cadillac ATS-V
– Ford Shelby GT350
– Mercedes-AMG C 63 S

Best New Prestige / Performance:
– Cadillac CTS-V
– Mercedes-AMG GT S
– Porsche Cayman GT4

Best New SUV/CUV (under $35k):
– Honda HR-V
– Jeep Renegade
– Mazda CX-3

Best New SUV/CUV ($35k-$60k):
– Honda Pilot
– Hyundai Tucson
– Kia Sorento

Best New SUV/CUV (over $60k):
– Lincoln MKX
– Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe (GLE 350d 4MATIC Coupe)
– XC90 Volvo

Best New Pickup:
– Chevrolet Silverado
– GMC Canyon – Diesel
– Toyota Tacoma 4×4 Double Cab

Images via AJAC