AJAC announces semi-finalists for 2025 Canadian Car of the Year Awards
TORONTO, Dec. 2, 2024 /CNW/ - The semi-finalists for the 2025 Canadian Car of the Year Awards (CCOTY), presented by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), have been revealed. The list represents the best vehicles on sale in Canada competing across four Awards categories:
- Canadian Car of the Year
- Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year
- Canadian Electric Car of the Year
- Canadian Electric Utility Vehicle of the Year
In stage one, the 46-strong jury comprised of AJAC members select their top five vehicles in each of the 4 categories that comprise the semi-finalists. In stage two of voting, jurors then complete detailed ballots to name the 12 Best Vehicles in Canada for 2025.
Stage one of the voting is now complete and after collation of the votes cast, the semi-finalists have been named as follows:
The semi-finalists for 2025 Canadian Car of the Year are:
- Acura Integra Type S
- Genesis G70
- Genesis G80
- Honda Civic
- Toyota Camry
- Toyota Prius
The semi-finalists for 2025 Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year are:
- Chevrolet Trax
- Hyundai Santa Fe
- Mazda CX-70
- Nissan Kicks
- Subaru Forester
- Toyota Land Cruiser
The semi-finalists for 2025 Canadian Electric Car of the Year are:
- BMW i4
- Fiat 500e
- Hyundai Ioniq 6
- Lucid Air
- Toyota Prius Prime
The semi-finalists for 2025 Canadian Electric Utility Vehicle of the Year are:
- Cadillac Lyriq
- Hyundai Ioniq 5 N
- Hyundai Kona Electric
- Kia EV9
- Mazda CX-70 PHEV
- Volvo EX30
All 2025 model year vehicles are eligible for the CCOTY Awards including those newly designed, recently refreshed, and carried over from last year.
"Announcing our semi-finalists is the first big step toward the 2025 Canadian Car of The Year Awards. Whether they take home the top trophy or not, the Canadian Car of the Year voting process makes sure that every one of these finalist vehicles is a standout in their class", said AJAC's president, Evan Williams.
"Our 46 jurors are all AJAC members, some of the top automotive journalists in the country, and they live from Halifax to Vancouver, driving in the same conditions Canadians face every day. That's what makes the Canadian Car of the Year Awards different: Every vote comes from an expert who has driven the vehicle, and it's something we're extremely proud of. We believe it shows Canadian drivers they can be confident in our results and in the Canadian Car of the Year program".
The 12 Best Vehicles in Canada for 2025 will be announced on January 16, 2025 at the Montreal Auto Show. "The Montreal Auto Show is proud to collaborate with AJAC to celebrate excellence in the automotive industry. For this 80th edition, unveiling the 12 best vehicles of the year during our press event on January 16, 2025, adds an exceptional and memorable dimension to our Show. We look forward to sharing this experience with journalists and our visitors, true enthusiasts who will be thrilled to discover these outstanding vehicles." said Luis Pereira, Executive Director Montreal Auto Show.
The winners in each category will be announced on February 13, 2025 at the Canadian International AutoShow. All results from AJAC journalist member ballots are audited by international accounting firm KPMG and winners remain under wraps until the moment the envelopes are opened.
About the 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, our 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 our members and AJAC's annual vehicle testing and evaluation events: the Canadian Car of the Year Awards (CCOTY), AJAC Innovation Awards and EcoRun.
About KPMG
KPMG LLP, an Audit, Tax and Advisory firm (kpmg.ca) is a limited liability partnership, established under the laws of Ontario, and the Canadian member firm of KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International"). KPMG has more than 7,000 professionals/employees in over 40 locations across Canada serving private- and public-sector clients. KPMG is consistently recognized as an employer of choice and one of the best places to work in the country. The independent member firms of the KPMG network are affiliated with KPMG International, a Swiss entity. Each KPMG firm is a legally distinct and separate entity and describes itself as such.
SOURCE Automobile Journalists Association of Canada