In an early morning press conference at the opening of the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto, the Hyundai Genesis was declared the 2009 Canadian Car of the Year (CCOTY) by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC).
The Hyundai Genesis beat eleven other "best new" category winners, announced October 24, 2008 to win the top prize.
"Winning the Canadian Car of the Year award with the Genesis is absolutely terrific news," said Steve Kelleher, president and CEO, Hyundai Auto Canada Corp. "This award is testimony to the fact that Hyundai produces award-winning vehicles at all levels of the market, from the entry-level subcompact segment to the high-end luxury segment. Canadians can now buy a high-quality, luxurious vehicle with every feature they could want at an affordable price. And in today's economic environment, that is smart."
AJAC's Canadian Car of the Year Awards chair, Richard Russell, commented: "AJAC has been conducting and perfecting the Canadian Car and Utility Vehicle of the year program for more than two decades. By constantly adjusting the program and testing procedures to reflect what is important to Canadian consumers, we feel we have a more thorough, unbiased and meaningful award than any other. It is heartening to learn from independent research that Canadians recognize the significance of the award. We will continue to strive to live up to that trust."
AJAC's annual Canadian Car of the Year awards program was created in 1985 with the purpose of providing consumers with sound, comparative information on vehicles that are new to the market.
For that reason, the vote results that determined today's winners are available to consumers as a resource buying guide on the AJAC web site. Also available are the comparative test data derived from the journalists' extensive five day evaluation of over 160 new vehicles in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario in October. This annual event is known in the industry as "TestFest". Shell Canada is the official fuel supplier of the event.
The rigorous TestFest evaluation program includes real world driving on public roads - exactly where consumers drive so that the test and vote results posted to the AJAC web site are directly relevant to potential car and truck buyers.
Still looking to buy a 2008, 2007, or even a 2006 vehicle? AJAC archives the comparative test data from previous years on its web site. Photos from today's award announcements, the October 24th category winners, and the TestFest evaluation event, are available for print and broadcast media under - Canadian Car of the Year - Photo Gallery - on the AJAC web site.
In addition, our AJAC journalists who evaluated the brand new models at TestFest are available across Canada for interviews to talk about the vote results and comparative data. Media are invited to visit the AJAC web site and log-in under "Ask An Expert", then choose the "Media" link to access interview information once validation has occurred.
