2004 Canadian Car & Truck of the Year Category Winners

2004 Canadian Car & Truck of the Year Category Winners

The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) named the Mazda 3 as the “Canadian Car of the Year” at an event in February 2004 in Toronto. As well, the Ford F-150 was declared the “Canadian Truck of the Year.”

The winners were selected from ten 2004 Canadian Car of the Year Award category winners announced in December 2003, with Mazda, which is owned by Ford, taking an unprecedented total of four awards, while Ford itself got one of its own.

In related awards, BMW Active Steering was declared the winner of the “Best New Technology” award for 2004, while the Chrysler Crossfire was declared the winner of the “Best New Design” award for 2004.

"Canadian consumers want to know what are the Best New buys for 2004. Based on survey results of previous Car of the Year buyers, almost 70% were influenced to purchase their car because it was chosen the Canadian Car of the Year," says AJAC's Jim Kenzie, president of the Canadian Car of the Year Awards.

This year's category winners represent the best among an excellent group of new cars and trucks for 2004, as selected by a professional group of automotive experts who test drive, and report on, new vehicles in various media.

Every year, this group of automotive experts meets at Shannonville Motorsport Park near Belleville, Ont., for a four-day automotive TestFest based on "real-world" back-to-back testing. CarTest writers participated on test teams at the event, along with about 50 other automotive journalists.

Unlike American or European car awards, the Canadian program follows a sophisticated and rigorous testing process. To quote AJAC and Car of the Year Director Laurance Yap, "The 58 vehicle entries were performance-tested for acceleration, braking and passing times, at least four times each. In addition, journalists were running an average of 10 driving loops a day during team testing over the four-day period."

The vote results, as well as the comparative performance data produced during the annual Test Fest, are available to consumers on AJAC’s website at www.AJAC.ca.

The 2004 Winners

Category		Winner:
Canadian Car of the Year		Mazda3
Canadian Truck of the Year		Ford F-150
Best New Economy Car		Mazda3
Best New Family Vehicle:		Mazda6
Best New Luxury Car		BMW 5 Series
Best New MPV / Crossover Vehicle		Infiniti FX45
Best New Sports Coupe (under $35,000)		Mazda3 Sport Hatchback
Best New Sports Coupe (over $35,000)		Infiniti G35 Coupe
Best New Sports / Performance Vehicle		Mazda RX-8
Best New Minivan		Toyota Sienna
Best New Sport Utility Vehicle		Subaru Forester 2.5 XT
Best New Pickup		Ford F-150

The following alphabetical list shows all the entrants in each category, with the winner highlighted in colour. The competition compares only vehicles that are new for the current model year in each category.

ECONOMY CAR

Chevrolet Aveo LS

Chevrolet Optra LS

Mazda3 (category winner and Canadian Car of the Year)

Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback LS (2nd runner-up)

Saturn ION Quad Coupe

Suzuki Swift +

Toyota Echo Hatchback (1st runner-up)

FAMILY VEHICLE

Chevrolet Epica LS

Chevrolet Malibu LS (2nd runner-up)

Mazda 6 (category winner)

Mitsubishi Galant LS

Nissan Maxima

Suzuki Verona

Toyota Prius (1st runner-up)

LUXURY CAR

Audi A8 (2nd runner-up)

BMW 5 Series (category winner)

Cadillac XLR

Jaguar XJR (1st runner-up)

Kia Amanti

Mercedes-Benz CLK Class Cabriolet

SPORTS COUPE / SEDAN < $35,000

Acura TSX (1st runner-up)

Dodge SRT-4 (2nd runner-up)

Mazda3 Sport Hatchback (category winner)

Pontiac Grand Prix

Toyota Solara

SPORTS COUPE / SEDAN > $35,000

Acura TL (1st runner-up)

Audi S4 (2nd runner-up)

Audi TT 3.2

Chrysler Crossfire

Infiniti G35 Coupe (category winner)

SPORTS / PERFORMANCE VEHICLE

Chevrolet SSR

Dodge Viper SRT-10

Mazda RX-8 (category winner)

Mercedes-Benz SL55 AMG

Nissan 350Z Roadster (2nd runner-up)

Subaru Impreza WRX Sti (1st runner-up)

Volvo S60R

TRUCKS

(MPV/Crossover, SUV, Minivan and Pickup models are in the truck category.)

MPV / CROSSOVER (no off-road testing)

Cadillac SRX (1st runner-up)

Chrysler Pacifica

Honda Element

Infiniti FX 45 (category winner)

Lexus RX 330 (2nd runner-up)

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Wagon 4Matic

Mitsubishi Endeavor Limited

SPORT UTILITY VEHICLE (includes off-road testing)

BMW X3

Buick Rainier (V8)

Dodge Durango

Lincoln Aviator (2nd runner-up)

Nissan Pathfinder Armada

Subaru Forester 2.5 XT (category winner)

Volkswagen Touareg (1st runner-up)

MINIVAN

Dodge Sprinter

Ford Freestar (2nd runner-up)

Nissan Quest (1st runner-up)

Toyota Sienna (category winner)

PICKUP

Chevrolet Colorado / GMC Canyon (2nd runner-up)

Dodge RAM 2500

Dodge RAM 3500

Ford F-150 (category winner and Canadian Truck of the Year)

Nissan Titan (1st runner-up)

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