TORONTO - South Korean automaker Hyundai was the big winner at the 2012 Canadian Car of the Year Awards Thursday.
The company took home the award for Car of the Year for its Elantra and Best New Design for the Veloster.
Hyundai Canada president and CEO Steve Kelleher proudly accepted the awards, calling the Elantra the "best new car we've ever brought to market."
The win is a "vindication for all the effort Hyundai designers and engineers invested into the project," he said.
Other winners included the Volkswagen Touareg TDI Clean Diesel for best utility vehicle and GM's Voltec propulsion system for best new technology.
The Canadian Car of the Year awards are handed out after The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada names the best new car in eight categories following an extensive week of testing.
The Elantra also took home the award for North American car of the year during the North American International Auto Show in Detroit last month.
It was the second-best selling car in Canada last year with 44,930 vehicles sold, only beaten by the Honda Civic.
There were also awards handed out for the vehicles that maintain the best value on the second-hand market.
The results of the "Best Retained Value Awards" released by Canadian Black Book by category:
- Sub-compact – Honda Fit
- Compact – Volkswagen Golf
- Mid-size car – Honda Accord, Subaru Outback
- Full-size car – Toyota Avalon
- Entry Luxury Car – BMW 1 Series
- Luxury Car – Lexus GS Series
- Premium Luxury Car – Lexus LS Series
- Premium Sports Car – Audi R8
- Sports Car – Dodge Challenger
- Small pickup – Toyota Tacoma
- Full-size pickup – Toyota Tundra
- Minivan – Honda Odyssey
- Full-size van – Dodge Sprinter
- Compact SUV – Jeep Wrangler
- Mid-size SUV – Toyota FJ Cruiser
- Full-size SUV – Toyota Sequoia
- Luxury SUV – BMW X6
