Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) members pick Camry LE, Camry Hybrid and RAV4 as category winners for the 2007 Canadian Car of the Year. Toyota Trio were given the top honors. Toyota Camry LE won in the Best New Family Car, Toyota Camry Hybrid, in the Best New Family Car, and Toyota RAV4 V6 Sport in the Best New SUV/CUV category.
“Toyota is very happy to accept these awards and on behalf of everyone at Toyota in Canada, I’d like to thank AJAC’s members for these honors,” said Stephen Beatty, Managing Director at Toyota Canada Inc. “The Toyota Camry is North America’s most popular passenger car. The Toyota Camry Hybrid represents an important evolution of gasoline-electric hybrid technology in the second most popular market segment in Canada. And the redesigned Toyota RAV4 will be manufactured in Woodstock, Ontario when our new assembly plant, currently under construction, begins production in 2008.”
Toyota Camry, a midsize car built in Georgetown, Kentucky plant, is the best-selling car in the United States for 8 of the last 9 years starting in 1997. Now in its sixth generation, auto parts for Toyota Camry have been notably redesigned though the length of the car remained unchanged. Kentucky plant produces approximately 45,000 Camrys annually.
Toyota Camry OEM parts boast functionality and style. The new Camry is also being manufactured by Toyota Motor Corporation Australia. The new generation Camry in Australia went on sale last August. Its model range is composed of the Altise, Ateva, Sportivo and Grande.
This year, Toyota created a hybrid version of Camry. It was introduced alongside with the redesigned Camry. The car employs Hybrid Synergy Drive setup, which is identical to that of Prius, Highlander Hybrid and Lexus RX 400h. Camry Hybrid uses a 4-cylinder gasoline engine that is capable of producing 192 horsepower. Standard features of the Camry Hybrid include knee airbags, side torso airbags and side-curtain airbags, remote entry and start.
Toyota RAV4, on the other hand, is a compact crossover SUV which was significantly redesigned for the 2006 model year. For now, Toyota RAV4 auto parts are assembled in the automaker’s Tahara, Aichi, Japan assembly plant. However, the assembly is expected to be transferred in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada assembly plant when the latter comes online.
“These three vehicles are extremely important to Toyota’s vision of the future of personal transportation in Canada,” Mr. Beatty continued. “Therefore, we’re pleased that they have been selected by AJAC’s members as the best in their respective categories.”
AJAC is an association composed of professional journalists, writers and photographers who are responsible for the coverage in Canada’s auto industry.
