Canadian Journalists Recognize Year's Best Automotive Innovations

The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada announced the winners of the 2020 AJAC Automotive Innovation Awards. Hyundai, FCA, and Porsche took top honours in the three categories awarded this year.

Awards were given out in the categories of Best Safety Innovation, Best Technical Innovation, and Best Green Innovation, with judging conducted by a panel of some of Canada's best automotive journalists.

First up was Best Safety Innovation, where the finalists were Cadillac's Night Vision system, Chevrolet's Buckle to Drive system, and Hyundai's Blind Spot View Monitor. The winner here was Hyundai's Blind Spot View Monitor, which displays a live image from one of two cameras mounted in the mirrors on a display inside the instrument cluster. This lets drivers actually see vehicles in their blind spot instead of simply displaying a warning light in the mirror like in conventional blind-spot alert systems.

The finalists for Best Technical Innovation were Fiat Chrysler's Blind Spot Monitoring with Trailer Detection, GM's Transparent Trailer View, Cadillac's upgraded Super Cruise, and Hyundai's Remote Start Parking Assist. Taking the top spot in this category was FCA's Blind Spot Monitoring with Trailer Detection as seen on the Ram 1500. It scans not just the vehicle's blind spot, but the spot alongside the trailer, helping ensure drivers avoid vehicles that are hidden alongside their trailers.

Last up was the category of Best Green Innovation, where the finalists were Porsche's 800V Taycan Electric Architecture, Hyundai's Smart Regenerative Braking, and Mitsubishi's Outlander PHEV Fast Charging. The award was given to Porsche's Taycan 800V Architecture, which allows Porsche to increase both power out and power in to the Taycan with increased efficiency. It allowed Porsche to trim significant weight from the car and is part of how the new Taycan can charge from 5 to 80 percent battery in as little as 22 minutes.

"These innovations represent the most significant advancements made by the automotive industry for the 2020 model year in the opinion of our esteemed panel of judges," said Jim Kerr, Chair of the AJAC Innovation Awards. "We are delighted to be able to identify these technologies for Canadian consumers as features to consider when they shop for their next vehicles."