AJAC Innovation Awards

AJAC’s 2025 Best Technical Innovation award goes to the Mazda Large Platform MHEV (mild-hybrid) Powertrains, which underpin the brand’s latest pair of crossover SUVs: CX-70 and CX-90. Mazda’s combination of turbocharged inline-six-cylinder engines, 48-volt mild-hybrid system and newly designed 8-speed transmission boosts efficiency, improves acceleration from rest, sharpens the driving dynamics and enlarges the front crush zone.

The Lucid Air Pure electric powertrain is the winner of this year’s AJAC Best Green Innovation award. Lucid has developed its own powertrain technology to better integrate elements like the motor and battery, creating the most efficient EV on sale in Canada. Efficient powertrains enable lighter vehicles and greater range from a given amount of energy, while still delivering the performance that buyers expect.

The winner of AJAC’s Best Safety Innovation award for 2025 is BMW Digital Key Plus. Its use of ultra-wideband (UWB) technology offers an innovative way to combat car theft. The two-way communication between the vehicle and the ‘key’ in the phone prevents the ‘relay’ attacks that have become commonplace, whereby a criminal capture signals from keys in a house and rebroadcasts them to steal the car.

The Volvo EX90 Safety Suite received the award for Best Safety Innovation. Volvo’s long tradition of safety innovation continues in the new EX90 electric SUV, where a high-resolution LiDAR sensor enhances the reliability and performance – including in low light conditions – of the Pilot Assist driver-assistance functions.

The BMW 5th-Generation Electric Drive System is the winner of this year’s AJAC Best Green Innovation award. On sale in electrified models including the brand-new i5 and 5 Series PHEV, the Gen-5 electric drive system eliminates rare earths from the electric motors and enables many components to be repaired or replaced, reducing service costs.

The Range Rover Sport SV 6D Dynamics Suspension has been voted Best Technical Innovation. It’s the second straight year that Range Rover has won this award. This year’s winner is an interlinked suspension system that replaces anti-roll bars to improve the 2024 Range Rover Sport SV’s handling, ride comfort and off-road ability.

AJAC’s Best Technical Innovation award for 2023 goes to Range Rover for its Adaptive Off-Road Cruise Control, which is standard on the 2023 Range Rover Sport. This new technology helps drivers to navigate tricky terrain by maintaining steady progress according to the ground conditions. When one of four comfort settings is selected using a steering-wheel switch, the system will intelligently adjust the vehicle speed, allowing the driver to focus on steering. Sensors monitor every aspect of the vehicle and its movement to understand the terrain, whether it’s on a gradient, ice, uneven rocks or in deep snow. The system then …

With the brand’s latest hybrid powertrain, as found in the 2023 Toyota Prius, Toyota has been awarded Best Green Innovation for the second year in a row. Toyota has been at the forefront of hybrid systems since the introduction of the first Prius in 1997. The 2023 model includes a larger, 2-litre engine, a new lithium-ion battery, a new front power control unit, weight reductions and other changes to boost power and fuel efficiency and make the vehicle more enjoyable to drive. Even as full-EVs rise in popularity, hybrids remain an important, practical and affordable means of reducing vehicle emissions. …

Subaru captures the award for Best Safety Innovation for is latest EyeSight updates. With the new camera-based system, Subaru is increasing safety for those outside the vehicle as well as the occupants within. The wide-angle mono camera enhances the capabilities of Subaru’s existing EyeSight v4 driver-assistance technologies. In particular, the new camera extends the operating area of the Pre-Collision Braking system by widening the field of view. When entering intersections at low speed, the camera quickly spots bicycles crossing ahead and helps the car to avoid pedestrians when turning left or right. Accidents occur frequently at intersections and the new …