TORONTO -

ALG revealed its fifth annual Canadian Residual Value Awards this week at the Canadian International Auto Show, with the Toyota and Honda family of brands both taking home five segment awards. Other traditionally strong performers, such as Subaru and Honda both made the cut, as well, with a few surprises mixed in.

ALG shared that Honda and Acura earned the honors for top Mainstream and Premium brands, respectively, for the awards that recognize the vehicles predicted to retain the highest percentage of MSRP after a three-year period for luxury brands and a four-year period for mainstream brands.

“For all consumers, residual value represents a complete indicator of vehicle value, taking into account quality, durability and brand desirability,” said Larry Dominique, president of ALG. “The Canadian Residual Value Awards recognize those brands and products that are using the best business practices to protect the value of their vehicles.”

The company explained that Honda has returned to the top ranking after a four-year “hiatus.” In other good news for the OEM, Acura managed to rank highest for the first time above Infiniti, according to ALG. Infiniti was the previous recipient of the Premium Brand award for the past four years.

Moving along, among Mainstream brands, Subaru ranked second overall behind Honda, with Mazda rounding out the top three. Infiniti and Lexus ranked second and third, respectively, among the Premium brands.

For the segment awards, Toyota reigned supreme, notching five honors, including the full-size pickup with the Tundra and the full-size car segment with the Avalon.

Also tops on the list was Subaru, with three segment awards — the midsize utility, sports car and compact car segments, one of the largest volume segments in Canada.

"Our approach is designed to give the Subaru driver an unsurpassed level of confidence behind the wheel," said Shiro Ohta, president and chief executive officer of Subaru Canada. "This dedication has helped us consistently rank as one of the industry's top manufacturers. Having the highest predicted resale value in three segments will help more and more Canadians put Subaru on their shopping lists."

Geoff Helby, Canada regional director for ALG, also expressed his enthusiasm for the OEMs new offerings, noting, "Subaru's steady approach of delivering dependable product with minimal incentives and fleet make them a consistent Residual Value contender. This approach is a winning formula for Subaru and for Canadian consumers."

And one domestic car, in particular, is a newcomer to the list. The Cadillac ATS, which won the honors for Premium midsize is the first domestic passenger car to recieve a Canadian Residual Value Award.

The only other vehicle from the Detroit 3 to make the lists in the past was the Ford F-150.

“The ATS is an indicator that the Cadillac brand is headed in the right direction,” said Helby. "With a well executed product and competitive pricing, the Cadillac ATS sets the bar for the brand.”

“The ATS is going to catch the public by surprise," he added.

When asked what makes the ATS such a find, Helby explained, “First and foremost, Cadillac has created a true sports sedan. It is a rear wheel drive vehicle (offered in all wheel drive, as well) that has two very potent powertrains … and it is mated to an exceptional chasse with great handling.  

"What I would like to see is people putting away their brand snobbery and just drive the vehicle," he said.

Other highlights from the awards include “two hotly contested segments;” the redesigned Honda Accord received the award in the midsize car segment, while the Subaru Impreza received the award in the compact car segment.

Among alternative fuel vehicles, the Volkswagen Golf TDI and Audi A3 TDI were repeat winners in the Mainstream and Premium categories, respectively, ALG shared.

Award recipients are chosen after a careful evaluation of vehicle criteria, including segment competition, historical vehicle performance and industry trends, the company shared.

This year’s awards are based on 2013 model year vehicles. Awards are given in 22 vehicle segment categories and two brand categories (Mainstream and Premium).

Here are the full RVA awards from ALG for 2013:
 

Sarah Rubenoff can be reached at srubenoff@autoremarketing.com. Continue the conversation with Auto Remarketing Canada on LinkedIn and Twitter.