#AudiS4

The current Audi A4 is one of the few cars on the market to have grown in size and decreased in weight, a smart philosophy in a world where performance and efficiency are now placed on a similar footing. The next-generation A4 is set to go on a crash diet, dropping 300 lbs through the use of composites, aluminum and proprietary engineering techniques.

The Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) has just announced the list of nominees for Canadian Car of the Year and Canadian Utility Vehicle of the year. This list is made up of the winners from each of the 12 categories and includes the Mazda3, Mazda3 Sport, Volkswagen Golf Wagon TDI, Ford Taurus, BMW 335d, Porsche Panamera Turbo, Volkswagen GTI, Audi S4, Audi A5 Cabriolet, Subaru Outback, Volkswagen Toureg TDI and Lexus RX450h.

Highlights include the Mazda3 as Best New Small Car under $21,000; the Volkswagen Golf Wagon TDI for Best New Family Car under $30,000; the Ford Taurus for Best New Family Car over $30,000; the Subaru Outback for Best New CUV/SUV and the Porsche Panamera Turbo for Best New Prestige Car. In total Volkswagen brands walked away with half of the awards.

AJAC released the list this morning in Niagaro-on-the-Lake in southern Ontario where 70 of Canada’s “elite” automotive journalists spent the week testing a long list of 156 vehicles at the organizations annual Test Fest event.

The 12 class winners will now be submitted for the 2010 Canadian Car of the Year or the 2010 Canadian Utility Vehicle of the Year, which will be announced at the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto, Ontario on February 11.

[Source: Auto123]

Follow the jump for a list of the individual class winners:

We still have more than half of 2009 to go and already the list of 2010 North American Car & Truck of the Year nominees have been picked. That’s because the list is essentially a list of every new model for 2010.