The 2017 Volkswagen Golf Alltrack managed to snag the Canadian Car of the Year award, bestowed by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). 

The Golf managed to beat out the BMW M2 and the Hyundai Elantra for the top honors this year, selected out of eight category winners. Over 60 Canadian automotive journalists gather each year at an event known as “Test Fest,” to drive and evaluate all eligible new cars for a given year.

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The Golf Alltrack is the off-road ready version of the Volkswagen Golf SportWagen, sporting a one-inch lift, underbody protection, plastic body cladding and tailored off-road driving modes. Power comes from a 1.8-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that makes 170 horsepower and 199 lb-ft of torque, sent through a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

In the US, the Golf Alltrack starts at $33,710, while in Canada, the Alltrack will leave dealerships for at least $36,920.

“TestFest is the most intensive new-vehicle evaluation process on the planet,” said Gary Grant, co-chair of the Canadian Car of the Year committee. “No other organization employs such stringent testing methods to determine its award winners.”

This article first appeared on Auto Guide