(July 3, 2014) BERKLEY, Mich. — The winners of the 13th annual North American Concept Vehicle of the Year Awards have been announced. The Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG took the honor of 2014 Production Preview Vehicle of the Year. And Cadillac won the 2014 Concept Vehicle of the Year award with its Elmiraj Concept. It was also named Most Significant Concept.

The awards recognize those vehicles most likely to shape the future of the automobile industry. More than two dozen jurors participated in a selection process that involved 29 vehicles, each introduced to North America during this season's auto shows in Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, Toronto, and New York.

The Production Preview Vehicle category is for those vehicles based on a model that has already been announced or planned for production. The finalists in this category included the Infiniti Q30, the Infiniti Q50, the Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG, and the VW Passat.

"What's small, fun and can't get here soon enough? . . . The Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG," said juror BJ Killeen. "While it's still in concept form, this baby beast will turn every mild-mannered suburban mom into a stoplight drag racer, just because she can."

The Concept Vehicle category recognizes long-range prototypes designed to measure market reaction to future features and models. The finalists in this category were the Cadillac Elmiraj, the Mercedes Benz GT6, the Nissan Blade, and the Toyota FT-1.

Cadillac marked its ninth competition as a category finalist, and the brand's fourth visit to the awards podium, "The Cadillac Elmiraj is a reminder of when concept cars were dream cars," said juror Dan Carney. "It's the kind of statement vehicle Cadillac needs."

From amongst the winners in the Concept Vehicle and Production Preview categories, the Elmiraj posted the highest overall score to earn the top award as Most Significant Concept Vehicle of 2014.

Additional information and details regarding the nominees, the selection jury and the award winners can be found by clicking here.