This year is the 51st version of the Canadian International Auto Show (CIAS). Covid caused cancellations of the 2021 and 2022 shows. The 2023 CIAS, the first post-Covid show, was attended by 350,217 people, the third best attendance in the history of the show. That high number was despite the fact only 28 carmakers exhibited at the show last year.
Forty-four makers have displays at the show this year, though some mainstream brands like Honda and Mazda, were absent from the show as were the three German luxury brands. Though it is expensive to have a stand at the show, not displaying your vehicles to over 350,000 people appears to be penny wise and pound foolish.
Among the mainstream makers, only Infiniti, Genesis and Kia had official “reveals” at the CIAS.
Stephen Elmer and Jesse Caron of AJAC announce the Canadian Vehicles of the Year winners at the CIAS
The Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) vehicles of the year were announced at the CAIC. The Car of the Year is the Toyota Prius with the Utility of the Year being the Toyota Grand Highlander. The electric Car of the Year is the Genesis Electrified G80, with the Genesis GV70 Electrified getting the nod for Utility of the Year.
The Rimac Nevera electric supercar from Croatia
Rimac, a full electric supercar from Croatia, was part of a media event at the CIAS that included a panel discussion with Mate Rimac and Richard Hammond of Top Gear and The Grand Tour fame.
The Nevera sends its 1914 horsepower (!!) to all four wheels. The 120 kWh battery pack feeds a dual motor, all-wheel-drive system. Rimac is a high-tech firm that designed the Nevera totally in-house and provides technology solutions to major players in the auto industry.
The stylish 2024 Lincoln Nautilus
Once a spin-off of the Ford Edge, the new-generation Lincoln Nautilus is a standalone product as the Edge will not be replaced. Production migrates from Canada to China.
Like most recent Lincolns, the new Nautilus is very elegant outside, and the cabin, with a full-width panoramic display topping the dashboard, is high tech and constructed from lavish materials. The front seats on the display unit featured plush, massage seats up front and expansive space in both rows.
Two power units, a 250 horsepower 2L turbo four and a 2L turbo hybrid, rated at 310 horsepower, are available. All-wheel drive is standard. The 2L uses a conventional eight-speed automatic and there is a CVT on the hybrid.
The Nautilus should be on sale by the summer of 2024.
Final version of the next-generation GMC Acadia
The final version of the next-generation Acadia was on display, but its launch date is unknown and, as with most of GMs recent EVs it will likely be delayed.
In an effort to differentiate the Acadia from its stablemates, the Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse, the previous Acadia was smaller and a close match to mainstream crossovers like the Toyota Highlander. The new Acadia has been upsized again, and its dimensions will match those of the similar Chevrolet Traverse.
The vehicle on display was locked, oddly, so no cabin impressions are available.
Only one engine, a turbocharged 2.5L four rated at 328 horsepower, will be available, at least initially. Properly equipped, the Acadia can tow up to 2268 kilograms.
GM’s Super Cruise, a limited self-driving feature, will be offered on the new Acadia.
Final version of the next-generation Chevrolet Traverse
The new Traverse looks bulkier and edgier than its predecessor. Power stems from the same 2.5L turbo four as in the Acadia but it produces 315 horsepower, 13 fewer than its platform mate.
The Traverse on display was also locked so interior impressions are not possible.
The car is listed as a 2024 model but introduction is likely to be delayed.
The Signia, the station wagon version of the Toyota Crown, is more pleasing to the eye than its sedan counterpart
The Signia is essentially a station wagon version of the Toyota Crown sedan that debuted a year ago. The front end is more elegant and the overall styling is very sleek. The cabin is roomy, comfortable and luxuriously finished.
The Signia is offered with a single powertrain, a 2.5L four that combines with electric propulsion to produce 243 total system horsepower. The Signia is exclusively hybrid power at a time when Toyota can’t supply nearly enough hybrid power units to meet demand.
The Land Cruiser name returns in a slimmer, less-expensive form
Not offered in Canada for years, the Toyota Land Cruiser has been offered in the U.S. in parallel to the hyper-premium Lexus LX, body-on-frame SUV. For 2024, the Land Cruiser nameplate returns to Canada with its traditional body-on-frame format but in a smaller, less extravagantly-priced model.
Compared to the current 4Runner, the Land Cruiser is built on a 91 mm longer wheelbase, is 91 mm longer than the 4Runner and 112 mm wider. With dimensions so close, the departure of the 4Runner would seem logical but that model will be renewed and go on sale sometime during 2024.
Power stems from a mild-hybrid version of Toyota’s new 2.4L turbo four which combines with the hybrid system to create 326 horsepower and a stump-pulling 465 lb.-ft. or torque. Power reaches all wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission. The serious off-road nature of the Land Cruiser is underlined by its two-speed transfer case and a locking rear differential. Towing capacity is stated to be 2721 kilograms.
The Toyota Safety System 3.0 (TSS 3.0), with forward collision warning, including pedestrians, cyclists and motorcycles, automated emergency braking, lane departure warning with active steering assist and radar cruise control, is standard.
Styling is very truck-like. The side profile is square and bears prominent wheel arch bulges and a small glazed area.
Nissan styling chief Alfonso Albaisa (right), introduces the QX Monograph, essentially the next Infiniti QX80
Infiniti Vision Qe concept
Nissan’s styling chief, Alfonso Albaisa, was on hand to unveil two new concept vehicles. The QX Monograph telegraphs the styling direction of the next Infiniti QX80 SUV. The Vision Qe show car is a long-lens look at what a future Infiniti all-electric passenger car might look like. Infiniti is a crippled brand right now, without a single hybrid or electric vehicle in its Canadian lineup.
The Fiat brand returns to Canada with a full-electric version of the new-generation 500
Though Fiat has not marketed cars in Canada for a number of years they kept the dealerships open, allowing them to offer this new 500e electric car.
Initially the 500e will be available only in Quebec and B.C., the two provinces that offer their own generous subsidies to those who buy or lease fully-electric or plug-in electric vehicles. Though the 500e is new to Canada, a previous-generation 500e was offered in California and Oregon from 2013 to 2019. The 500e is based on a new-generation of the 500 that debuted in Europe in 2021.
Power stems from a 42 kWh battery pack that energizes an 88 kW (118 HP) electric motor. Using an 85 kWh, level 3 charger, the 500e can add 50 kilometers of range in five minutes. At a time when electric cars are becoming incredible heavy and excessively powerful, it is refreshing to see a new, light(ish at 1361 kilograms), urban-friendly, electric car. The 240 kilometer range, in ideal conditions, is low but should suit urbanites and suburban dwellers who plan to use their EV for local driving.
Except for some very interesting headlights, the 500e has a similar silhouette to the model that debuted in Europe in 2007, itself a modern re-interpretation of the Nuovo 500 that debuted for 1957. The cabin reflects greater change than the outside. The elliptically-shaped dashboard places a digital dash display in front of the driver, with a touch screen located at the top centre of the dash. Climate is controlled by clearly-marked piano keys and gears are selected by buttons located on the lowest portion of the dashboard.
The 500e should arrive this spring and is priced at $39,995, a price that does not appear to be low enough to position the 500e below the rest of the market, which it desperately needs if it is to succeed. Subsidies of $5000 from the federal government, $7000 from Quebec and $4000 from B.C., are available. The 500e will likely have limited success, because of Fiat’s poor track record here, and the range which is not competitive.
The same but different, the 2025 Subaru Forester
Based on the Impreza-Crosstrek platform once again, the Forester is scheduled to go on sale this summer. Like the Crosstrek, the new platform is said to be about 10 percent stiffer. Like most new Subarus, the updated styling is more transitional than obvious, with only Subaru-aficionados likely to notice. The dashboard is closely-related to that of the Crosstrek, featuring a large, vertically-oriented touch screen which is logical and easy to use.
The new Forester has comfortable seats and good cabin space. Cargo space is, typical for a Subaru, a bit shallow below the window line.
The sole engine, a 2.5L flat four rated at 182 horsepower, returns unchanged. Power reaches all wheels via a CVT. The Forester has been the model with the poorest availability, but Subaru says the car should be more readily available for the 2025 model year.