Grace Macaluso

Auto plants are high-tech power- houses, yet they can’t attract enough employees.

The APMA’s accessibility-design competition will keep the creative juices flowing in an industry facing seismic change.

Implicit in the auto industry’s persistent pleas to government to ramp up both electric-vehicle rebates and charging infrastructure is skepticism over whether Ottawa will be able to meet its EV sales targets.

The South Korea-based automaker has partnered with Turo, Canada’s largest peer-to-peer car sharing company, in a program called EValuate. Canadians curious about EVs but not ready to commit, can book a Hyundai EV directly through Turo for a multi-day trial for a daily introductory rate of $150.

In Ontario, car dealer Michael Carmichael wonders whether the ongoing challenge of too many consumers chasing too few vehicles is masking underlying macroeconomic weaknesses.

Maria Soklis said she decided to join DSMA after being approached by CEO Farid Ahmad and Managing Partner Maxime Théorêt.

The City of Windsor and its economic development corporation was set to plug and play months before landing the $5-billion prize of an electric-vehicle battery plant co-owned by Stellantis and LG Energy Solution.

The $5-billion battery plant destined for Windsor, Ont., is the largest single automotive investment in Canadian history and is expected to spark the country’s electric-vehicle revolution with a new supply chain and thousands of jobs.

Honda Canada is planning a $1.4-billion retooling of its Alliston, Ont., operations to produce hybrid vehicles as part of its plan to shift towards of a fully electric product line by 2040.

Immigrants to bolster Canada’s population, drive economic growth, enrich society and ease skilled labour shortages that are currently challenging several sectors, including automotive.

Consumers are growing accustomed to waiting for the vehicle of their choice, while dealers and auto companies are reaping benefits from the shift away from overstocked lots, such as lower floor plan costs and reduced incentive spending. And it could be paving the way toward a new way of doing business.

It appears as though Ontario Premier Doug Ford is rethinking his stance against incentives aimed at encouraging consumers to buy electric vehicles.

Despite widespread media coverage of the pandemic-related ills challenging automakers and as well as dealers, there are still non-believers and conspiracy theorists out there.

While at the U.K.-based luxury sports car manufacturer, Fraser Dunn worked on such vehicles as the Vulcan and Valkyrie Hypercar. He’s leaving his post and joining the APMA project full-time.