Rob Bostelaar

A major international border — and the auto industry — was taken hostage for nearly a week by a small group of protesters, calling into question the reliability of Canada’s supply chain.

Transport Minister Alghabra said Monday the government will establish a task force with industry experts to identify roadblocks and find ways to speed the movement of goods. It also will direct $50 million from the National Trade Corridors Fund toward easing port congestion.

Quebec auto retailers are protesting new rules that require larger dealerships to bar customers who lack proof of vaccination while smaller dealerships are still able to open their doors to everyone despite their vaccine status.

As parts flow increases across the open international border, there’s uncertainty as to how Canadian and U.S. businesses stand with each other.

Announced in December 2020, Ivy is BlackBerry's bid to be as big a player in intelligent vehicle communications as it long was in vehicle infotainment systems. The platform collects and interprets data from dozens of sensors in a modern car and oversees the flow of information between vehicle, manufacturer and service providers.

The Canadian division of Tokyo-based global manufacturer THK says it will spend $27 million to expand a plant in Tillsonburg, Ont., and add automated machining and assembly centres. The project is expected to add 65 jobs in Tillsonburg and another 35 at a THK plant in St. Catharines, Ont. The company said the plants will supply steering and linkage components for upcoming projects at Toyota and Ford.

While thefts of high-end automobiles get most of the attention, security experts warn that much of the industry’s exposure lies below the surface.

Ford of Canada will open a $95-million parts distribution centre near Ottawa as part of a plan to close a Toronto-area depot and transfer operations to eastern and western Ontario, according to a developer and the union representing workers at the current facility.

Customers also expect to find on dealer websites the same pricing specifics they would see for a yoga mat on Amazon, or, for that matter, for a Model 3 from Tesla, which from its 2008 start has operated with fixed prices.

With online sales and EVs, being paid a fee per vehicle sold might already be in the cards. But there are other key issues, according to CADA.

Canadian software specialist BlackBerry is joining forces with a U.S. firm in the race to turn cars into mobile "wallets" that will automatically pay parking fees and bridge tolls and even collect payments for ride-sharing and parcel delivery.

Online shopping should be a seamless experience, but the various automaker and dealer programs complicate that.

The industry's pandemic-hastened embrace of e-commerce has shown that remote selling is possible – and for many dealers, profitable.

One analyst thinks QNX software will remain a top choice for automakers in need of a strong, secure platform for car operations — and one they maintain control over — even as they let Google move into infotainment with a consumer-friendly platform that might not be especially secure.

Numerous automakers have had to idle plants because of a lack of semiconductors for today’s tech-heavy vehicles, but metals and chemicals have also become sought-after commodities as manufacturers broaden their hunt for materials.