What do you get with the cheapest vehicles in Canada?
By Michael Schlee
Let’s face it. Right now times are tough. How tough? Well there is a lot of debate about that, but either way, things are not great for most of us financially.
Hyundai Accent
So if you are in the market for a new car, you are probably looking for something a little bit cheaper then you would have last year.
Vehicles Our American Neighbours Cannot Buy (But We Can!)
By Michael Schlee
It’s not a well known fact to the general public. But we in Canada have access to vehicles not sold in the USA. What’s more, it may come as a surprise to even a gear head that there are currently 14 vehicles on sale in Canada that our American neighbours cannot purchase (unless they make a trip up north, eh!).
Acura CSX
Some of the vehicles in this article are available in South America, Europe or Asia, but for the context of this story I am sticking with the difference between the USA and Canada; two seemingly identical automotive markets.
Canadian International AutoShow a showcase for innovation
By Joe Knycha
It has been said that the only constant is change, and that nothing ever stays the same.
If that’s the case, it was inevitable that the bubble from which the global economic crisis has emerged was destined to burst eventually.
But who foresaw this?
The collapse of the house of cards that was Wall Street has within months confounded the global economy and thrown the experts into a state of uncertainty and confusion.
Photo: Tracey Savein
Related Link: Enhance the AutoShow experience
With the modern world so interconnected and tightly tied to trade, what might in earlier times have been more or less localized to North America has hobbled the economies of the world. Coupled with a sudden credit freeze that has stopped industries and commerce almost dead in their tracks, no one is immune to the effects of this perfect economic storm.
Automotive, an industry that actually builds wealth through the production of goods as opposed to ones that provide only services and low-paying ‘McJobs,’ is more global than most and therefore more profoundly affected by the crisis.
As consumers’ beliefs and desires change, and they demand something other than what has been the status quo, automakers are eager to rise to the challenge.
To see first-hand how the auto industry is adapting to these new realities – described in this year’s Canadian International AutoShow theme as “The New Era” — one need only take a stroll through this year’s displays.
CIAS 2008
Creative solutions abound to meet an entirely new set of criteria: new engine technologies, the next generation of hybrids, advanced fuel cells and electric plug-ins are all on offer this year, heralding a period of accelerated innovation and ingenuity as the industry finds new footing in the shifting sands of global economics.
“We have entered a new automotive era that will be characterized by innovation, experimentation and the introduction of new technologies at a breathtaking pace,” says AutoShow general manager Tom Tonks. “The future of the automobile is up for grabs, and it all starts here.” The show has a 36-year tradition of celebrating Canada’s love of the automobile, providing a showcase for what’s new and what’s next.
“That will never be truer than in 2009,” Tonks says. “New concepts will leap off the drawing board onto the turntable, providing a stunning glimpse of where the industry is headed.” Car companies have been invited by the AutoShow to “embrace, leverage and define the New Era” for the benefit of the more than 300,000 visitors expected to pour through the turnstiles this year, February 13-22.
Many people have unfairly criticized the automobile industry over the years for being part of the problem, said Tonks, adding that this year’s AutoShow will reveal the industry instead, “to be part of the solution.”
Doors open to the public at 10:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 13.
By Marc Lachapelle
The latest sports cars and exotics are always a great attraction at any auto show, but the biggest news at this year’s Montreal International Auto Show might very well be about a tiny Indian electric car that is powered by components and technology developed by Hydro-Québec and one of its subsidiaries, a few dozen kilometres from downtown Montreal.
State-owned Hydro-Québec, the world’s largest producer of hydroelectric power, has a long history of research on electricity and its virtually infinite uses. Teams within its research institute have been working on automotive applications for almost two decades and some of this research and development work has been spun off to smaller and potentially more agile subsidiaries.
Hydro-Québec CEO Thierry Vandal and Québec Energy Minister Claude Béchard
TM4 Electrodynamic Systems is among these and it had important news during press day. TM4 announced that the company had been chosen by Miljø Innovasjon, a subsidiary of giant Indian carmaker Tata Motors – also the owner of Jaguar and Land Rover – to provide electric motors and systems for an electric car ‘demonstration’ and testing program to be conducted in Norway over the next two years.
Electric car to brave Scandinavian winters
For this program, Miljø will build a hundred all-electric versions of the Tata Indica Vista minicar using components developed by TM4 over the past decade and trademarked as the MФTIVE series. Among these components are a permanent-magnet, 37-kilowatt electric motor with “the best power-to-weight ratio in its class and industry-leading efficiency”, according to its maker, and a Lithium Ion SuperPolymer battery at the forefront of development for this critical element of electric propulsion.
PHET battery
The Miljø Indica EV, a prototype of which was on display in Montreal, is claimed to accelerate from 0 to 60 km/h in 9 seconds and reach a top speed of 110 km/h. It should have a range of up to 200 kilometres and can be fully recharged in 8 hours through a 16-amp, 220-volt outlet. And of course, it can reclaim kinetic energy through regenerative braking and coasting, like any good hybrid. The Indica can carry four adults and their luggage and it has airbags and ABS brakes.
Norway’s climate is much like Canada’s. TM4 pins great hopes on its successful completion and notes that its 37 kW electric motor can be used not only on pure electric vehicles but also on classic or extended-range hybrids with a conventional internal combustion support engine.
Is the long-awaited miracle battery finally here?
Right next to the Indica EV in the TM4 booth within the ‘Green’ section of the MIAS, scientist André Besner, head of the materials science department at Hydro-Québec’s research institute, was proudly extolling the exceptional virtues of a small green box with a clear cover. It contained a battery made up of a series of small, individual electrical cells and developed by Hydro-Québec’s ‘battery team’ under the direction of Karim Zaghib. The Lithium-iron phosphate battery (C-LiFePO4), Besner explained, is safe, durable, powerful and both environmentally-friendly and relatively cheap to produce since it mostly uses iron, a chemical element that is extremely abundant but also much less toxic and costly than other chemicals such as nickel and cobalt used in other lithium-ion batteries.
According to Besner, you can literally drive a nail through a C-LiFePO4 battery – a standard industry safety test – and temperatures will go up to about 130 degrees and the battery will keep working as if nothing happened: “the same ‘nail-test’ with some lithium-ion batteries with cobalt, for instance, will trigger a short circuit and an intense temperature gain of up to 400 degrees in only 1/10th of a second and then reach the point of combustion.” Hydro-Québec also holds 90 per cent of the world intellectual rights to safe, non-flammable ‘dissolved salt’ ion liquids for batteries, another area where huge developments should be expected in the near future.
Hydro-Québec chief of materials research André Besner
The Lithium-Phosphate Iron battery (LiFePO4) was invented in 1995 at the University of Texas by John Goodenough, a Ph.D. in physics, and subsequently developed by Hydro-Québec at its research institute in Varennes, Québec, from 1997 to 2001. This work led to a substantial improvement of the battery’s conductivity – the weak point of the original design – through the addition of carbon molecule to the iron phosphate particles, turning it into the C-LiFePO4 battery displayed in Montreal. The PHET ‘environfriendly’ C-LiFePO4 battery is currently made by Pihsiang Energy Technology, a Taiwanese company that holds exclusive mass production rights from Phostech inc. the Québec-based licensee of the world patent for the Carbon-coated Lithium Iron Phosphate battery jointly held by Doctor John Goodenough, the University of Texas and Hydro-Québec. Doctor Besner also mentioned that the next generation of the Tesla electric sports car would use a C-LiFePO4 battery pack made by Pihsiang.
Interestingly and ironically, the electric concept car and hybrid production cars shown by Chinese carmaker BYD (Build Your Dreams) at the recent North American International Auto Show in Detroit also use iron phosphate batteries which BYD laconically calls its ‘Fe’ batteries. According to Hydro-Québec’s André Besner, the battery technology used in these vehicles by BYD – reportedly also the world’s biggest lithium-ion battery manufacturer – is effectively identical to the C-LiFePO4 battery for which it jointly holds world patents: “No patents were originally filed in China (for this technology) so they are legal as long as they operate within China, but when they decide to sell outside the country they will have a problem.”
By Marc Lachapelle
The 41st edition of the Montreal International Auto Show has an abundance of the newest models on display, as if to defy the current economic doldrums. Here is a quick overview of the new models that were introduced by European manufacturers during the press day on January 15.
2009 Audi Q5 – Audi Q7 TDI – Audi A6
There is lots of broad-shouldered – yet pragmatic – attitude in the Audi camp this year as the brand with the four rings rolls out its all-new Audi Q5 compact luxury crossover and a diesel-powered version of its bigger brother, the mid-size Q7. The Q5 is powered exclusively by a 3.2-litre, 270-horsepower V6 coupled to a 6-speed automatic gearbox and Audi’s signature quattro all-wheel drive system. The diesel engine under the hood of the Q7 TDI is a direct-injection 3.0-litre V6 that produces 221 horsepower at 4,000 rpm but most importantly a ridge-climbing 406 lb-ft of torque at only 2,750 rpm. Sharing the spotlight in the Audi stand is a subtly-redesigned A6 sedan. All three are 2009 models.
2009 BMW 7-Series
It is a rich coincidence that BMW chose Montreal to reveal the all-new version of its flagship since the exterior design of this fifth-generation 7-Series sedan was the work of Karim Antoine Habib, who grew up in this city. Karim’s proposal was chosen among submissions by ten design teams within BMW because it best met the set objectives of being dynamic, elegant and blessed with great “natural presence”. The new ‘7’ is offered as the 750i or the extended-wheelbase 750Li, both powered by BMW’s new, twin-turbocharged, 4.4-litre V8 which develops 400 horsepower and a stout 450 lb-ft of torque from 1,750 to 4,500 rpm. Still no all-wheel drive for the 7-Series but it gets Integral Active Steering, which adds rear-wheel steering to the original system’s bag of variable-ratio tricks, plus active roll stabilization and lots more electronic trickery.
Karim Antoine Habib (Photo: Marc Lachapelle)
2009 Mini Cooper and Cooper S Convertibles
In the next booth, the Bavarian carmaker’s Mini division introduced the new 2009 Cooper and Cooper S Convertibles. These new models look everything like their predecessors, which is the point with hot models. Last year, Mini Canada sales grew by a remarkable 33 per cent in a difficult market, so you don’t mess with such success. That said, the new convertible Minis get a number of pertinent upgrades such as much lower rear safety hoops that improve rear visibility immensely and concealed rear trunk hinges. In true Mini spirit, they are also equipped with the ‘Always-Open Timer’, a clock that basically shows: “how much time you spend topless” said Mini Canada head Stephen McDonnell In jest, during the presentation.
2010 Jaguar XK and XKR
New versions of two of Jaguar’s stalwart models made their Canadian début in Montreal. The XK and XKR coupe and convertible lines have been extensively refreshed, inside and out, for the 2010 model year. Both cars get new front fascias and subtly redesigned lower rear fascia, topped by new LED rear lights. And inside the cabin, they get the new pop-up JaguarDrive electronic rotary gear selector first introduced last year in the XF sedan. The new XK and XKR also have their own versions of Jaguar’s new, greener and more powerful direct-injection AJ-V8 Gen III engine. The XK get the naturally-aspirated version of the 5.0-litre V8 which produces 385 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque. The XKR’s V8 is supercharged and said to deliver 510 horsepower and a hearty 460 lb-ft of torque.
2010 Mercedes-Benz GLK 350 4Matic
The highlight of the Mercedes-Benz stand in Montreal was the all-new 2010 GLK 350 4Matic entry-luxury compact sport-utility. Its styling fuses the sculpted surfaces of recent Mercedes models such as the C-Class sedan that shares its basic platform with the rugged, upright stance of the famed Geländewagen that begat the G-Class vehicles. Powered exclusively by a 268-horsepower, 3.5-litre V6, the GLK 350 runs on standard 19-inch wheels. It benefits from the full range of amenities, passive safety measures and electronic control systems one invariably expects from the dean of automakers, including an electronic stability control system that keeps things in check while taking advantage of the GLK’s 1,588-kg (3,500 lb) towing capacity. Mercedes-Benz Canada spokesperson JoAnne Caza shared the GLK’s base price of $41,800 during this new model’s Canadian launch at the show.
Mercedes-Benz GLK 350
2009 Smart Fortwo Brabus
Turning a few degrees to her right, Ms Caza then introduced the new 2009 Fortwo Brabus models, offered as a coupe or a cabriolet by the Mercedes-own Smart brand. These two microcars are powered by the same 1.0-litre, 70-hp three-cylinder engine but get a full array of tweaks and accessories to enhance both its performance appearance. These range from a sportier exhaust system with dual chrome-plated tail pipes to modified suspension bits and a 10-mm lower ride height. A set of Monoblock VII alloy wheels also created by tuner Brabus and several body and interior accessories complete the package.
2009 Volkswagen Touareg TDI
Volkswagen is expanding its portfolio of diesel-powered models upwards in the range with the introduction of the 2009 Touareg TDI midsize luxury sport-utility. This new version of the Touareg is powered by a 3.0-litre turbodiesel V6 that develops 221 horsepower and 407 lb-ft of torque at a very low 1,750 rpm. Coupled to a 6-speed automatic gearbox, it helps this Touareg sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 9 seconds, with excellent fuel economy ratings of 11.9 L/100 km in the city and 8.0 L/100 km on the highway in normal driving. It also meets the strictest emissions standards thanks to the AdBlue technology that injects a nontoxic, odourless and biodegradable solution to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions.
2009 Volvo XC60
The sleek and thoroughly elegant Volvo XC60 compact luxury crossover was the star of the Swedish carmaker’s stand at Palais des Congrès. This all-new entry is powered by a transversely-mounted, turbocharged 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder engine that develops 281 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 295 lb-ft of torque at 1,500 rpm. It is coupled to a 6-speed automatic gearbox and all-wheel drive. The new XC60 is 20 cm shorter than the XC70 and 7 cm lower than its big brother, the XC90. It also pioneers Volvo’s City Safety technology, a system that will apply the brakes if it detects an imminent collision at up to 33 km/h (20 mph) and the driver does not react.
* The Montreal auto show had to be cancelled in 1999 and was held in November only once, in 2002.
By Marc Lachapelle
The Montreal International Auto Show has opened the automotive New Year in this country for most of the past four decades* and this 41st edition has plenty of the newest models on display, in spite of the uncertain state of the economy.
Of the thirty-four new models that made their Canadian début during the MIAS press day on January 15, eight were from Ford and General Motors, equally split between the two. Chrysler had no all-new models to show in Montreal and existing ones were simply laid out on bare carpet. A message signed by Chrysler Canada President and CEO Reid Bigland was shown in Chrysler’s exhibit and explained that there would be “less glitz and no giveaways” at this year’s show, Bigland wrote, as Chrysler saves to invest rather in: “24 major launches from 2009 to 2014.”
Ford Fiesta (Photo: Marc Lachapelle)
2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid – 2010 Lincoln MKZ
The mood was much more upbeat at the Ford exhibit, where the century-old Blue Oval introduced the all-new 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid that it claims to be the most fuel-efficient mid-size sedan on this continent thanks to its leading-edge gas-electric hybrid powertrain. Ford even claims a rather astounding 1,127-kilometre fuel range for this car, in city driving. . . Unveiled a few metres further was the 2010 Lincoln MKZ entry-luxury sedan, which shares the same solid platform as the Fusion and gets the corresponding upgrades.
2010 Ford Mustang
The 2010 Ford Mustang also made its first public appearance in Canada boasting a restyled body, a redesigned interior and updated versions of its engines and chassis components. The star of this new and revamped line-up will undoubtedly be the 540-horsepower Shelby GT 500 that was unveiled in Detroit a few days earlier.
2011 Ford Fiesta
But small cars are big news these days and more so in Quebec, where compacts and subcompacts have dominated sales figures for many years. Ford predictably made a big splash with the very pretty lime-green Fiesta four-door hatchback it unveiled during the press day in Montreal. The car on display was a European model Ford brought out as teaser for the upcoming North American model. The Fiesta should be introduced in 2010 as a 2011 model, offered as both a hatchback and a sedan and built in the refurbished Ford plant in Hermosillo, Mexico to help keep it fully price-competitive against the likes of Fit and Yaris.
2009 Saturn Vue Hybrid
In the next hall, the greatest emphasis was put on environmentally-friendly and fuel-efficient vehicles during the press intro at General Motors. The 2009 Saturn Vue Hybrid compact sport-ute and Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid full-size pickup compete in very different segments and target very different buyers, but they share versions of the new two-mode hybrid powertrain that GM has jointly developed with BMW, Chrysler LLC and Daimler. The same technology was also announced in Montreal, that same morning, as the winner of the inaugural Best New Green Technology award from the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC).
Buick Allure (Photo: Marc Lachapelle)
2010 Buick Allure
On a different note, General Motors also rolled out the fully-redesigned and quite elegantly-styled 2010 Buick Allure entry-luxury sedan, for its premier Canadian showing. The new Allure – still named LaCrosse in the U.S. – can be delivered with either a new direct-injection, 255-horsepower, 3.0-litre V6 or the proven 3.6-litre V6, rated at 280 horsepower. The Allure will be available with either front-wheel or four-wheel drive.
2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS
And how quickly things change: While ‘green by design’ was the dominant mantra at GM, the production version of a car that was the main attraction at auto shows still recently was introduced more than discreetly. A few dozen metres from centre stage and practically unlit stood a 2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS painted in the familiar bright-orange of the classic Camaros of the Sixties, complete with its 6.2-litre, 422-horsepower V8 engine. It will nevertheless most likely again prove a big with the public in Montreal.
* The show had to be cancelled in 1999 and it was held in November only once, in 2002.
