Automotive News Canada - September 2020 - 12

11

* S E P T E M B E R 2020

Auto industry must look past pandemic
EVERY DAY WE EXPERIENCE
just how much the COVID-19
pandemic has changed our lives.
And we hear about how even
after a vaccine is approved and
the coronavirus is under control,
many things likely won't be the
same as they were. These past
six months undoubtedly will be
remembered as a historic event
that leaves a mark on society for
years and perhaps decades to
come.
That's why, in the midst of so
much change and uncertainty,
it's almost refreshing to see that
some things in the auto industry
are largely carrying on as they
did before.

FROM TORONTO

JOHN

IRWIN
COMMENT
Take, for example, the rollout
of new electric vehicles and
brands. August brought news of
a new electric crossover from
Cadillac - the Lyriq - that the
brand plans to release in 2022,
the latest from General Motors
on the electric front. Hyundai,
meanwhile, plans to spin off the
Ioniq into its own brand as the
company plans to roll out three
EVs between 2021 and 2024.
Like so much of the industry,
GM and
Hyundai are still
While many
betting on a
Canadians are future of EVs
and green cars.
focused on
that
living one day Perhaps
was inevitable,
at a time with seeing as governments worldCOVID-19,
wide still plan to
the industry
introduce tighter
fuel standards
must think
automakers
years ahead. and
remain under
pressure to be
better environmental stewards.
And of course this is an industry that prides itself on thinking
years ahead and not always in
the moment, no matter how
fraught this moment might be.
Still, it's good to see the
industry stay on the green path it
was on before the pandemic
struck. The introduction of EVs
and hybrids is good for the environment and for the well-being of
society, of course. But selfishly,
it's also nice to see that not
everything has changed during
the age of COVID-19 and that a
brighter future could lie ahead.
The same appears to be true
on the complete opposite end of
the fuel-efficiency spectrum. In
August, Ram unveiled a
702-horsepower 1500 TRX pickup - and, no, 702 is not a
typo. The TRX comes with the
same 6.2-litre V-8 as found in
the Dodge Hellcat line.
Mike Koval Jr., the head of
the Ram brand in North
America, told sibling publication
Automotive News that the pickup is an "apex predator" that
"destroys" Raptors, which is a
reference to the Ford F-150
Raptor, which generates 450
horsepower.

Pandemic or not, the auto world spins on. Hyundai plans to
make the Ioniq its own brand, with three EVs set to debut
between 2021 and 2024. F I L E P H O T O

It's clear that the pickup wars
are as intense as ever, and so is
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' apparent commitment to putting

incredibly high-powered vehicles
on the road.
I don't mean to downplay the
pandemic's massive impact on

the auto industry, of course. It's
still sorting through the aftermath
of an unprecedented shutdown
of manufacturing in North
America earlier this year.
The economic slowdown will
keep many consumers out of the
new-vehicle market as they
either struggle to make ends
meet or would rather hold onto
their money in the face of uncertainty. Some two-car households
might become one-car households as Canadians continue to
work from home and travel less.
Others who normally rely on public transit or ride-hailing services

might instead choose to buy a
car for personal transportation as
opposed to getting on a potentially crowded bus or train. And
many consumers who might not
have thought about shopping for
a vehicle online in the past are
now open to doing so. And all
this only scratches the surface of
change.
But for better or worse, not
everything has changed. EVs are
still coming. Trucks remain popular. It's important to recognize
this as the industry grapples with
the fallout of a pandemic.

- ANC

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Automotive News Canada - September 2020

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