Automotive News Canada - November 2022 - 3

* NOVEMBER 2022
3
SECOND FRONT
Sale of Cox divisions to
Trader a 'difficult decision'
Trader Corp. said
the companies will
continue to run as
distinct entities;
most Cox employees
will transition
By KELLY TAYLOR
WINNIPEG CORRESPONDENT
COX AUTOMOTIVE, WHICH IN
2021 transferred its Canadian
operations to the United States
and parted ways with its
Canadian president, told customers
Nov. 9 it is selling the majority
of its Canadian division to
Trader Corp.
The move means Canadian
operations of dealer.com and
Kelley Blue Book, as well as
dealership software providers
Dealertrack, Digital Retailing,
VinSolutions and XTime will
transition over
to Trader.
In a letter
to clients,
Jack Sulymka,
general manager,
national
accounts
and operations
of Manheim
Canada, said
Manheim, vehicle
transportation
specialist
Ready Logistics
and finance company
NextGear
Capital will
Cox Automotive says subsidiary
Manheim Canada will remain
under its control. FILE PHOTO
nies will continue to run as distinct
entities.
Trader describes itself as " a
trusted Canadian leader in online
media and dealer services. " It
comprises AutoTrader.ca and
AutoSync, a software provider
to dealers and automakers.
Trader Corp. employs 800 people
across Canada, and boasts that
AutoTrader.ca receives 25 million
monthly visits and has more than
2,500 subscribers.
Sulymka:
Trader
has been
a " trusted
partner [of
Cox's] for
many years. "
PHOTO:
LINKEDIN
remain part of Cox Automotive,
" and we will look forward to continuing
to serve our Canadian clients
in alignment with our North
American strategy. "
Manheim is a Cox subsidiary
focused on online wholesale
automotive auctions and digital
remarketing.
Sulymka called Trader " a
trusted partner of ours for many
years. "
In an email response, Trader
Corp. said most Canadian
employees of the Cox Automotive
Retail division will transition to
the new owner, and the compaUNSOLICITED
OFFER FROM TRADER
After the U.S. merger in
September 2021, Maria Soklis,
then president of Cox Automotive
Canada and Brazil, " elected to
leave " the company, according to
a statement from company president
Martin Forbes at the time.
She joined the company in 2015.
In a memo to Cox's U.S.
employees, Mark Bowser executive
vice-president and CFO, said
the new deal with Trader will
close " in the coming months. "
Divesting Cox's Canadian
retail business " was a very difficult
decision to make and was not
based on performance or market
conditions, " Bowser said. " It was
also not something we had been
planning to do. "
Cox, he said, " received an
unsolicited offer and, after looking
at it closely, we believe this
is the right time and opportunity
for these businesses and the
incredible teams that manage
them to join Trade Corporation
and help deliver a deeper market-specific
Canadian retail solution. "
Financial
terms of the deal
were not released. - ANC
TRANS-CANADA NEWS 5,000 KILOMETRES
OF STORIES
Roxanne
Silveira was
appointed
Porsche
Cars Canada
director of
sales.
PHOTO:
LINKEDIN
Porsche makes three
mid-level appointments
PORSCHE CARS CANADA
named Roxanne Silveira, who
has spent 15 years with the
company, director of sales
Oct. 1. A " key member " of the
sales team, Silveira has helped
Porsche's business in Canada
grow nearly twofold during
her decade in the department.
Kitty Luu took over as
director of marketing for
Porsche's Canadian operations
Oct. 24, joining the
company from Canadian
Infrastructure Bank where
she held the post of senior
manager of corporate communications.
Luu spent six years
as manager of marketing
communications for Jaguar
Land Rover prior to joining
the arms-length government
agency.
The company also appointed
Patrick Saint-Pierre director
of public relations. SaintPierre
joined Porsche Cars
Canada in 2011 as manager of
public relations after spending
14 years in various roles at
Volkswagen. - Steve Mertl
Ford is forecast to build
fewer EV models in Oakville
The automaker had originally
announced five different
vehicles as part of a $1.8-billion
retrofit; that could be cut to two
By DAVID KENNEDY
T ORONTO BUREAU CHIEF
FORD MOTOR CO. HAS SCALED BACK THE
variety of battery-electric vehicle (BEV) models
it plans to build at its Oakville Assembly Plant
in Ontario, a forecasting firm says. High demand
for EVs has prompted changes to the company's
production plans in North America.
In fall of 2020, the automaker committed $1.8
billion to retool the Oakville Assembly Complex,
starting in 2024. Ford originally planned to
build five electric models at the plant just west
of Toronto, according to industry analysts and
Unifor, the union representing the autoworkers.
Fiorani: The
Explorer
and Aviator
could provide
enough
volume to
keep the
Oakville plant
" busy. "
FILE PHOTO
But Sam Fiorani, vice-president
of global vehicle forecasting
at U.S.-based AutoForecast
Solutions (AFS), said that as
EV adoption gains traction, the
plant is forecast to build two
vehicles: battery-electric versions
of the Ford Explorer and
related Lincoln Aviator crossovers.
" They're
shuffling products
around enough and figured the
EV versions of the Explorer and
the Aviator that are planned to
go in there will be high enough
volume to keep the plant busy, "
Fiorani told Automotive News
Canada. Ford Canada did not
respond to multiple requests for
comment about plans for Oakville.
SEE FORD PAGE 12
Class action against Nissan gets green light
By ERIC FREEDMAN
LEGAL CORRESPONDENT
A BRITISH COLUMBIA
court has allowed a certified
class-action suit to proceed
against Nissan Canada and
Nissan North America stemming
from allegedly defective
timing chains on about 64,000
vehicles.
The provincial Court of
Appeal found sufficient evidence
for claims of negligent
design, manufacturing and
sales, misrepresentation and
consumer protection violations
Valentine, Ducharme
top Alberta dealers
CALGARY - THE MOTOR
Dealers Association of
Alberta (MDA) has named
the 2022 recipients of its
annual Alberta Dealer of
Excellence awards.
Paul Valentine of the
Valentine Auto Group of
Calgary won the metro category
and Todd Ducharme
of Westlock Motors won the
non-metro category.
" Paul and Todd have
achieved success by demonstrating
exceptional commitment
to their customers,
staff, industry and communities, "
MDA President Gerald
Wood said in a statement
Nov. 2.
Valentine, a
third-generation
dealer, operates
the Valentine
Group with three
Calgary dealerships:
Valentine Volvo,
Jaguar Land Rover
Royal Oak, and
Volvo Cars Royal
Oak.
to go forward.
However, it tossed out
express warranty and unjust
enrichment claims while authorizing
the plaintiff, Tobias
Mueller, to amend the complaint
to address the deficiencies.
SEE TRIAL PAGE 34
Valentine
to improve the lives
of everyone around
us, from our staff and
their families to our
customers and the
community. That's
why we are in business. "
Ducharme
is
With community
service as its core
value, the group
donates at least 10
per cent of its earnings to
charity and community
groups, said Valentine.
" Our business is a tool
Ducharme
FILE PHOTOS
dealer principal of
Westlock Motors
and Grizzly Trail
Motors in Barhead,
400 kilometres north
of Calgary. Both are
owned by the Davis
Auto Group.
The award statement
SEE TRANS-CANADA PAGE 23
AFS forecasts that electric versions of
the Ford Explorer, right, and the Lincoln
Aviator will be built at Oakville Assembly,
but no others. PHOTOS: FORD
03
11.22
http://www.AutoTrader.ca http://www.dealer.com http://www.AutoTrader.ca
Automotive News Canada - November 2022

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