Automotive News Canada - December 2023 - 3

* DECEMBER 2023
3
SECOND FRONT
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Audi chief Paladino
replaces Boutin
to run VW Canada
By GREG LAYSON
DIGITAL AND MOBILE EDITOR
CANADIAN VITO PALADINO WILL
become president and CEO of Volkswagen
Group Canada on Jan. 1.
The change comes as former CEO Pierre
Boutin departs for " a new role within the
Group's European operations. "
Paladino:
Has been
president of
Audi Canada
since 2020.
Volkswagen Group
Canada comprises of
Volkswagen Canada,
Audi Canada, Automobili
Lamborghini and Ducati.
Paladino has been president
of Audi Canada since 2020.
Prior to joining Audi in 2013,
Paladino spent 14 years at
Mazda Canada in sales and
marketing.
He is a graduate of York
University's Schulich
School of Business (Toronto)
with an MBA in Business
Administration.
Additionally, Edgar
Estrada will join the group as
president of the Volkswagen
Brand in Canada.
Estrada: New
president
of the
Volkswagen
Brand in
Canada
comes
from VW
in Mexico.
SUPPLIED
PHOTOS
Estrada has been serving
as head of the Volkswagen
Brand in Mexico. He has
been with the company for
25 years, having held progressive
roles throughout his
career.
Pablo Di Si, the CEO of
Volkswagen Brand North
American Region, said in
a statement that the pair
arrives at " a very exciting
time for the Volkswagen
Group in Canada. "
He also thanked Boutin for
his " great achievements. "
Boutin, in a recent LinkedIn post, noted
a number of accomplishments, including
renewed relations with dealers and " their
$1 billion investment in facilities " and progress
toward 100 per cent electric mobility.
VW Group is also building a $7-billion battery
cell plant in St. Thomas, Ont. - ANC
Beatty: The federal zero-emissionvehicle
mandate creates a barrier
Rather than betting
the future on adoption
of battery-electric
vehicles, the company
plans to use 'all the
tools in the toolbox'
By GRACE MACALUSO
MANAGING EDITOR
MOST AUTOMAKERS ARE
pinning their hopes on battery-electric
vehicles to meet government carbon-reduction
targets, but Toyota
Canada is achieving
both sales success
and lower emissions
through an electrification
lineup that emphasizes
hybrid powertrains,
company VicePresident
Stephen
Beatty said.
SCAN
TO LISTEN
" This year we're
running at about a
42-per-cent rate of electrified
product sales, "
Beatty said in an interview
with Automotive News Canada
on Nov. 16 on the sidelines of the Los
Angeles Auto Show.
" It includes EVs, plug-in hybrids
- but overwhelmingly hybrids. And
our numbers are only held back by
TRANS-CANADA NEWS 5,000 KILOMETRES
OF STORIES
The Ineos Grenadier electric
SUV will be sold by Dilawri
in Mississauga, Ont., and by
Weissach in Vancouver.
PHOTO: INEOS
EV startup Ineos launches
Canadian dealer network
TORONTO - A FLEDGLING
electric-vehicle maker has
picked two cities in Canada for
sales and service of its vehicles.
Dilawri will operate an
Ineos Automotive location in
Mississauga, Ont., southwest of
Toronto, and Weissach will sell
Ineos vehicles in Vancouver.
Ineos said it has received
" almost 9,000 orders for the
Grenadier throughout North
America. "
It did not disclose how many
for other technologies, such as the
hybrids that Toyota favours to reduce
greenhouse-gas emissions. The
redesigned Camry will be available
only as a hybrid. PHOTOS: TOYOTA
the amount of supply we can bring to
the market right now. "
Consumer interest in hybrids is so
strong that " every time we bring a new
car to the marketplace, it's typically
coming today either with a hybrid
option or as hybrid only. "
Toyota vehicles available only
as hybrids include the Sequoia and
Venza crossovers, Sienna minivan and
Crown sedan. The redesigned Camry
sedan and Crown Signia crossover will
also be hybrid-only when they launch
next year.
High fuel prices and the need to
reduce greenhouse-gas emissions
are driving the push toward hybrids,
Beatty said.
" By driving a hybrid, you can get a
20- to 30-per-cent improvement in fuel
economy and . . . a similar reduction in
carbon emissions, " he said.
By offering a variety of powertrain
technologies to consumers, Toyota
draws customers from different vehicle
segments, Beatty said.
" It's important to spread those technologies
across the lineup because at
the end of the day, it's not about the
powertrain, it's about getting the right
car to people. "
Those automakers late to electrification
are having to " move past hybrids
on their way to try to develop an integrated
battery-electric supply chain, "
Beatty said.
" The problem with that [is] once
you get through the early adopters, it
are Canadian. Deliveries of the
utility vehicle will start in the
first quarter.
" We spent a long time selecting
an exceptional team of
experienced dealers to guide
the Grenadier home for our
customers, " Ineos Automotive
Executive Vice-President
Americas Greg Clark said in a
Dec. 7 statement.
Dilawri is Canada's largest
dealership group, with 80 franchised
dealerships in Canada
and the United States, while
Weissach is Canada's largest
independent Porsche store. It
is not known if the Ineos locations
will be standalone.
Deliveries of the Grenadier
are already under way in the
United States, where the automaker
has named 18 dealerships.
The vehicle starts at $91,929
in Canada, plus shipping, which
Ineos hasn't detailed yet.
Production of its second model,
the Grenadier Quartermaster
pickup, is also under way.
Ineos Automotive is a subsidiary
of the Ineos Group, a multinational
conglomerate headquartered
in London. - Greg Layson
AutoCanada takes a shine
to classic Porsche vehicles
WINDSOR, ONT. - DEALERship
group AutoCanada Inc. has
been awarded the first standalone
Porsche Classic Centre in
Canada, offering sales, service
becomes much harder to find that next
group of buyers. "
Beatty spoke on a range of issues facing
the auto industry during the interview,
which was edited for clarity and
length.
WHY DID TOYOTA DECIDE TO REVIVE
THE CROWN NAMEPLATE?
That traditional North American
sedan style was falling out of favour
with consumers. So we felt there was a
good opportunity to rethink the space
and offer both a new
approach to the sedan
and a crossover model
that reflected where
the mainstream market
has gone. Crown
evokes memories for
people. It speaks to
something that sits atop the brand.
And in that sense, it creates some early
interest and buzz that helps to lift it.
And I'm optimistic about the Crown
Signia crossover. I think it fills a market
niche in our lineup.
IS TOYOTA TAKING A RISK BY OFFERING
THE CAMRY ONLY AS A HYBRID?
We know one thing, and that is
Toyota buyers understand hybrids. So
they were looking for more, not less.
SEE TOYOTA PAGE 8
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Toyota's electrification
plan: Zero omissions
03
12.23
A new Porsche Classic Centre
in Windsor, Ont., will focus
solely on the classics, such
as the Porsche 356.
PHOTO: PORSCHE
and parts exclusively for older
Porsche cars.
AutoCanada, the only publicly
traded dealership group in the
country, has 65 franchised stores
in Canada and 18 in the United
States.
CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE
Automotive News Canada - December 2023

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