After seeing the exotic cars on display at the Canadian International Auto Show, many people take the rest of the day to look at attainable new cars. Its like a shopping trip to a giant auto mall.

Hyundai proudly displayed the award for Electric Vehicle of the Year beside their Ioniq 5 painted in their iconic baby blue and orange ‘N’ paint scheme. They even brought out an old Elantra with 1,000,000 km on the odometer and the same fancy paint job.

Despite the SUV / Crossover overload on the market, there were lots of sports cars at the show. The new Nissan Z continues the tradition of sporty rear-drive coupes from the Japanese manufacturer. Stellantis has thrown a curve ball at the muscle car segment with the perfectly-named electric car, the Dodge Charger.

Subaru is an iconic brand, and used to make some odd-ball cars like the XT, Brat and SVX back in the 80s and 90s. But they’re actually gone very conventional in their vehicle designs. The Subaru Outback, which arguably started the ‘crossover’ trend actually looks like an old-school station wagon. The BRZ sports car was tucked away behind the big-selling Crosstrek and Impreza models.

The latest WRX was also displayed in the factory booth, and elsewhere in the show, a Can-Jam Motorsports customized Subaru WRX in purple grabbed attention.

German car company BMW had a strong presence. They took up an entire floor of the convention centre to display their vehicles, including the scene-stealing BMW M Hybrid V8 race car which competes in the IMSA GTP category.

Even though big SUVs dominate the market (especially in Canada) BMW brought several two-door coupes with serious horsepower. The big BMW M4 Competition has a 523 HP twin-turbo straight-six under the long hood, while more compact BMW M2 is just the right size for a twisty race track or a downtown expressway.

Since 2001, the Mini brand has been part of the BMW empire, and the Germans continue to refine the diminutive 2-door hot-hatch. The fourth-generation Mini Cooper S has a 201HP turbocharged four-cylinder engine, a 7-speed transmission, and snazzy Ocean Wave Green paint. There’s even a digital Mini avatar on the dashboard giving the voice activation some personality.

Surprising to those who equate Toyota with boring automotive appliances, Toyota and their Lexus subsidiary really put on a display of sports cars. The shape pf the Toyota Prius Hybrid is just wild, with the sloping hood lining up with a raked windshield. Proper sports cars like the Toyota GR86 looked like a miniature version of the big-bog Toyota GR Supra with its turbocharged straight-six from BMW under the hood. And despite being on the market for a decade, the Lexus RC 300 two-door coupe remains a real looker.

No car show would be complete without wild custom cars and one-offs, like the grand-daddy of monster trucks, the original Big Foot. The first Big Foot was a 1974 Ford F-250 pickup with big wheels and body lift, but Bigfoot No. 8 on display is actually a fiberglass body on a steel tube frame. 10′ tall, 12′ wide, and 11,000 lbs, it is powered by a 1,400 HP supercharged V8 engine.

Several custom cars were on display including a VW Beetle on hydraulic suspension. The big-three US brands were represented by a menacing Chevy Camaro, bright blue Dodge Viper and classic Ford Mustang. And for anyone craving even more attention, there was a Tesla Cybertruck in a neon yellow wrap. That’s right; something for everyone at the Auto Show, regardless of taste!

The Canadian International Auto Show is the biggest event on the car calendar, and focuses mostly on new car manufacturers. For anyone looking to see one of a kind creations, the Motorama Custom Car Show starts on March 7th at the International Centre.

13 thoughts on “New Car Shopping at the Auto Show”

    1. Yes. Open up the doors and hop in. Little kids love it because nobody stops them from pretending to drive.

      Even more than that…

      There’s an indoor test track on the lower level of the Convention Centre (for electric cars), and some companies like Mini have test dtive cars parked outside.

      Reply

      2. The indoor track is REALLY weird to watch. Prople cruising around the pylons in a Prius or Ford F150 Lightning. But the tires screech against the polished floor, so it always sounds like someone has lost control and is about to crash.
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        But they never crash. There’s a copilot with a second brake pedal.

  2. Very cool, Chris! Haha — we had one of the first electric cars in our 1968 charger, truly an iconic name for an electric car.

    Can you explain the round mirror/monitor with the car and the curve? I can’t tell what that is.

    Reply

    1. I’m glad you asked… That’s my favorite one!
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      The new Mini Cooper does not have an instrument cluster in front of the driver. Instead, all the gauges are housed in a ROUND screen in the middle of the dashboard.
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      The screen is very big (12″ diameter) and can display either one big speedo, of however many gauges you want.
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      And on the home screen, there’s a little cartoon avatar of the car you’re dtiving. Its name is Mini. You just talk to it. “Hey Mini, turn on the seat heater,” and it will execute your command and reply in its British accent.
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      And if you are listening to music, an LP appears on screen, and you can scratch the record !

      Reply

      2. It’s much more interactive and fun than it sounds. Really gives the car some personality, even if it’s just software. Really well done cartoon car zooming around the screen.
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        Most of the graphics are disabled when you drive, but the speed and turn signals are projected onto the windshield in front of the driver. Its called a Heads Up Display (derived from aviation) and keeps the eyes kn the roaf. Knly minimal info displayed.

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