Car FYI

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy As Canadians, we are once again enduring a challenging winter that has brought all the snow and cold weather we are accustomed to north of the 49th parallel. Skiing, snowmobiling or building a snowman allows many of us to maintain our humour and happiness during this season that always wallops Canada in full force. For automobiles, winter presents a period where our favourite four-wheel conveyance is expected to perform in hostile situations. Left out on frigid driveways or unheated garages, roads covered in snow and/or whatever traction solution our municipality chooses for safety, this is a time of the year where we forget the true beauty of motoring. Maybe in this month of February it is the perfect time to remind ourselves how great the automobile can be. For this reason, the arrival of the 2014 Canadian International AutoShow in Toronto is ideal. Opening this Friday in...

Photo Credit: Chris Nagy The so-called Polar Vortex mixed up the Canadian automobile sales during the first month of 2014. A cold, snowy weather is believed to have kept car buyers at home in January from some dealerships while others posted modest gains. According to Automotive News, a total of 95,639 vehicles were sold in Canada during January 2014. Compared to 2013, the start indicates a modest 0.3 percent growth. The overall sales results were influenced by a dip in car sales and a healthy rise in truck sales; not surprising based the weather affecting the country. The winners in first month Canadian auto sales of 2014 is Chrysler, Toyota and Honda. Chrysler car and truck sales showed a healthy climb of roughly four percent apiece. The expanded Fiat brand in North America is proving to be well-received accounting for 596 vehicles (an 82 percent jump over January 2013). The Dodge Grand Caravan remains popular in Canada selling nine pe...