20 per cent of all cars, trucks and SUVs sold in Canada in 2026 will need to run on electricity under new regulations the federal government proposed in Dec. 2022.
“By 2026 we will meet and exceed that number that the government has in place,” said Mario Palumbo, Northside Toyota owner/operator, speaking to SooToday. “Basically it’s order and wait at this point. The electrics, they’re pushing them hard but it’s difficult to acquire them at this point. It’s not like it was before COVID. It’s been a challenge after COVID with the chip shortage.”
“It’s quality, not quantity. They want to make sure that they hit it right the first time. Our parent manufacturer is being very cautious,” Prouse said. Apart from supply chain issues, Gualtieri feels that northerners are not as keen to buy EVs in comparison to auto buyers in other parts of the country.“The local population think that up here it’s too cold for electric vehicles. The cold is definitely a big problem with the charge of the batteries. From my understanding two of the owners with the electric Mustangs have chargers at home.
“There’s still skepticism out there about electric, especially in cold climates and they're still not 100 per cent educated on it and there needs to be more education about full electric vehicles and that’s where the hybrid comes in because it’s more like a conventional vehicle but giving you the benefits of electric without the need to plug in. Our Corollas, RAV4s and Tundras come with a hybrid option,” Palumbo said.
Prouse added that GM will include, as part of the purchase price of an EV, a Level 2 charger that can be installed in an owner’s garage.
LOL. Um nope.