As we head into summer there are a lot of changes happening within the Canadian automotive industry. The election of a new federal government in April is a significant one and could represent an alteration in policy approach, particularly when it comes to legislation such as the federal Electric Vehicle mandate. We’ve seen various OEMs scale back their plans for rolling out EVs and in the U.S. a change in Administration earlier this year has seen a shift in priorities related to transportation, including a roll back of Biden era policies and less of an emphasis on pro electric vehicle incentives and adoption strategies. 

 

Closely linked

Here in Canada, we’ve seen how closely tied electric vehicle demand is linked to incentives and in Ontario, we’ve seen sales taper off with the elimination of provincial incentives and tax credits and more recently with the end of the federal Incentives for Zero-Emissions Vehicles iZEV on March 31, 2025.

Where we go from here is difficult to say, though we are hopeful the new government will be more willing to engage with our industry and listen to the concerns of retailers and OEMs at both the provincial and federal level instead of simply rolling out unrealistic EV mandates. We have already begun discussions with newly elected members of parliament and regulators and over the coming months we will likely get a clearer picture of where the government’s priorities are and what to expect on the legislative front.

High quality content

At MVRO we’ve had a busy spring season, with our President’s Members/Vendor’s conference taking place from April 27 to May 2 in Costa Mujeres, Mexico. We had over 160 rooftops represented this year, and welcomed our new President, Brent Ravelle, of the Ravelle Group of Companies, as well as acknowledging and paying tribute to outgoing President Rick Blacker who will now serve as President of the Canadian International AutoShow. We also celebrated David McClean’s 30th anniversary being involved with CIAS, which was a truly special occasion. This year’s President’s Conference featured some high-quality content, including real-world case studies on AI and how it is driving superior results in dealers that are successfully adopting it, including Paragon Honda, the world’s largest volume Honda retail franchise. 

Frank and open discussion

We also had a fireside chat with Jeff Hines, President of Stellantis’ Canadian operations. This frank and open discussion provided some very insightful information, particular for dealers that represent the brand and the direction in which it is going. The discussion including topics ranging from tariffs to retail experiences, including of course auto shows and it was good to see strong support for events like CIAS, which continue to provide significant value for OEMs, in the case of Stellantis, the Camp Jeep experience was a huge hit, with over 30,000 test drives booked during the 2025 show.  

Speaking of events, we are also gearing up for our ACE Conference and Expo in the fall. Currently, we have around 70% of speakers and sessions confirmed. Each year ACE continues to be a huge draw for the industry and is currently Canada’s largest automotive industry conference and expo, drawing industry professionals from across the country, the U.S. and beyond. This year’s event will take place on October 17-18 in Niagara Falls and further details will be available as the date draws closer. For more information visit https://automotiveconferenceandexpo.ca/