Linamar CEO Linda Hasenfratz explains giga-casting, what it means to the supplier, and why it’s building a new factory in Ontario to facilitate the process. She’ll also talk electric vehicles and about the company’s diversification plan.

Magna’s Vice-president of Factory of the Future Todd Deaville tells us what tomorrow’s auto plants will look like, explains why artificial intelligence is good for the industry, and why people aren’t going anywhere and will always be needed on shop floors.

HeyAuto President Brett Jones explains what type of data — from text messages to body weight — is stored in a vehicle. He explains how it can be used for good and evil and why the information needs to be wiped from a used vehicle before resale.

Todd Bourgon, executive director of the Motor Vehicle Retailers of Ontario, formerly the Trillium Automobile Dealers Association, talks about Ontario’s reluctance to offer EV rebates, explains how the view of direct sales has changed over the years, and says auto shows remain a very important piece of auto retailing.

Vice-president and Corporate Secretary of Toyota Canada Stephen Beatty explains how Canada’s ZEV sales mandate and the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act are going to affect sales and auto manufacturing in Canada. He also details why Toyota isn’t all-in on electric vehicles, and might never be.

GM Canada Vice-President of Sales, Service, and Marketing Sandor Piszar talks Q1 sales, demand, and affordable “gateway” EVs. He also explains what’s expected of Canadian GM dealers as they prepare to sell an all-electric lineup.

Nissan Canada President Steve Milette breaks down the automaker’s Ambition 2030 plan, talks about why the Ariya EV is such an important EV, and tells us what’s expected of dealers as they prep to sell more electric vehicles.

In this replay of the Feb. 24, 2023 Automotive News Canada Podcast, we caught up with Ontario Premier Doug Ford at the Canadian International AutoShow in Toronto. He shared his thoughts on the federal ZEV mandate, saying as soon as a government “starts mandating, it never works out.” He also said dealing with the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act is the responsibility of the federal government. And, he explained why he refuses to offer Ontarians an EV rebate.

Brian Kingston, the CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, says the 2023 federal budget does a good job at responding to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, which he calls “green industrial policy on steroids.” Kingston says the budget keeps Canada in the game when it comes to landing new auto investment, saying “it was key Canada rolled out a plan to respond.”

Brendan Sweeney, managing director of the Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing, says Volkswagen’s decision to build an EV battery plant in Canada might go down as the biggest automotive win in the country’s history. He explains how many direct and indirect jobs the plant will support, tells us what the plant says about Canada and says the government is justified in financially supporting such a venture with taxpayer money.