Following the Montreal and Canadian International Auto Shows in January and February respectively, Québec City held its own annual event in March where Toyota unveiled the hydrogen-powered Mirai as a Canadian premiere.
The Montreal and Toronto shows both had a focus on electrification, with hybrids displayed in abundance. And while the Québec City International Auto Show also revealed its fair share of electrified options, Toyota unveiled its hydrogen-powered 2020 Toyota Mirai.
“For us, it’s been more than 20 years since we began developing hydrogen vehicles,” said Jocelyn Daneau, Regional Manager for Quebec, Toyota Canada, in an interview with Canadian auto dealer. “In Quebec, people are more sensitive to the environment, so for us it was not an option. And secondly, here it’s possible to produce clean hydrogen without having to transport it by truck.”
The first generation Mirai is currently on sale in Quebec, and the OEM delivered the first 50 vehicles in 2019. The new vehicle that was introduced at the show is the second-generation Mirai, which now features a rear-wheel drive configuration (rather than front-wheel drive), a new fuel cell system, and increased hydrogen storage that Toyota said provides the vehicle with a projected 30 per cent increase in range compared to its predecessor.
“For us, hydrogen is an additional option for our customers. It will be worth it eventually, when we have more infrastructure when there are more hydrogen vehicles, but we have to start somewhere,” said Daneau. “One of the reasons we launched in Québec City is because we have our hydrogen station here — and there is only one in Quebec at the moment.”
Daneau said there are plans to add one in Montreal later on, but that they don’t have an official date yet. They do, however, have plans to add more stations elsewhere — such as in Ontario.
“What we want to do is have them in Quebec and Toronto, eventually, so that the vehicles can circulate comfortably,” said Daneau. “But for now, the stations are in Quebec and in British Columbia.”
Within the EV-hybrid realm, Ford presented its all-electric Mustang Mach E as a regional debut, the new electric MINI Cooper was on display, Audi presented its e-tron SportBack (and its RS6 Avant), and Porsche presented its electric Taycan sedan as a regional debut.
BMW, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Acura, Genesis and McLaren also presented vehicles, along with Rolls-Royce and Maserati.
The Québec City International Auto Show took place between March 3-8, 2020 at Expocité.
