S09EP08 – View from the C-Suite: Audi/VW’s Vito Paladino

We kick off season 10 of the Plugged In podcast with Canadian EV expert Ken Bokor offering up his top five new EVs. That’s more difficult as it sounds as there are over 40 all-new, all-electrics arriving in Canadian showrooms in the next year.

We all knew and expected government EV rebate and incentive programs would end, but is now a good time to expect electric vehicles to stand on their own against less-expensive ICE vehicles?

Ford of Canada sells three all-electric vehicles, the F-150 Lightning pickup truck, the E-Transit cargo van and the Mustang March-E, the latter of which outsold it’s gasoline powered stablemates three-to- one in 2024. That all contributed to a fantastic sales year last year for Ford’s EV segment, posting an amazing 66.1 per cent increase. On this episode of our special View from the C-Suite series, Andrew McCredie talks with Paul Roy, the man who oversees Ford of Canada’s Model e program. Among many talking points, Paul cites the federal and provincial incentives, that have been paused, as integral to maintaining an upward trajectory of EV sales in this country. Without them, he expects sales to dip in the coming year, but has no doubt that electric vehicles will continue to find new buyers across the country. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you haven’t been paying attention, here’s a newsflash: Kia is making some of the most stylish and most technologically advanced all-electric vehicles available in Canada. And the great news is, as you’ll hear from Kia Canada vice-president and COO Elias El-Achhab on this episode of our special View from the C-Suite podcast series, there are two more all-new Kia EVs coming to Canada very soon. He’ll also explain why Kia Canada is investing in public charging, and recount his first-ever experience with electric vehicles way back in the mid-Nineties. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Steve Flamand of Hyundai Canada sits down with Andrew McCredie to talk about his company’s strong presence in the EV sector in Canada and what the future looks like in that segment. His company is firing on all kilowatts with 2024 being a very strong sales year for Hyundai in Canada. Hyundai sales improved 13.9 per cent over 2023. And on the electrified front — that being a mix of hybrids, plug-hybrids and all- electrics — Hyundai delivered 45,159 vehicles to Canadian customers, representing a whopping 35.1 per cent year-over-year increase. Hear his plans how to keep that strong trend going into 2025 and beyond. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices