The Crank: After its annus horribilis, Toyota Canada perseveres

By John LeBlanc

Making lemonade from lemons. That seems to be the mantra around Toyota Canada these days. After what is admittedly a less than successful 2010, I recently had the chance to sit down with Toyota Canada’s head man, managing director Stephen Beatty, to get his straight reactions to some of the issues brewing with the automaker’s three Toyota, Lexus and Scion brands it sells in Canada: Read more

2010 in Review: Best New-for-2011 Car I Drove

By John LeBlanc

When you think about it, it’s a bit amazing. The same automaker that sells the most gas-guzzling, ill-handling, Paleozoic Era-engineered pickup trucks in this country — Ford Canada — also happens to make the best subcompact you can buy: the new Fiesta. Read more

2010 in Review: New-for-2011 Car I Would Spend My Own Money to Buy

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By John LeBlanc

Nostalgia played a big role in picking a New-for-2011 Car I Would Spend My Own Money to Buy—phew!—this year. As a former 1990 Honda CR-X owner, the two-seater’s modern reincarnation as the new CR-Z Hybrid pulled at my heart strings like no other new car I drove in 2010. Read more

2010 in Review: Most Boring New Car I Drove

By John LeBlanc

Toyota can blame all they want its current recall crisis for its poor sales performance (down 20.5 per cent in Canada this year in a market that’s up 13.6 per cent). But stodgy product, like the “new” 2011 Avalon sedan I drove this summer, is also at the top of the list of what’s ailing the Japanese automaker. Read more

2010 in Review: Worst New Car I Drove

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By John LeBlanc

As tickled as I was with Ford’s new small car, a Toyota small car I drove last May left me wanting. A lot. In a segment that’s already crowded — and ready to get even more so in the near future — the 2010 Toyota Yaris is starting to feel its age, big time. Read more

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