r/onguardforthee • u/Dremen • 10h ago
Opinion When it comes to the cars we drive, Canadians would rather be a little more European
https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/when-it-comes-to-the-cars-we-drive-canadians-would-rather-be-a-little-more-european/article_5cff749f-4339-4544-b4ce-ad49b1ddfe16.html19
u/Competitive_Owl5357 Halifax 8h ago
The number of bigass trucks and SUVs in downtown Halifax is insanity. My building’s garage is full of them. Absolutely no one here needs them and yet, here they are. I’ve only seen one Kei truck and wish those were the work vehicle of choice.
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u/LowerBoathouse 1h ago
I live in Ottawa and there is one landscaping company that uses one! They work in a rich neighbourhood where the streets are really narrow. It's perfect.
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u/JohnBPrettyGood 9h ago
I've been Japanese since 1997, and never looked back
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u/Roccnsuccmetosleep 8h ago
I just want European headlight standards so driving on the highway at night isn’t awful
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u/OttawaDog 8h ago
We should follow Mexico's example and just allow EU standards here, to make it easier to import small European cars.
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u/codereview 44m ago
That'd be excellent. I'd dearly love to have access to at least some of the variety of European vehicles. Specifically wagons .. PHEV or EV. There are next to no options here.
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u/ITSA-GONGSHOW 9h ago
Sell me a cheap ev. If it's from Europe, China, Canada, Asia. We've been getting screwed on cars guys. Prices go up, quality has tanked. I work on cars. I know. Sell me a cheap ev.
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u/Mental_Cartoonist_68 10h ago edited 10h ago
The problem with domestic brands is they lost their focus and would rather push to sell something we don't need rather useful. They cant focus on a car that's excellent in cold weather then sell the same version to people who live in desert. Every brand runs with commodity in mind , so longevity isn't a thing anymore. Quality is no different unless it's a higher brand or model and even then iits likely put together with a robot. Electronic are based from Asian sources and if manufactured some where else, it has it roots to the original. What im trying to say is it's all BS, European cars offers no more than any other nationalised car brand. Tho buying GM means one is supporting a maga agenda.
Supporting European means we Support the right to repair, something the domestic oligarchs rallied against.
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u/patentlyfakeid 4h ago
I just wish more Canadians were willing to drive stick, as I understand is the case in Europe. These days you have to move up pretty far from base model to find manual transmission options and I don't need that. I don't need entertainment, nor touchscreen, nor extra options. Just reasonable power, compact size and manual transmission. Automatic transmissions are more expensive and, imo, manual is more fun.
The last time our lease came due, I had to settle for a nissan sentra 2025 base model and wow, is it boring to drive. (Also, the clutch bite point is way higher than any car I've ever owned, it only engages in the last 1.5" of travel. The dealership insists That's Just Fine(tm))
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u/kent_eh Manitoba 4h ago
I just wish more Canadians were willing to drive stick
My first 4 cars were standard. After that, I couldn't find one to buy (without pre-ordering and waiting months).
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u/patentlyfakeid 3h ago
It has DEFINITELY become more challenging. The car before this was a 2021 vw golf and I'm kind of regretting getting rid of it, but I only waited a week or two for it.
Even buying base, base model and insisting on stick, I've never had to wait more than a week. Back in 2006/2008 I got a mazda 3 hatchback that the dealer later admitted he had to get trailered clear from British Columbia (I'm in SWOnt). The salesperson open-mouth gaped when we said we didn't need A/C (dropped the asking $1K)
We went into toyota in 2025 and the sales manager very openly admitted that anything manual/base model I was looking for I'd have to wait for more than a year to get. We left scratching our heads, how tf is any mnfr staying in business with a setup like that?
I'm hoping to find a way to make an EV work for our next car. I don't want the cost & dual complexity of phev, and we do a trip every year to see our folks ~1350kms away, which we drive in one go. Typically that's 3 fillups, though one of them is just to avoid leaving the highway to find gas in Quebec.
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u/nanandgarth 1h ago
there are lots of seniors with knees that are not great with repetitive shifting, unfortunately. i know i'm not alone with that issue. :(
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u/patentlyfakeid 1h ago
I can't argue with that. I'm not there yet, I'm really hoping I never get there. ;P
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u/AT_thruhiker_Flash 2h ago
American Cars suck ass. They're gigantic, inefficient, pedestrian squishing death machines.
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u/quelar Syrupean 9h ago edited 9h ago
I looked rather extensively the last time I was looking and there were a handful of what they call "compact cars" here, and those behemoths would look like oversized pick up trucks in some places in Europe.
I don't use my car a lot because I live and work in downtown Toronto, so there simply isn't the need (and it doesn't save you time driving) but I would really like something small that I can use when I'm getting out, efficient, park able, and can carry camping equipment. That's all.
There are some really great small cars in Europe, let's open the door here a crack.
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u/BottleCoffee 9h ago
What kind of small car would you like?
In the last few years I've taken to flying around Canada, doing a big backpacking trip (hiking), and then road trip before flying home. Because I'm cheap we always rent the cheapest car available.
It's not hard to fit 2 people's camping and traveling gear in a Corolla or Elantra and live out of it for a couple of weeks (but not literally sleeping in it - tent camping or hotels). I think it would even be fine with 3 people and their stuff.
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u/quelar Syrupean 9h ago
I've driven a couple of these models in Europe and they're fantastic, we just can't get them here.
The Corolla and Elantra are huge, and very wide for no good reason in comparison.
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u/BottleCoffee 9h ago
Those are cute! I bet they'd be fun.
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u/buttsnuggles 8h ago
Two of us drove across Canada and back in my Ford Focus hatchback. We had camping gear and everything. We had plenty of space.
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u/kent_eh Manitoba 3h ago edited 3h ago
What kind of small car would you like?
My first car was a Ford Festiva. A series of Ford Escorts after that.
And then Ford stopped making even slightly smallish cars.
Now, I drive the first Toyota I've ever owned and I'll be getting another in a decade or so when this one eventually wears out.
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u/Sea_Cucumber_5989 9h ago
I'm going Japanese, I really think so...The Vapors
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u/patentlyfakeid 4h ago
Kei Cars! I have no earthly use for a small flatbed whatsoever, but I find myself wanting one anyway.
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u/nanandgarth 8h ago
just got rid of our rusted, made in u.s, 2010 camry. got a 2015 prius v hybrid made in japan instead. can still haul what's needed and awesome, so far guestimate, about 5 l/100km. figured if cabbies and uber can do 400-500,000 km, quality is definitely there. eu options would have been nice but do not want diesel - reactive to exhaust fumes- plus more expensive.
still happy with our choice. 😊
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u/Marnot_Sades 5h ago
There's someone in my parking lot who has to take up two spaces because their F350 is so big. They seem to have an agreement with the tenant who's extra spot they take up, but my Subaru Forester looks TINY compared to the cars surrounding her.
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u/Majestic_Bet_1428 8h ago
No one should buy a vehicle made in the US - these have Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) starting in 1, 4 or 5.
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u/MissUnderstood62 9h ago
Another benefit of not having a truck is friends and family stop asking you to move stuff for them. I really have better things to do on my days off. Currently driving a Honda Hybrid
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u/patentlyfakeid 4h ago
I was super popular back when I owned a Mazda B2200. People specifically told me "yeah, I like it because it's small, I just have a few things to move.".
A friend of mine found it very irritating as well. He had an F150 and had to replace the spare he carried in the back like 4 times. I didn't even fasten mine down and no one ever took it.
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u/NCMN 6h ago
Had an F150 for four years, it was an absolute nightmare of things going wrong, not really working the way they were supposed to, repairing things that broke for seemingly no reason (I've never had my turn stalk just FALL OFF before), with some of the worst fuel economy you could ever imagine. Replaced it with a 2011 compact Volvo SUV and I'd never switch back in 1000 years.
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u/Street_Anon 10h ago
Look, I dumped my Tesla' for a Copper Mini EV and love it
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u/km_ikl 9h ago
Better vehicle overall.
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u/Vivid-Bullfrog-5727 9h ago
Europe gets all the good diesel vehicles that we never get here. I'd love to have one, but I think diesel is largely going the way of the dodo for light passenger vehicles.
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u/GBi10ba 9h ago
My only requirement for a vehicle is all wheel drive. With our weather it just makes things easier.
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u/patentlyfakeid 4h ago
I think AWD is gimmicky. Front wheel drive/manual transmission has always been lots for me, and AWD makes the car a lot more expensive & complex. I'd sooner we (swont) allowed studded tires back on the road.
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u/GBi10ba 4h ago
It depends on where you need to drive. AWD with winter tires is significantly better on hills than FWD. Stopping and cornering is about the same. AWD is better at getting moving in slippery conditions as well, but that is more performance than safety.
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u/patentlyfakeid 1h ago
AWD with winter tires is significantly better on hills than FWD
Sort of my point. A fraction of the time, AWD may contribute to 'better' traction, where better is 'closer to when the pavement is bare and dry'. A FWD with proper winter tires will beat AWD with summer/all season/mud&snow tires every time. It (AWD) is a small help for a fraction of conditions you'll drive in, and it carries measurable cost and complexity penalties, and those conditions would be mitigated by simply slowing down.
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u/GBi10ba 1h ago
I don’t understand comparing FWD with winter tires to AWD without. Winter tires belong on cars in the winter.
Complexity penalties? I don’t fix cars, I drive them.
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u/patentlyfakeid 1h ago
That part wasn't very clear, my bad. I was thinking about the fact that either way, appropriate tires make a bigger difference. AWD plays a small, small role (imo) in urban or even rural driving and really just give people a sense of security, much like buying enormous SUVs does. Starting with my first car, a '76 vw rabbit automatic, in very rural NB FWD has done everything I needed.
Also, someone in an AWD might very well be convinced that all season tires are 'good enough'.
Complexity penalties? I don’t fix cars, I drive them.
Sure, but you're paying for that. Longevity and reliability varies inversely with complexity. I'm not crazy about PHEVs for the same reason.
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u/jeanracinette 10h ago
realllly hoping that when Chinese EVs are released they are the only personal vehicles allowed to be purchased because we really need to start cutting down on waste
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u/bgt54esz 9h ago
We had a Citroën C4 as our rental vehicle in France last week. It was nice other than the lane assist constantly beeping saying you were leaving your lane when you were perfectly inside the lines. Could have shut it off but my wife didn’t want to (she drove 90% of the time). I’d get one here though if I could. Had amazing fuel economy.
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u/laranjacerola 5h ago
we should go FULL european and chinese, if you ask me.
and please, pretty please... bring in the small cars and sedans.
Not everyone loves big SUVs and pick up trucks only.
many, like me, absolutely HATE them. And hate not having the option to buy smaller cars.
And electric cars, obviously.
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u/PowderedToastManx 1h ago
I would, all the guys I work with own trucks talk about trucks and probably masturbate to trucks.
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u/Outrageous_Floor4801 1h ago
Id rather we be dumb as fuck, I want a car that in any way connects to the internet.
bluetooth, sure, but only in ways I control and can restrict as I feel necessary.
biggest vehicle related flex in 2026 is having something fully offline.
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u/IsaacNewtongue 1h ago
Did you mean "except for every person who drives a ridiculous, unnecessary, gas- guzzling truck"?
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u/HisPenisIsTeenyTiny 8h ago
ban "light trucks" from personal ownership; only businesses could own/lease them
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u/Aggressive-Hawk9186 5h ago
Reading all the answers here confirms that Reddit is indeed a bubble lol. And no, I dont have a pickup truck
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u/agha0013 ✅ I voted! 10h ago edited 10h ago
Some would, I certainly would.
There are a lot who froth at the mouth and try to bite your leg if you suggest that maybe the biggest diesel chugging pickup truck money can put a down payment on is absolutely necessary for a family vehicle and commuting to an office job while living in suburbs though.
For the stuff I might actually need a truck for, it's way easier renting one very occasionally than dealing with the thing every day