FCA Canada Celebrates 90th Anniversary

FCA Canada (formerly Chrysler Canada) marked its 90th anniversary June 17 at a special celebration on the banks of the Detroit River and steps from its Canadian headquarters.

Employees, senior executives, local media and other special guests attended the celebration.

Fittingly, the event was held at Windsor’s Dieppe Gardens, the former location of the Dominion Typograph Company. There, in 1896, the Dodge brothers established their bicycle company, a precursor to FCA’s modern-day Dodge vehicle brand.

The Chrysler Corporation of Canada Limited was incorporated in Windsor, Ontario, on June 17, 1925, only 11 days after Walter P. Chrysler founded the Chrysler Corporation in Detroit, Michigan. Chrysler Corporation of Canada was the successor to the former Maxwell-Chalmers Motor Company of Canada.

In 1928, the Company acquired Canada’s Dodge Bros. operations and truck manufacturer Graham Bros., while the Plymouth and DeSoto divisions were also established, making Chrysler Corp. a full-line Canadian auto manufacturer. A year later, it opened its first new assembly facility, the nucleus for the current Windsor Assembly Plant.

Today, FCA Canada is comprised of seven automotive brands: Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Ram Truck and Mopar.

It operates two vehicle-manufacturing facilities in Windsor (Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Grand Caravan) and Brampton, Ontario (Chrysler 300, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Charger), plus a key casting plant in Etobicoke in Toronto’s west end. Nationally, the Company has three Regional Business Centres, three Parts Distribution Centres and the unique Automotive Research and Development Centre (ARDC), also in Windsor.

RELATED: Production Of the FCA US Pentastar V6 Engine Family Surpass 5 Million

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$73,000 Raised for Make-A-Wish® Canada at Honda Indy

Thanks to the generosity of Toronto race fans, support from the Ontario Honda Dealers Association (OHDA) and Honda Canada Inc., more than $73,000 was raised for Make-A-Wish Canada during a race weekend filled with fun both on and off the track.

This marks the sixth straight year of Make-A-Wish? fundraising efforts at the Honda Indy Toronto 2015, which has generated a total of $443,000 to date.

“On behalf of everyone at Make-A-Wish, I’d like to express our sincere thanks to Honda Canada, its dealers and, of course, the fans,” said Jennifer Klotz-Ritter, president & CEO, Make-A-Wish Canada.

“This level of commitment and support is a huge part of how we can continue to grant wishes and bring happiness and strength to the lives of children with life-threatening medical conditions.”

James Hinchcliffe, the only Canadian driver in the Verizon IndyCar Series, attended his hometown race in Toronto despite his recent injuries.

RELATED: 11 Things You Don’t Know About the Honda Indy

As a Honda ambassador and partner, James made a special appearance on Fan Friday to meet with a large group of Make-A-Wish kids and their families, taking time to sign autographs and pose for photos with the smiling children.

The races may be over, but there are always opportunities to donate to Make-A-Wish.

To make a $5 donation, text the word ‘DREAM’ to 41010 from any mobile phone.

With support from organizations like Honda Canada and the OHDA, Make-A-Wish grants 500 wishes a year through eight regional chapters across the country.

?RELATED: Ford Returning to Le Mans in 2016 With All-new Ford GT

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Smart Canada renews its support of Pride Toronto

smart Canada is the exclusive automotive sponsor of Pride Toronto for the third consecutive year.

The 2015 Pride Toronto culminated with a three-day street festival and a world-renowned annual parade, Pride Toronto is one of the premier arts and cultural festivals in Canada and one of the largest Pride celebrations in the world with an estimated highly charged participation of over 1.2 million people.

smart is the perfect partner for Pride Toronto as it exemplifies similar mandates to promote change, both in thought and action.

This sponsorship includes many facets of exposure for the smart brand through various activations, where the brand will personally engage with thousands of people.

Second Hand: Smart Fortwo made fashion statement

From June 26-28 smart welcomed event patrons in their 30-foot booth located on Wellesley St. between Yonge and Church.

The installation will house a parlour where professional artists offered impermanent hair treatments in vibrant colours, as well as temporary tattoos in the immediate company of a brand new “tailor made” 2016 smart fortwo on display.

On June 28 under the rally cry of “FOR A COLOURFUL CITY”, smart Canada and several of its employees marched alongside two brand new 2016 smart fortwo vehicles in the annual Pride parade.

Comparison: Scion iQ beats Smart ForTwo in compact test

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