Canada Motors started its life as a manufacturer of military vehicles for the Canadian Army in 1940. It was created by a few businessmen from Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver (I’ll develop this story further eventually) who combined their wealth to create a company that would be able to design and produce a light all-terrain vehicle for the war.
With one of them having a hand in the American automotive industry, Canada Motors was able to get some ideas from the US Department of War’s specifications for a vehicle. The result was the Laurentian: a small soft-top all-terrain vehicle bearing a strong similarity to the Willys MB that was rushed to production in order to reach the battlefield in 1942.
Immediately following the war, Canada Motors found itself with a massive production surplus of the Laurentian. The owners figured that the best way to deal with this would be the modify all but one of the assembly lines to produce a model fit for civilians. In 1946, the Laurentian 4x4 was release on the civilian market with the Laurentian 4x4 Truck following a couple of months later. It is powered by the same 2.2L I4 used in the military version that produces 77 hp and 109 lb-ft of torque.
Both trims turned out to be very popular as offroaders and utility vehicles and Canada Motors made some healthy profits considering the assembly lines barely had to be adapted from wartime production. This led to the development of a second model…
For 1948, Canada Motors introduced its first model completely designed for the civilian market: the Ontario. It was available as a sedan and wagon, each with one trim. What made them different than anything else on the market was the 4x4 drivetrain. The company owners figured that was the way to go for carving themselves a niche in the Canadian market. Both are powered by a 2.4L I6 producing 94 hp and 123 lb-ft of torque, more than enough to make it through some deep snow.
Of course the unique 4x4 system in a sedan and station wagon was certainly a niche, so neither model sold in huge numbers but they still sold well enough for Canada Motors to begin development of a racing model.
In 1950 Canada Motors had finally finalised a rally car: the Fraser. It was both the first aluminium model and the first without a solid rear axle. Naturally, 4x4 included and it was powered by a variant of the Laurentian’s engine downsized to 2.0L that produced 98 hp and 120 lb-ft of torque. 0-100 took 11.5 seconds and the top speed was an astonishing 200 km/h. Not many of these rally-spec cars were produced and they are now highly sought after collector’s items.
Canada Motors also produced the Fraser Coupe to be sold in 1950. The underpinnings are all the same as the rally model along with the 2.0L engine that has been detuned to 87 hp and 109 ft-lb of torque while also running on regular leaded fuel. 0-100 took 12.1 seconds and the top speed was 195 km/h. Unfortunately for Canada Motors, the Fraser Coupe was too ahead of its time, so this 4x4 entry level sportscar was a commercial failure and less than 1000 were produced from 1950 to 1954. Due to the higher production numbers and lack of racing history, the Fraser Coupe is not as valuable today as its rally-spec variant but it is still popular with collectors.
In mid 1950, Canada Motors then released its first utility model, named the Edmonton. The Edmonton was available as a pickup with I6 and V8 engine options, a wagon with the V8, and a delivery van with the I6. The I6 was a 3.5L DAOHC design that produced 133 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque while the V8 was a 4.5L DAOHC design producing 179 hp and 238 ft-lb of torque. Naturally, all are equipped with 4x4 and manual locker, with a 3-speed manual for the I6s and 4-speed manual for the V8s.
These work horses became some of the most popular Canada Motors vehicles to be sold around the country and were the first to be sold in the United States. Those assembled at the Windsor, Ontario facility were sold directly from the factory to American customers in the area who were willing to make the trip. They were also available at the Winnipeg, Manitoba facility but it was a much less popular option due to its distance from the border.
(ignore the trim names at the top of the screenshots, they’re jumbled from an open beta glitch)
On February 17th 1951, the Chicago Auto Show opened its doors to the public. Canada Motors finally had enough capital to begin its planned expansion into the United States beyond factory-direct sales. On display were the Edmonton and Fraser, the two models that would become available in American dealerships. Also on display was a concept car to draw attention to the Canada Motors display as well as previewing a future model. This was the Queen’s Park.
The Queen’s Park showcased Canada Motors’ planned luxury car with a stylish and futuristic design. The concept was powered by the same 4.5L V8 found in the Edmonton while its new two-speed automatic transmission was designed for the upcoming production car. Looking at it closely, it was clear that it was put together fairly hastily and the typical Canada Motors build quality was absent. As planned, the Queen’s Park brought a lot of interest to Canada Motors and the company owners had less trouble organising a dealer network that would become operational in early 1953.
For 1953, Canada Motors finally unveiled the production version of the Queen’s Park, now named Toronto. The car also changed from a coupe to sedan with rear suicide doors, had its body crafted of aluminium for reduced weight, and was offered in Luxe and De Luxe trims. Surprisingly, the glass roof panels from the concept made their way to the De Luxe trim. As to be expected when heading deeper into the 1950s, the amount of chrome on the car could only increase.
Also changed from the concept was the Edmonton’s engine, replaced with a newly developed V8. The Luxe trim has the 5.2L variant producing 184 hp and 272 lb-ft of torque, enough to do 0-100 in 12.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 186 km/h. The De Luxe trim has the 6.0L variant that produces 249 hp and 318 lb-ft of torque, taking it from 0-100 in 10.5 seconds and hit a top speed of 205 km/h. Needless to say, it was popular for cruising the newly built highways of North America.
The Luxe was your standard luxury car for the early 1950s and was popular with well-off families. The expected 4x4 system was especially useful in Canada, while the high quality advanced safety features put it well ahead of anything else on the market at the time.
The De Luxe trim was presented as the epitome of automotive luxury, so it included everything from the Luxe trim and more. It featured a hand-crafted interior and the largest sunroof to ever hit the market at the time. The price matched the features, so not many of these were sold.
The Toronto joined the Edmonton and Fraser in American dealerships, helping to spread Canada Motors’ reputation while adding some prestige to the brand. It was naturally also popular in large Canadian cities, especially by the upper class of its namesake. The Toronto remains as the epitome of Canadian luxury for the 1950s and even better than the Cadillacs of the time, though they never reached the same level of popularity.
Louis St Laurent, Canada’s Prime Minister at the time, had picked up some interest with the Queen’s Park concept and the subsequent Toronto model. It was in 1953, soon after the model’s launch, that he pushed to have it as Canada’s official state car. By 1954, the order was complete and six Toronto Regals were made available for the government. These were the main transportation for the Prime Minister and Governor General, as well as becoming the official transport for official visits by the Royal Family.
The differences from the Toronto De Luxe were fairly minor. The interior was overhauled for higher quality and reduced to only four seats with a divider added between the front and rear. Half the sunroof was removed, now only being found over the rear seats, and the suspension was altered for added comfort. Four of the Regals are black, while the two dedicated to the Royal Family are claret.
(I changed the trim from Prime to Regal after taking the screenshots)
They were a pain to make, that’s why the Queen’s Park concept (which I actually made after the Toronto) doesn’t have them. I didn’t have the patience to do all that work again.
Thanks!
As far as tips for that go, just play around with Razyx’s tail lights and any of the vanilla round and square ones. Throw in some small trim pieces, and you’ll have a good design that looks right out of the 50s.
1954 was also the year the Northwest delivery van was unveiled. There’s really not much to say about it, it’s large, it’s powered by an I6, and it can carry a lot of cargo. Its style straddles the line between European and American designs, and it was a larger alternative to the Edmonton Delivery. It offered nearly 7000L of cargo volume, compared to just over 3000L from the Edmonton Delivery. It was an expansion into the heavier commercial vehicle segment that became quite profitable. Canada Motors debated introducing a passenger model, but that idea was ultimately scrapped.
For 1955, Canada Motors introduced the Quebec full-size car. While the Ontario sold very well from its introduction, it was too small for the tastes of the American market, which were spreading into Canada, and so the Quebec was required in order to not be left behind by the competitors. It was naturally available as a coupe and convertible, but also borrowed from Australian traditions by also having a ute body style. All versions were powered by the same 3.0L I6 producing 125 hp and 158 ft-lb of torque mated to a three-speed manual transmission.
The coupe and convertible both had plenty of space for six passengers, making them perfect for the modern nuclear family. While the convertible was decently popular in the United States, it was quite rare to see in Canada. The ute was only made officially available in Canada, but that didn’t stop some American dealers near the border from importing a few examples. It turned out to be quite a successful body style for the same reasons as in Australia, so it was not to be an isolated experiment.
All in all, the Quebec became the top seller for Canada Motors and in some areas as as ubiquitous as its American counterparts.
