Cascadia Inc. was initially founded in 1950 as an exporter/importer of Japanese cars to the North American market. They were founded by a Japanese businessman looking to expand his interests beyond war-torn Japan and taking advantage of family connections in Canada. As such, the company was established in Osaka and Vancouver simultaneously to handle both sides of the process.
Following several years of a growing business shipping various Japanese models to Vancouver (and the occasional North American one into Osaka), Cascadia began development of their own kei cars for the burgeoning market. Using existing engines from established manufacturers, Cascadia was able to quickly have the K360 city car and V360 cargo and passenger vans developed and available in 1955.
Over the years Cascadia expanded enough to begin using its own engines and expand its model lineup. In 1977 it became part of the Royal Canadian Motors umbrella as a subsidiary for the mutual benefit of both. Cascadia allowed RCM to have a hand in the hard to crack Japanese market while RCM provided the funds for Cascadia’s expansion around the world and to develop localised models of its cars with larger RCM engines.
From 1977 onward, Cascadia has become a name synonymous with small inexpensive models offering good fuel economy and reliability.
Current lineup:
Microcar/kei car: Bee
City car/kei car: ME
Kei MPV: Keiko
Kei cargo van: Keiko
Subcompact: Stellar
Compact: Solaris
Mini Sport: K-Sport
Compact sport: Garu
Mini MPV: Moondust
Mini cargo van: Moondust
MPV: Moonliner
Compact cargo van: Moonliner
Mini SUV: Bigfoot
Compact SUV: Hashima
Mini pickup: Bigfoot