![]() ![]() ![]() The Beat won and soon became the third-generation Daewoo Spark with few revisions, a version of which has been sold in the US and Canada with a bowtie on its grille since the summer of 2012. So being first with a small vehicle like the Trax is hardly new, but it’s still pretty cool considering all the hoopla GM made whenĭebuting its then-new Beat, Groove and Trax concepts at the New York auto show in 2007, holding an online vote during the event via a designated website to decide which design would get built and which ones got the axe. I’ve probably missed a few, but you get the idea.ĭespite this lengthy list GM has by far been the leader in offering exclusive rides to we Canadians with small car nameplates like Optra, Optra5 and Orlando from Chevrolet, Tracker from GMC, Wave and Pursuit from Pontiac, plus the ES, GT, Sunfire and Sunrunner from Asüna (Canada’s version of Geo), Optima from Passport, all hailing from the General’s relationship with and eventual ownership of South Korean brand Daewoo, now known as GMDAT. There are many similar Canada-only and Canada-first small car stories such as the Acura EL and CSX (now the ILX which is available in the US), Mercedes-Benz B-Class (still a no go), Toyota Echo Hatchback (Yaris hatch predecessor) and first-generation Prius, Nissan Xtrail (Rogue predecessor), Suzuki Swift+ (same as the Chevy Aveo and Pontiac Wave/G3), plus the Volkswagen City GolfĪnd City Jetta (reworked older generation models sold exclusively to Canadian entry-level buyers), while older models that never made it stateside include the Ford Cortina and Hyundai Pony, plus the Lada Signet, Samara and Niva. We received Smart’s ForTwo four years ahead of the US, and more recently Nissan launched its sub-$10k Micra here, although there are no plans to sell it south of the border despite Nissan USA hosting a journalist ride and drive program for it. It’s not like we don’t have a history of such practices. Why safe? The move made sense due to Canada’s greater acceptance of small rolling stock, and the Trax is certainly diminutive for a CUV, slotting into the subcompact SUV category. North of the 49th a couple of years ahead of Chevy’s largest and most important market allowed it to gain some traction in a safe environment. Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press There aren’t many domestic branded vehicles that get their first run in Canada before heading to the US, but launching the Trax ![]()
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