Automotive Components Producer’s Affiliation President Flavio Volpe and key members of the Challenge Arrow workforce have begun pulling again the curtain on the commerce affiliation’s three-year challenge to construct an all-Canadian electric-vehicle prototype.

Suppliers and key companions bought a primary take a look at the totally assembled idea crossover SUV at a tightly guarded occasion at Pfaff Autoworks in Markham, Ont., Dec. 20. Roughly 80 attendees have been required to relinquish their telephones or topic their cameras to being taped over to be allowed a walkaround of the brand new four-seat car earlier than its public debut at CES in Las Vegas Jan. 5.

The drivable prototype is designed to “inform the Canadian story,” in addition to drum up new enterprise for Canadian suppliers because the auto trade transitions to electrical and autonomous automobiles, Volpe mentioned.

“I feel what this does is it demonstrates bodily to people who regardless that there hasn’t been a Canadian automobile firm in 100 years, it’s not as a result of we don’t have the technological know-how, or we don’t have the individuals who can do it. I hope this evokes a little bit of a Silicon Valley start-up tradition,” he advised Automotive Information Canada on the occasion.

‘SUPPLY CHAIN TRANSPARENCY’

The car options parts from almost 60 Canadian suppliers, from Quebec wheel producer Fastco Canada, to battery provider VoltaXplore, a three way partnership between Martinrea Worldwide Inc. and graphene firm NanoXplore. A collection of software program firms, akin to software program invoice of supplies supplier Cybeats Applied sciences Inc. are additionally amongst these represented on the Arrow, which is designed as the primary car with “full provide chain transparency.”

The a number of dozen suppliers to see their merchandise on the ultimate idea car come from a pool of 534 firms that initially expressed their curiosity in taking part in Challenge Arrow. Volpe mentioned the APMA certified 230 of the unique listing as able to delivering, however the commerce affiliation couldn’t embody all of them.

“We had, you understand, half a dozen bidders on the wheels. We now have one set of wheels. And we had 12 bidders that mentioned that they may give us a battery answer [but only one battery].”

Each part on the Arrow is Canadian made, with one exception.

“By our due diligence, we came upon that nobody makes screens in Canada. So, the display screen provider is Lenovo, however the know-how that’s within the display screen is a partnership with Ontario Tech College.”

Ontario Tech was additionally the lead tutorial companion for Challenge Arrow, with a lot of the meeting course of going down at its Oshawa, Ont. campus.

STILL WORK TO BE DONE

Following the Markham occasion, Volpe mentioned the Arrow will return to Ontario Tech for a couple of days of ultimate validation earlier than the completed prototype is shipped to Las Vegas.

“There’s nonetheless work that must be executed within the subsequent few days earlier than we get it on the market, which is basically ensuring that the methods run 100 per cent of the time.”

Challenge Arrow will debut at CES on Jan. 5, however that’s simply the primary cease on a deliberate world tour for the Canadian idea car.

“CES is the start,” Volpe mentioned. “That is going to be on a two-year tour — auto reveals, tech demonstration centres, but additionally direct visits to OEMs.”

With the Arrow giving the modern parts and software program a platform, Volpe mentioned he needs to see “each one in every of these firms to get enterprise immediately from this showcase.”

Whereas that is the principle objective of Challenge Arrow, Volpe has mentioned all through the method that the APMA has fielded calls from unnamed automotive gamers excited about taking the idea into manufacturing. Volpe admits it might require a backer with “deep pockets,” however just isn’t ruling out constructing a couple of Arrow.

“If somebody makes a guess on it, and that could be a sustainable guess, we’d work with them.”