Trail Swag Visits The Canadian International Auto Show 2012
Trail Swag had the opportunity to visit the Canadian International AutoShow this year and one thing we love to see is bicycles on cars! There were definitely more bicycles displayed this year than last as automotive companies look to appeal to the active lifestyle.
Although the Jamis Mountain and Road bicycles never came up in Mike Briscoe's speech (Director of Marketing and Product Management at Audi Canada), they were shown prominently on top of the Audi Q5.
CCM bicycles were shown on Mitsubishi vehicles and here is one on a RVR GT 4WD.
The Mini was displayed with a mini bicycle...
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Even Mercedes Benz was getting into the active lifestyle with a pair of Mercedes hand built mountain bikes (complete with SRAM gearing) on a E350 blueTEC sedan. The limited edition VTT 'All Mountain' bike is 12.5 kg (27.5 lbs) and roughly $6,500.
Bicycles weren't the only thing being shown off on top of vehicles. Snowboards were another popular item with both a 2012 Nissan Xterra and a Volvo XC 70 3.2.
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Subaru put both a Gary Fisher and a Norco mountain bike front in centre on their 2012 Forester.
2012 proudly marks the 30th Anniversary of the Subaru Ironman Canada.
Two Trek bicycles were also shown off on the new XV concept.
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Subaru also seemed to promote the outdoors lifestyle the most with numerous silk screened ads lining the hallway with beautiful photos of nature and outdoors sports (such as skiing, rock climbing and canoeing).
Smart was showing it's Smart electric bike which weighs 22 kg.
| LED lights are integrated into both the handlebar and saddle of the bike. The bike takes about two to three hours to charge (plus the rear hub captures breaking power and stores it in the battery) and will run for approximately 90 KM. There is a LCD screen showing your speedometer and odometer and a USB interface on the handebar where you can plug in a smartphone and charge it as well. |  |
The bike also uses a carbon toothed belt (instead of a chain) which requires no lubrication or maintenance and a hydraulic disc brake system.
Roof rack maker Thule was out in full force as the only brands I saw were Thule and manufacture branded roof racks and carriers.
The Canadian International AutoShow runs February 17th to the 26th at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre so drop on in and have a look for yourself.
