The 2025 Canadian International AutoShow will be held at the Toronto Convention Center in February. The exhibition content will cover new car launches, brand displays, family activities and historical car exhibitions. As one of the most important auto shows in North America, the organizers this year placed special emphasis on the presentation of electric vehicles and future mobile technologies, while also retaining elements familiar to traditional car fans and family audiences, allowing the visiting route to maintain a balance between technology and leisure.
New car unveiled with focus on electric
The media day on the first day of the auto show attracted many car manufacturers to choose this time to unveil their annual focus models. Cadillac launches its flagship pure electric model CELESTIQ, featuring high customization and technological integration. The automaker also displayed the Soleil concept car, which continued the brand's design language and was positioned as a convertible luxury model. The main purpose of the launch of these two cars is to showcase the brand's research and development results in high-end electrified products, and the specific mass production schedule was not released on site.
Mercedes-Benz brought the pure electric off-road vehicle G 580, which has the function of rotating on the spot and is part of the brand's EQ series. The model is specially set up for outdoor display, so that the media can observe its power and body control performance on site. Audi released several new cars at once, including SQ5, A5, S6 e-tron, Q6 e-tron and SQ6 e-tron, all of which are electric or hybrid models. From the overall release direction, the brand focuses on the electrification transformation of mid-to-large models and maintains a performance-oriented product strategy.
In addition to the launch of new cars, this year's auto show also set up a special test drive area, with a total of more than 50 vehicles providing on-site driving experience. The indoor electric car test drive track and outdoor real car test drive environment allow the audience to actually experience the differences in driving feel and in-car technology between different brands. This experience is not only for professional media, but also open to the general public.
Entertainment and collection
For family audiences whose main interest is not in cars, the children's activities and classic exhibition areas arranged by the organizers provide another way to watch the exhibition. During the Family Day event, Mattel displayed the Bigfoot® monster truck, which is ten feet tall and twenty feet long. The exterior of the vehicle retains the classic American truck style and is mainly used to attract family photos and parent-child interactions.
Another highlight is the Hot Wheels Garage of Legends, where one of the exhibited vehicles is inspired by the Star Wars X-wing fighter. Although the main focus is not on performance or technology, the exhibit is still visually appealing, creating a different viewing rhythm from the official auto show content. LEGO's exhibit includes a 1:1 scale McLaren P1 
The building block car is made up of approximately 340,000 building blocks, and there is a children's area where visitors can freely create vehicle models. This area does not feature technical displays, but is mainly interactive, extending the auto show's function as a leisure and entertainment space.
In terms of historical cars, the Cobble Beach Classic Car Show area is themed on Mercedes-Benz, displaying a variety of classic models from the mid-20th century to the 1980s. The exhibition presents the evolution of the brand’s vehicle design in a timeline, with a focus on the visual comparison of design language and technological progress. This type of exhibition area attracts car collectors and people in the design field.
During the exhibition, the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC) announced the 2025 Car of the Year Awards at the venue. The Honda Civic was named Sedan of the Year, the Hyundai Santa Fe was named SUV of the Year, while the BMW i4 and Hyundai Ioniq 5 N were named Best Electric Sedan and Best Electric SUV, respectively. The selection criteria for these awards include driving experience, energy efficiency, price/performance ratio and safety, and the judges are mainly professional automotive media and testing organizations.
Overall, the 2025 Canadian International Auto Show continues the development trend in recent years, with electrification and family orientation as the main themes. Although some new models are still in the concept stage and the actual production time is unclear, most brands use the exhibition to present the design and kinetic energy layout of their future models. At the same time, it was also observed on site that auto exhibitions have gradually expanded into a cross-generational leisure activity. In addition to performance and technology, more space is reserved for interaction and experience, reflecting that the positioning of auto culture among different audience groups is adjusting.
