July 15, 2008
2010 Subaru Legacy speculation
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- Posted by: Bob Holland July 15, 2008, 4:00 AM
- Categories: Auto Shows, Detroit Auto Show, Hybrids, Sedans, Subaru, Wagons
July 15, 2008
July 10, 2008
The future of Cobo Hall is beginning to look as overcast as the image above. This past year Porsche dropped out of the NAIAS, next year Suzuki will be passing on it, and now there's word of another luxury car brand that's considering on not showing up.
So what brand is it? More important: what's going on here? Don't know, and don't know, but clearly Cobo Hall (and Detroit) have a problem on their hands here. One of those problems is that people come to this show to ooh, ah and dream--but they don't buy. Now that may sound strange, but that's what Manny Lopez of The Detroit News says.
July 7, 2008
Reuters is reporting that that high-end trim models of the next-gen Toyota Prius (note that above image is a guesstimate) will have solar panels. These solar panels will be used to power accessories such as air conditioning, etc. The vehicle will debut next year, probably at the Detroit Auto Show.
Here's Green Car Observer's take: Next-Generation Prius Hybrid to Get Solar Panels to Power Air Conditioning
Here's Inside Line's take: Toyota Prius Reportedly To Get Solar Air-Conditioning on Some Models
June 26, 2008
Citing that they weren't allocated enough floor space at the upcoming Detroit auto show, Suzuki has announced that they would skip this show for 2009.
Jeff Holland, a Suzuki spokesman, said that Suzuki's plans for more active displays couldn't be accommodated. Suzuki plans to introduce three new products in the next 18 months, and other cities better fit their marketing needs, Holland said. "It's recognizing that we can't be everywhere and recognizing that opportunities are better in shows in other parts of the country," said David Boldt, product public relations manager for Suzuki...
May 5, 2008
Nissan is reportedly going to show their light commercial vehicle (or vehicles), otherwise known as LCV(s), at the next Detroit auto show in January. As has been reported, Nissan plans on introducing three LCVs in the United States within the next few years. One is expected to be a van, quite possibly based on their Primastar van (pictured), which is sold in many other markets worldwide. If so, it's most direct competitor here would the the Dodge/Freightliner Sprinter vans, which have proven so popular with delivery services and tradesmen...
May 2, 2008
Recently Straightline confirmed that the next Titan and Dodge Ram are going to be kiss'n cousins. Now we have some more info on that model, as well as some new info on the yet-to-be-seen HD Nissan pickup.
As to the Titan, the doors and roof panels will be shared by the Titan. Other exterior body panels will be unique...
March 7, 2008
It looks like it won’t be long before the 2010 Cadillac CTC hits the road. These shots taken recently in Michigan reveal some very production looking bodywork. From the detailed grille to the quarterpanel vents, this looks more like an early prototype than a test mule. As we reported months ago, the 2010 Cadillac CTS coupe will go into production in the spring of 2009...
February 25, 2008
Desperate times call for desperate measures...
Or so the saying goes; Maybach, an automaker arguably on the ropes, is pulling out all the stops as they've given a production okay for the Landaulet. A concept study was recently shown at the Detroit auto show.
So will this save the brand?..
February 20, 2008
It sounds like we may be seeing some off-road-ready vehicles using hybrid power sometime in the future. At the recent NAIAS Jeep showed a hybrid Renegade (above) and Land Rover displayed their urban cruiser LR-X, both using hybrid power. In addition, the U.S. Army is developing a new diesel-electric ‘Alternative Mobility Vehicle’...
January 21, 2008
The hoopla is now past, and we can now digest all the "new and wonderful" stuff automakers threw at us last week. Is it all as great as they, the automakers, would lead you to believe? Well, AutoObserver has done much of the work here for you with their reflections of the show.
Actually, there are two editorials from AO on this—and they don't agree on everything...
January 19, 2008
You can add the Chinese to the list of countries with weird concepts, and even weirder names. I present you with the Detroit Fish. I guess because it was shown in Detroit and it's an amphibious people carrier. It can be seen at the Detroit (of course) Auto Show...
January 18, 2008
The Toyota FJ Cruiser Trail Teams Edition sort of slipped under the radar of most reporters at Detroit, as there wasn't a big deal made of it. Either that or most probably figured it was just another specially-prepped show car.
It's basically a designer edition hardcore off-roader—an oxymoron if ever there was one! How it differs from your basic FJ, is as follows:
First off, it comes with a white roof and body with black trim pieces...
January 17, 2008
If you happen to be in the neighborhood of Cobo Hall, you might want to stop in and see all the new cars, trucks and concepts at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show.
The editors of IL have created a visitor's guide highlighting the cars that you won't want to miss.
Read the Detroit Visitor's Guide on Inside Line.
Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor
January 16, 2008
If you are in the Detroit area and will be attending the show the week of January 21, join Edmunds/Inside Line editors for a walking tour of the show. Kick some tires with us, hear what we think of the headliner vehicles on the floor, tell us what you think, and ask any questions you have. Come on along on one of these informal strolling chats around the new production and concept cars at the Detroit show.
Look for the Edmunds/Inside Line booth in Cobo Center's entry hallway, right at the Jou Louis statue, and sign up for a walking tour...
January 15, 2008
If XM Radio has its way, this is what the display screen will look like while you're listening to XM in your car:
This type of layout will start showing up as a factory-installed option within the next few months -- I'm guessing Acura, maybe the new TSX? The pictured setup is really cool because it graphically displays each channel and what's playing on that channel right now. XM says they're already sending the logos and all data needed to run this kind of interface. It's now up to the automakers to adopt it...
This is a working prototype of Panasonic's new 16-inch in-car video screen. It can split and play two video sources or play one source in a variety of aspect ratios. This demo vehicle is a Saturn Outlook but look for it to show up in other all-new vehicles Panasonic already provides video screens for -- Chevrolet, Nissan, Honda, Lexus and Toyota. In fact, the Nissan Quest will soon be getting an entertainment system branded as Panasonic...
From the creators of the Matrix trilogy comes a live-action version of Speed Racer. To promote the upcoming movie, Warner Bros. showed this life-size Mach 5 replica. Look for the movie to be out by May...
Chinese automakers copy Western models? Says who?
This one I can understand a little more -- doesn't everyone want a scaled-down replica of the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile?
- Brian Moody, Road Test Editor
January 14, 2008
Shockingly enough, Mazda did not want to spend much time today talking about the 2009 RX-8. Details on its new front fascia were left unsaid, and the new R3 sport package that adds Bilstein shocks, Recaro seats and urethane-filled suspension crossmembers was barely mentioned. So when a Mazda official told us after the press conference that the car was also 45 pounds lighter than before we were skeptical. Turns out the optional 19-inch wheels that come with the R3 package are actually lighter than the stock 18s. And apparently those Recaro seats are much lighter than stock. Combined with the new shorter rear end gear, this RX-8 might actually feel new from behind the wheel. That would have been worth talking about. -- Ed Hellwig, Lead Senior Editor, Inside Line
The blond and photogenic Franz Von Holzhausen, Mazda's North American design chief, had the pleasure of "driving" the Mazda Furai concept onto the stage during the press conference today in Detroit. (For most of the show, the Furai sat uncovered, but the company whisked it out of sight just before its official debut.)
Von Holzhausen revved the mid-mounted, three-rotor 20B rotary engine before disembarking, commenting, "It sounds good, doesn't it?"
Indeed. As we reported in our full article on the Furai, this concept sports car is built on a racecar chassis from the American Le Mans Series. It's fully driveable, and the engine develops some 450 horsepower.
A ticket to the 2008 Detroit Auto Show: $12
A 2009 Chevy Corvette ZR: $100,000.
Looking at a naked ZR1 standing on end at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show: Priceless.
This is cool. What a way to see the most powerful Corvette ever made...
The concept of a hybrid that looks like a version of the Maserati Gran Turismo appeals a great deal to us.
And obviously it appeals a great deal to Henrik Fisker. The former BMW and Aston Martin designer launched off on his own to produce modified versions of BMW and Mercedes-Benz vehicles a few years ago. Fisker has since seen the light and has conceived of the Karma, a hybrid sport-luxury coupe...
For my money, this is the coolest car at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show. It's a 1938 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900 Spyder Touring and I found it in the Louis Vuitton Classic Concours booth. According to the signage, the car is the 2007-2008 LVCC winner and it won best of show at the Meadow Brook Concours d'Elegance in the Detroit area.
Bodied by Carlo Bianchi Anderloni from a design by Vittorio Jano, the Alfa is now owned by Ray Scherr of Westlake Village, California...
For years now, we've been saying the Chinese are coming. In case you haven't noticed, they have yet to arrive. For the second year in a row, Changfeng Motor held a press conference in Detroit to discuss its latest models and announce its intentions to start selling cars in the U.S. And for the second year in a row, it appears as though it's not any closer to selling cars in the U.S...
Now the party can begin. -- Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief
Geely Automobile is ambitious. The Chinese company produced 2 million cars in 2006 and aims to produce 20 million cars in 2015. It's not quite ready to sell in the U.S. but the company says it is inevitable...
"Saturn is a green brand for General Motors and we use the Green Line brand to promote that," Troy Clark, Saturn division president, told the sweaty crowd packed around GM's main stage at Cobo Hall. "I think 2008 will be the year when we double down and raise the bidding."
The 2009 Saturn Vue Green Line Two-Mode Hybrid constitutes the majority of the company's chips in this game of chance (that presumably involves only Toyota and Ford). It's a major enhancement upon the standard Vue Green Line Hybrid, which has a four-cylinder engine and a very small electric motor that provides minimal motive force. Instead, the two-mode starts out with a direct-injected version of GM's 3.6-liter V6 and combines that with a pair of 55-kilowatt electric motors housed in its automatic transmission (presumably some type of CVT).
Chrysler apparently used up its full allotment of fun yesterday when it herded a bunch of longhorns in front of Cobo Hall. And so we were greeted today by possibly the most lifeless press conference we've seen from Chrysler in a good long time. Even Chrysler didn't seem excited about the three concept cars it showed today. None of them have even the remotest shot at production...
Saturn has been quite open about its plans to repackage various Opel products for American consumption. However, you may not have realized that commitment extended to rebadging concept cars. Accordingly, the Saturn Flextreme is a dead ringer for the Opel Flextreme concept shown in Frankfurt, right down to its snazzy wheels.
Fortunately, it's an attractive car so we didn't mind seeing it again. It looks like a futuristic rendering of a five-door Astra, and it's the only car we know of with gullwing cargo doors.
So we have told you everything about the 2009 CTS-V. So what was Bob Lutz going to talk about at the official press conference?
Well, how about this bit of bravado: We believe it to be the fastest four-door sedan in the world.
Wow. We chatted after the conference with a GM guy we know and said, "You know an M5 will do the quarter in 12.7 seconds, right?..
Biofuel, indeed. --Daniel Pund, Senior Editor, Detroit
Toyota threw some fertilizer -- perhaps steer droppings -- on the toy truck that occupied this turntable yesterday and presto! It grew into the full-size A-BAT by this morning.
Toyota made no mention at all of the A-BAT concept during its press conference this morning. Fortunately, you can read all about the A-BAT here...
Sure, it was strange seeing Bob Lutz and Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick bustin' a move to Kid Rock. And surely it was a bit surreal to see a herd of longhorn steer trying (in vain) to procreate on the streets of Detroit.
But we maintain that the weirdest thing we've seen at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show is VW Group Overlord and all-around German-industry sultan, Dr. Ferdinand Piech without a security detail...
The 2009 Toyota Venza made its world debut this morning and is, according to boss Bob Carter, "something new; something different.... a crossover sedan. It is most definitely a car."
It is most definitely a station wagon.
Toyota reps made a point to emphasize that the Venza was not truck-based nor truckish nor trucklike in any way...
AutoObserver has an interesting blog up on American automobile design; surely no coincidence, as the NAIAS is now in full bloom.
I think it's also relevant that so many of the comments from followers of these blogs are centered on styling. A few quotes:
Peter Horbury, the British-born Executive Director of Design, North America for Ford Motor Company: “Design is a direct reflection of the culture and society, and America is the most optimistic place on earth. People came here to succeed, and so there is a strong sense of bravado and openness to the designs.”
Ian Callum, Jaguar Cars Ltd.’s Scottish-born Director of Design: “Everything is just slightly exaggerated in America and I think it’s down to the geography of the country...
At the unveil of the CTS Coupe concept, GM’s design chief Ed Welburn said it was a car that was never supposed to happen. “But when we saw the initial sketches, it was so beautiful we knew we just had to build it,” he said.
So, Ed and his team aren’t going to win the “thinking outside the box” award at this year’s show, but they did succeed in making a unique-looking, if not beautiful two-door CTS. It’s a striking coupe in person, but there’s a little too much Mercedes C-Class coupe in it and not enough Audi S5 for our tastes...
BMW announced pricing of the 2008 M3 Coupe and Sedan and 1 Series Convertible this morning at the Detroit auto show.
The M3 coupe will start at $57,275 and the sedan at $54,575.
Launching in 128i and 135i guises, the 1 Series Convertible will start at $33,875 and $39,875, respectively.
They arrive at dealers in March of this year...
Cobo Arena was strangely under capacity during the first-of-the-day press conference for the Lincoln MKT concept. Could this be backlash after yesterday's unofficial media lockout at the Ford F-150 debut?
Mark Fields, Ford's president of the Americas, was first to speak. "Lincoln was the fastest growing luxury brand of 2007, " he said, but without seeing some hard statistics, that claim seems tenuous. The current MKS, MKX and MKZ, Fields added, "offer a blend of performance, luxury and value that all represent a quiet confidence." He even dropped his voice slightly to emphasize the "quiet."
BMW had a glass-entombed display of the key hardware comprising the twin-turbo gasoline V8 that will power the 2009 X6. There are some unique details in the layout of the turbos that caught my eye as I wandered onto their stand.