2008 LA Auto Show

23rd November 2008

Well, the LA Auto Show has begun, or as we like to call it in Detroit - that auto show that got scared of Detroit and moved to November. There are lots of goodies to see at LAAS, including concept cars and world debuts. Here’s a brief look at what’s what:

2010 Ford Fusion & Mercury Milan Hybrid - Ford, which is in trouble along with the rest of the domestic auto industry, has taken the wraps off the substantially revised 2010 models, along with new hybrid versions. The hybrids will get up to 39 MPG in the city - 6 more than the Camry hybrid - and will be capable of up to 47 MPH in electric-only mode. Production is to begin next month, with sales beginning in the spring. No word yet on pricing. The “regular” Fusion and Milan models get a larger, more powerful I4 base engine, a more powerful V6 that also gets better fuel economy, and a new option - the same 3.5L V6 from the Edge, Flex, etc. It will power the new Fusion Sport with 263 horsepower and 249 pound-feet of torque. Ford insiders have told me that the V6 models will still not have a manual. Darn.

2010 Ford Mustang - the iconic pony car sports a revised, more sculpted look at the front and rear, but the casual observer might not notice the difference. Gear heads and other auto enthusiasts will. The Mustang also has a revised interior, the most obvious of which is the center stack area, which now accommodates a navigation screen and Microsoft’s Sync system, now in its 2nd generation. Under the hood, both the V6 and V8 engines will have better power and fuel economy, though final numbers are not available yet.

2010 Lincoln MKZ - revised exterior to look more like the stunning MKS flagship and an updated interior as well. The MKZ also gets the 3.5L with 263 horsepower, like its Fusion and Milan cousins.

2010 Mazda3 - the wonderful Mazda3 gets a new look, which is both aggressive and odd. The revised front end looks like the car has a big, silly grin on its face. Like it’s up to something. It will be powered by either a 2.0L I4 (140hp) or a 2.5L I4 (170hp). New features include Bluetooth, navigation and steering-adjusted xenon headlamps.

Chrysler is showing a trio of electric vehicles that they introduced a few weeks ago. They include an electric Town & Country minivan, a Dodge EV sports car and the Dodge ZEO that was first shown at the Detroit show early this year. The idea that Chrysler will be able to introduce these cars in the timeframe announced seems folly, as GM has a significant head start in developing this new type of propulsion, and they are still 2 years away from production.

MINI E - MINI will introduce a full electric car and deploy a fleet of 500 units for consumers to use in daily driving. This makes MINI the 1st automaker to develop an electric since GM’s EV1. The MINI E will have a range of 156 miles (250 km) and a top speed of 95 mph (152 kph). It will be available in California, New York and New Jersey only.

Infiniti G37 Convertible - the Infiniti G gets a convertible for the first time, a 3-piece hardtop. It will have the 3.7L V6 already in the coupe, making 328 hp.

2009 Nissan Cube - Nissan will bring the Cube to the US, as expected. Nissan calls its look a “bulldog with sunglasses”, but you can think of it as a Scion xB. Nissan has long marketed the Cube in other markets, but will now sell it in the US as well.

2010 Porsche Boxster/Cayman - even though Porsche insists these are 2 separate cars, we all really know better. The 2 cars presently have the same engines, but those will diverge slightly when the 2010 models debut. The base engines will increase in size from 2.7L to 2.9L, and will have increased power, however the increase will be greater in the Cayman. Both receive a power increase in the “S” models as well, but, again, the Cayman’s increase is more.

BMW 7-Series - the big BMW gets a freshened look for its 5th generation. It goes on sale this spring. It sports a new 4.4-liter, twin-turbo V-8 that delivers 400 hp and 450lb-ft of torque. The technology on this car could take up a whole book - active cruise control, lane departure warning, active blind spot detection, head-up display, high-beam assistant, night vision with pedestrian detection, sideview and backup cameras, and integral active steering (rear-wheel steering assist). Wow, that’s a mouthful.

2010 Lexus RX 350/RX 450h - the original luxury crossover gets a revised look for the 2010 model year. Both the gas version and the hybrid receive a shot of more power. Both use the 3.5L V6 now (the hybrid was still using the 3.3L V6), so the hybrid’s increase is greater than the gas engine. The gas engine also gets a 6-speed transmission, up from 5, while the hybrid continues with a CVT. The wheelbase is longer, but the overall length is shorter, which should improve stability. The RX 350 goes on sale in February, while the hybrid waits until spring.

Lexus IS Convertible - Lexus introduced this new hardtop convertible at the Paris Auto Show in October. Designated IS 250C and IS 350C, the new convertible is a 3-piece unit that opens in 21 seconds. The sound system has an equalizer-tuning feature that provides consistent audio whether the top is up or down, and it also automatically adapts to the natural loss of bass when the top is down. To address the natural difficulty of getting in and out of the backseat, Lexus increased the length of the doors 11.8″ over the sedan and added a new one-touch automatic mechanism that provides a quick-acting, front-seat fold-and-slide activation.

2010 Kia Soul - this is a tough one to categorize. It’s a bit like a small crossover, a bit like the Nissan Cube/Scion xB, and a whole lot of fugly. My son thinks it’s pretty cool, though. So maybe I just don’t get it. Michael Sprague, VP of marketing for Kia says, ““The Soul is for those who love individuality but don’t like to be categorized by finding the next best thing…for those looking for something with a little more personality than other vehicles on the market today.” It will be available is 4 trim levels: Soul, Soul+, Soul! and Soul sport. Available engines are a 1.6L or a 2.0L 4 cylinder.

Honda Insight - the Insight was the first hybrid available in the US market. It was a very small 2-seater that got great fuel economy, but had too many compromises to be successful in the US. Now comes a new version that will seat 5, have reasonable power, be less expensive and get better fuel economy than the Toyota Prius. It also look a lot like a Prius. The car shown in LA is considered a concept, but look for the real one to be very much the same. The real one goes on sale Spring, 2009.

VW Touareg - VW is showing its new Touareg V6 TDI, with a 50-state compliant DIesel engine. It is powered by a 3.0L, turbocharged six cylinder engine producing 221 horsepower and 407 lb-ft. of torque.

Audi A6 - not much new here, except a new supercharged V6 engine, making 286 horsepower. It also has some subtle styling changes.

2009 Ferrari California - despite sharing the name with a Ferrari from the 60’s, this is an all-new Ferrari model. It sports a direct-injection V8 mounted in the front of the car (a first for Ferrari) that produces 460 horsepower, propelling the car from 0-60 mph in less than 4 seconds. Can you buy one? If you’re getting some of the $700 billion, and $250K is burning a hole in your wallet - you’ll still have to wait, as the 2010 model year is sold out. 2011 isn’t very long to wait, is it?

If any of you LA readers would like to share your comments on the show, please click on Comments, below. Thanks for sharing your views with other readers of The Slandy Report.