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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Etc. The North American International Auto Show is by far the largest auto show in North America, but the small, aging facility that houses the new car party is prompting automakers to ditch the event all-together. In response to news that Suzuki has joined Porsche in bowing out of the 2009 show, the city of Detroit is rushing a $90M plan to increase floor space by 80,000 sq. ft. The move is seen as a stop-gap measure, with other more grand plans still on the way at a later date. With far superior facilities in New York, Chicago, and LA, Detroit may not have long to act. For people in the Detroit area, the Cobo expansion has been a hot topic of conversation, but one that typically doesn't get beyond the talking stage. If area executives continue to try to one-up each other, argue and get nothing done, more automakers are likely to bow out in the future. [Source: Detroit News ] Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Coupes , Hybrids/Alternative , Green , Chevrolet , GM Wired magazine got in the queue for some face time with Bob Lutz at the Detroit Auto Show, and came back with a quote that's raised a few brows. When asked what the target market for the car would be, Lutz said "I don't know. You'd like to have it at about $30,000 for the customer, but what I'm hearing from the team is we're not going to get there.... f it costs closer to 40 than 30, well, that's too bad." The issue is the timeline. His engineering team said that if they had more time they could cost-optimize the car, but Lutz doesn't want to wait for that. As for the recent go-round about when the Volt would appear , November 2010 is such a firm deadline in his mind that when it comes to the internal team, his only question is: "What is there about November 2010 that you don't understand?" Lutz must know how important it will be to price this car competitively...
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Podcasts , Sedans/Saloons , Trucks/Pickups , Crossovers/CUVs , Supercars , Audi , BMW , Dodge , Ford , GM , Hyundai , Lincoln Episode 85 of the Autoblog Podcast finds us reminiscing about the North American International Auto Show that recently invaded Detroit. It was perhaps not as thrilling as past shows, but the new F-150 and Ram hauled and herded some excitement into Cobo. Both pickups are newly spiffed and bristling with new features and engineering. While the trucks are no doubt big news, the CTS Coupe stokes our fires far more. We hope to see it visited by the V-series gnomes, too. There were a passel of diesels at the show, too. Audi's V12 TDI R8 concept was filled with design gumdrops for us to chew on, besides the 12-pot 500-hp diesel that returns mileage in the 20s. BMW had its 335d and some X5 alphabet soup thing , and Honda showed its clean diesel . Beyond oil burners, we took an IRL look at the Hyundais Genesis and found it surprising beyond...
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Filed under: Coupes , Videos , Supercars , Chevrolet , GM click above for brand new images of the Corvette ZR1 General Motors invited Autoblog down to its design dome at the Warren, MI Tech Center to have a look at a couple of the vehicles that will be displayed at the Detroit Auto Show next week. Fortunately, it was one of those rare instances where they allowed us to bring in cameras and we took full advantage. One of the two vehicles on display was the recently-unveiled Corvette ZR1 . At the time, there was some controversy in our comments about certain design elements of the ZR1, including the window in the hood, the side vents, the carbon fiber and the wheels. We had the opportunity to talk with Corvette Exterior Design Manager Kirk Bennian at the design dome and ask him about all of your concerns. Before you all get riled up, the car we were allowed to photograph was not mechanically correct, but rather a standard Z06 used by the design staff to test out exterior parts. That means...
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Filed under: Concept Cars , Detroit Auto Show , Sedans/Saloons , Buick , GM Through the success of the Enclave , Buick has discovered that nicely designed, well-built, high content vehicles sell. Being the first Buick in a long time to log advance orders, GM thinks it might be onto something with the Enclave formula. That recipe consists of bolder styling than past Buicks, with cues coming from the Velite and Riviera show cars. Avoiding retro, forthcoming Buicks promise to amp up the curbside drama with unabashed curves, and a lot of chrome. The Enclave has an interior that was obviously fussed over, too. If Buick can turn out a car using the same discipline that guided the successful Enclave launch, it should be exciting to watch the brand reinflate. Both the Riviera and Velite concepts have striking, tight designs that are nothing like the blobby, amorphous Buicks of the recent past. The Lucerne is a stylistic step in the right direction, and with a new LaCrosse due soon, we might start...
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Sedans/Saloons , Chevrolet , GM Click the image above for over 30 high-res pics. var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/autos/50th_Anniversary_Chevy_Impala_is_automotive_Xanax'; The Chevy Impala is celebrating its 50th Anniversary, and to commemorate the occasion the Bowtie division is offering up a badge-and-trim special edition. What you have here is the garden-variety Impala LT, upgraded for anniversary-edition duty with an FE3 sport suspension, 18-inch alloys, commemorative "50th" Impala badges and a rear spoiler. Inside, the seats are leather and two-toned, with eight-way adjustability for the driver and anniversary embroidery on the headrests. Other edition-specific features include a multifunction steering wheel wrapped in contrast-stitched leather, slightly fancier floormats, and doorsill plates sporting the anniversary logo. It comes in red or black and is, without question, the single most unexciting car GM will be introducing at next...
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Filed under: Detroit Auto Show , Spy Photos , Coupes , Chevrolet , GM Since the original Camaro concept hit NAIAS in January 2006, it seems like we've been living with (and writing about) the pony coupe forever. The fact is, we still haven't seen the Camaro's final production duds. Until now, kind of. The Camaro5 website has posted on its forums a near-naked Chevy Pony car in production sheet metal. The front and rear are wearing padded underwear, but we can see from the side-view pic that the basic shape stays true to the stunning concepts of 2006 and 2007 . Missing are the three slotted vents ahead of the rear wheel wells, but it looks like some ribbed metal takes its place. Also history are the funky-cool but slightly impractical side mirrors from the concept cars, and unlike the concept, the production model has a B-pillar. While it's difficult to tell for certain with the flat white paint job and slightly blurry photography, it appears as though some of the hard edges...
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