AUTO SHOW!!!

Made a pilgrimage to the Cincy Auto Show on Saturday:

Cincinnati Auto Show 2008


Impressions, briefly:

  • VERY impressed with the offerings from Hyundai. They seem to fill every niche (aside from Hybrid), and the interior materials and fit/finish are great, for a good price. Particularly loving the Elantra Touring, which is a proper hatchback version of the elantra. Eminently practical, getting 30mpg.

  • The rebirth of the car. Interest in Trucks & SUVs was nil...the crowds were all around the cars and some crossovers. "What's the MPG?" seemed to be the question of the afternoon

  • GM's message is diffuse, and the model line doesn't make sense. GM should axe pontiac, GMC, and Buick entirely, and fold those lines into Chevrolet and Cadillac. The Lucerne, in particular, would make a lovely FWD model, and the Lacrosse could disappear entirely.

  • SUPREMELY unimpressed by ChryCo. Aside from the Minivans and Jeep, this company is toast. No one wants a Dodge Ram that gets 12 mpg, or any of their SUVs.

  • Mercedes has TOO MANY FRICKIN MODELS! When you make BMW look like a paragon of simplicity, you're going after too many niche-within-a-niche segments. CLS? WTF?

  • Honda and Toyota quietly keep trying to take over the world. And they keep SUCCEEDING

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