What's Hot, What's Not at the Auto Show
Toyota seems unstoppable. General Motors is on a roll. Ford has hit the skids. Here's the buzz on new models, automaker fortunes, and hot trends from the floor of the 2007 Detroit auto show:
Hits
— Anything besides gasoline. Now that Toyota and Honda have proved their popularity, most automakers are trotting out gas-electric hybrids. And the race is on to find the next powertrain breakthrough. GM has unveiled a prototype hybrid–the Chevy Volt–that, theoretically, could be recharged at home and get 150 mpg. But the scheme depends on battery technology that doesn't quite exist yet, and GM hasn't said when, exactly, the car will get built. So maybe it's a one-day headline. Audi, Mercedes, and other European automakers are touting diesels and diesel hybrids. Toyota is touting plug-in hybrids and refining plans for ethanol vehicles. And all the big automakers hope they're the first to mass-produce a hydrogen-powered car. But nobody is ready to predict when.
— Crossovers. The fastest-growing segment of the market is getting some of the coolest new products. Two winners that will go on sale in '07: the Nissan Rogue, a slick mini-Murano that will land in the low $20s, and the Hyundai Veracruz, a luxurious seven-passenger hauler that will come in under $30,000.
— General Motors. The Saturn Aura and Chevy Silverado were voted best car and truck of the year in a prestigious poll of auto writers. The Saturn award was a sympathy vote; the Toyota Camry, one of three finalists, is a better car. But it's vindication for GM, which has been promising more exciting products for several years. GM also unveiled some snazzy new cars. The Chevy Malibu could be GM's first serious competitor to the Camry and the Honda Accord in over a decade. A reborn–and beautiful–Chevy Camaro will thrill car buffs who can't afford a Corvette when it goes on sale in 2009. And the new Cadillac CTS sedan is bold and gaudy and will find fans simply because it is not a BMW. Not even close.
— Chrysler's minivans. They're inherently boring, but Chrysler has found yet another way to enliven the minivan. Its new "Swivel N Go" second-row seats can be spun around to face backward, so second- and third-row passengers can enjoy dinner-table intimacy on a road trip. Now I'm thinking what you're thinking: The more distant my kids are in the car, the better. But pop the small table into place between the seats, and you can play cards or eat lunch as if you're in an RV. Better yet: Imagine a mobile office, comfortable enough for closing a sales deal. You can even plug your laptop into a standard 115-volt electrical outlet.
Duds
— Fender vents. These affectations simulate a feature of high-performance cars that need extra air intakes on the side of the chassis. But on the freshened Ford 500 and brand-new Cadillac CTS–where they're simply ornamental–they look cheesy.
— Ford Focus. Want to see the damage caused by billions of dollars in losses? It's on display in the Focus. Ford desperately needs a competitive entry-level car. Yet in revamping the Focus, it cut corners on design and R&D and produced a bland afterthought of a car that looks like the Honda Civic–the last Honda Civic, which went out of production in 2005. The dull factor reflects Ford's broader problems.
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