So, the Chicago Auto Show came and and it will go on Sunday, with not too much talk or excitement. Of course a few new concepts were introduced, but really quite boring I would say.  Now we are moving on to the Geneva International Auto Show which starts on March 4-14.  Maybe there will be alittle more buzz at this show, though my guess is not. We haven’t had a lot of excitement from any of the major shows so far this year.  The automakers are trying to create sparks, but it’s hard when they are so concerned to not lose more money.  There is one interesting debut to come out at the Geneva Auto Show. Ford will be unveiling the production versions of the new C-Max and Grand C-Max wagons at the Geneva Auto Show, according to autoweek.com.  Wagons are coming back.  I like it!

The C-Max is a 5 seater and the Grand C-Max is a 7 seater and they will go on sale in Europe later this year.  In late 2011, the Grand C-Max (which will be known as the C-Max) will be sold in the U.S. Confused?  The 7 seat Grand C-Max has twin sliding doors.  Both cars are part of Ford’s idea to show the medium size car.  All we ever talk about these days are the small vehicles, so it’s a nice change and something for those not looking for the small Honda Fit or others like it.  The Ford Focus is another medium sized car debuting next year.  I look forward to a slight shift and “bigger” cars being debuted!  I think we should at least check out the Ford C-Max and Grand C-Max. They look different and that can be worthwhile.

The Chicago Auto Show starts tomorrow.  Are you excited? I’m alittle excited because I really want to hear what Toyota will say at their press conference tomorrow.  After the Toyota Prius was recalled in Japan the other day, the problems continue for Toyota, but I really think that their reputation is strong and they will recover with these recalls just being a distant memory soon.  They just need to say the right things at the press conference.  So, that’s one thing I’m anxious to see at the Chicago Auto Show. After that…..hmmm not sure there is anything standing out that interests me about this show, but I’m sure there will be some interesting pieces from the Chicago Auto Show as it begins tomorrow and opens to the public on Friday.

Honda plans to unveil a new Honda Odyssey concept and Toyota supposedly will be showing us some new stuff as well. I like to check out all the new models and upgrades that are unveiled at these shows.  The concept cars are the best though.  Hopefully there will be some funky concepts to check out.  There always are.  I also like to read the winners and losers of the shows.  I’m hoping the Chicago Auto Show will continue to show promise and excitement for our auto industry this year.  Stay tuned for updates from the show.

In case you haven’t had the time to check out the auto news lately, I thought I would give you some things of importance (at least in my mind!)

1. The Detroit Auto Show is over and the Chicago Auto Show will begin in the middle of February.  Lots of concept cars were unveiled with certainly more to come at the Chicago Auto Show.

2.  GM is finally getting rid of Saab. Spyker is going to be the new proud owner of Saab. Good news for Saab lovers that desperately did not want to see Saab die.

3.  After the latest recall for Toyota, they have “halted” sales of all models that were recalled.  This continues to be bad news for Toyota. They are a good company so I bet they will find some way to get back on top, but some work will definitely need to be done.

4.  GM will start making their own electric motors for their vehicles in 2012 lower costs and improve quality.

Keep up to date with important/interesting auto news here at centercaps.net!

Well the Detroit Auto Show is underway to the public now and some auto websites already have been there done that and have some opinions as well (of course!)  Autoblog.com said the auto show was smaller, like last year, than years past and less vehicles or concepts unveiled.  Autoweek.com spent a lot of time there this past week and they came up with the four best vehicles of the Detroit Auto Show, in their opinions of course!  The four categories were Best in Show, Most Significant, Most Fun, and Best Concept.  And the winners are……

Best in Show - Audi E-tron - this is actually a concept car but autoweek hopes and expects it to become a sporty two-seater that will be awesome to drive.

Most Significant - 2012 Ford Focus - this is the European Focus that many have been hoping would come to the U.S. It’s coming!

Most Fun - Mini Beachcomber - a concept that is a preview of the Mini’s new SUV.  This vehicle has huge tires, no doors, and no roof.  That makes it fun already!

Best Concept - Volkswagen New Compact Coupe - Autoweek loved the fact that this concept was “so polished, and how finished” the car looked for a concept.  It looked very ready for production.

There were many finalists in each category, but the staff at autoweek.com hashed it out and came up with these winners.  I’m sure the Detroit Auto Show doesn’t really care who wins what awards, they just want a lot of people there. The automakers want to win awards, but more than that they want there models out there and hope that the economy keeps turning around and people buy their cars. I think that will happen in 2010.  I’m an optimist.

So the Detroit Auto Show began this past weekend.  It is actually open to the public starting this Saturday.  Currently, the show is open to the industry only.  The Detroit Auto Show is always a big show because it’s the first one of the year, showing off all the new models for the year and hoping for good reviews as well.  Autoweek.com has their eyes set on 6 cars that they are eagerly waiting to see at this show.  The anticipation is overwhelming! Well, maybe let’s not go that far but it’s exciting nonetheless!  Autoweek says that these 6 cars have them “on the edge of their seats.”

Cadillac CTS-V Coupe - “killer caddy that we’ve all been waiting for.” It has a 556 horsepower V8 engine that goes from 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds!

Mercedes-Benz E-Class cabriolet - 3.5-liter V6 engine with 268 horsepower or the V8 5.5-liter engine with 382 horsepower.

Buick Regal GS concept - interesting one to get excited about!

Ford Mustang GT - 5.0-liter V8 with 412 horsepower

Mini Beachcomber concept - this is a “funky, offbeat” concept that is a “hint of the future.”  You need to look at this one.

BMW Concept ActiveE - a plug-in electric car that should get a 100 miles per charge.

I’m sure Autoweek and others will have more to drool over and talk about to nausea as the Detroit Auto Show truly gets under. Stay tuned….

The Tokyo Motor Show began today (press only-open to public starting 10/23-11/4) and of course there were many new concept cars unveiled.  Many automakers had decided not to participate in this show due financial difficulties but those that have exhibits there are trying to make the most of the situation.  Lexus is showing off the LF-A super car with a 500 horsepower engine.  I was reading alittle about the LF-A at topspeed.com and people aren’t saying nice things. They don’t like the look of it and aren’t buying the super car advertising of it as well.

Another concept car unveiled at this show is the Toyota FT-86.  This is a compact, rear-wheel drive sports car that supposedly provides “driving joy and excitement.  Also the Toyota FT-EV II was introduced which is a compact electric vehicle designed for short distances. 

Mazda also are showing off a new concept as well as a new engine and transmission at the Tokyo Motor Show.  The Mazda Kiyora has a Mazda Sky-G engine and Sky-Drive transmission, which are both being debuted at the Tokyo show as well.  The Sky-G engine has greatly improved fuel economy due to thermal efficiency. 

I’m sure there will be more talk of the Tokyo Motor Show as the week goes on, but I thought this was some good information about some new concepts.  The thing is that I feel like most of these concepts have the same ideas. They are smaller, with more power and better gas mileage.  I guess that’s what people want. 

The Tokyo Auto Show next month (October 24-November 4) is getting worse as the days go on.  Hyundai has just backed out of the Tokyo Auto Show and they were the last major foreign manufacturer to be in attendance at the show.  The Tokyo Auto Show used to be the premier auto show in Asia.  Now it is held every 2 years and clearly not very popular since no major automakers are going.  The Detroit 3 backed out earlier this year stating that they need to try to save money.  That’s supposedly the reason that all of these automakers have decided not to attend the Tokyo Auto Show, but not such good news for the show itself.  Hyundai actually already had paid $122,000 in nonrefundable fees for their space at the show, but that is still far less than they would have paid had they actually gone to the show. It can cost millions of dollars to have an exhibit at these shows. I guess that it makes sense for none of these automakers to want to spend the money to go to the show, so it will be interesting to see if the LA show in November or the Detroit Auto Show in January are affected by the recession and current economic state. I remember reading that last year, automakers were scaling back, but I think they still attended and had exhibits at the shows, unlike the problems that the Tokyo Auto Show is currently facing. Maybe they should just cancel the show and wait 2 more years. Hopefully by then the economy will have turned around.

So, here’s some of the highlights of the Frankfurt Auto Show last week for those of you that missed it. 

-Ferrari 458 Italia named Best in Show

-Mercedes to bring 100 hydrogen fuel-cell cars to the United States year.

-BMW will be offering 4-cylinder gasoline engines in the United States to meet the new fuel economy rules.

-Renault has 4 electric car concepts working right now. They will start selling them in 2011.

-Electric was the buzz word this past week at the Frankfurt Auto Show. 

So, there’s some of the highlights. Get ready for the LA Auto Show in a couple of months.

www.green.autoblog.com

The BMW Vision EfficientDynamics concept car is currently on display at the Frankfurt Auto Show.  This car is being described by BMW as “BMW’s most innovative concept car ever.”  Supposedly this car can go from 0 to 60 mph in 4.8 seconds and it received a score of 62.6 miles per gallon on the EU combined test cycle according to autobloggreen.com.  The concept had a 1.5-liter turbodiesel engine but rumor has it that BMW may go with a smaller engine than this.  The doors to the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics car (that’s a long name!) flip up like a Back to the Future vehicle. I think thats cool, but something even cooler is that this car is green. It is a plug-in hybrid. It can go approximately 31 miles in all-electric mode and an additional 400 miles if you use the diesel engine as well.  Charging with a regular 220 volt outlet takes about 2 1/2 hours.  BMW has not said that it will make these vehicles, but hints state that there will be a car similar, if not the same, as the concept car available in the future.

The Frankfurt Auto Show is tomorrow and Wednesday.  This show is held every two years and it is considered the largest show in the industry.  There will be alot of vehicles introduced at the show, with Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes, and Porsche taking center stage to show off their stuff!  I’m sure as you can expect, there will be alot of electric, hybrids, fuel efficiency vehicles. They will probably be front and center at the show.  I always find it interesting to see who “wins” at the shows.  The reviews of the new cars will be flying around next week, I’m sure. We’ll have to wait and see.