The North American International Auto Show was held here in Detroit over the last two weeks. The excitement and enthusiasm was as strong as ever. There were over 60 OEM exhibits and 700 vehicles on display. Everyone came looking for some indications of how the OEMs are positioning themselves with new products to meet the increasing pent-up demand and wide diversity of wants/needs being felt in all markets.
The Automotive News World Congress was held in conjunction with the show featuring the current views and perspsctives of 19 OEM CEOs and influencial industry leaders. The focus was on where these leaders think the industry needs to go and how they plan to get there. I found the presentations by Mike Jackson (AutoNation CEO) and Roger Penske (Penske CEO) particularly interesting. PDF copies of their presentation slides are available here.
Alternative Transportation and X Prize Contest Entries
The Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize has chosen the State of Michigan to host an intense multi-stage competition that aims to pit some of the world’s most fuel efficient vehicles against one another in a quest to win their share of a $10 million prize. Participating teams must design, build, and sell cars that a mass market wants to buy and that get a minimum of 100 MPG.
X PRIZE’s Peter Diamandis video blogs at the Detroit Auto Show
Green Vehicles Triac
All electric; 3-wheel; Two seat, side-by-side configuration with steering wheel. 80 mph top speed; Up to 100-mile range; Zero-emission. Charging takes 6-hours. More on the web »
Triac Exterior
Triac Interior
Triac Front
Blue Sky Designs BugE
All-electric, three-wheel, single-person configuration with handlebar steering. 30-40 mile range per charge; 50 mph top speed. Operational cost is about $0.01 per mile. More on the web »
BugE Exterior 1
BugE Exterior 2
Commuter Cars Tango
All-electric, 4-wheel, two-seat tandem configuration with steering wheel. Zero to 60 mph in 4 seconds; Standing ¼ mile in 12 seconds at 103 mph. Rage of about 60 miles per charge with lead-acid batteries; over 200 with lithium-ion batteries. More on the web »
Tango Exterior 1
Tango Exterior 2
Tango Interior
Revenge Verde
400hp hp2g engine; Mid-engine configuration; 100 mpg e-hybrid. Runs on E85 fuel. More on the web »
Revenge Exterior
Revenge Exterior 2
Zap Alias
All electric; 3-wheel; Two seat, side-by-side configuration with steering wheel. 75 mph top speed; Zero to 60 in 7.8 seconds. Up to 100-mile range per charge; Zero-emission. Charging takes 6-hours. More on the web »
Zap Alias
SABA Motors Carbon Zero Roadster
Plug-in all electric; Zero to 60 in 5-seconds; Top speed 105mph; Range on a single charge: 120 miles city, 140 miles highway. Average driving cost $0.03 per mile. More on the web »
SABA Carbon Zero Roadster
Edison2 Very Light Car
Not much information available at the show or on their website. Perhaps they have perfected an anti-matter drive and are keeping it under wraps until they win the big prize in September. More on the web »
Edison2
Some Domestic Newbies
The Detroit-3 represented themselves very well at the show. The Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept and the 2011 Ford Focus drew consistently large crowds and were among the most popular exhibits of the show. One thing’s for sure – the excitement is back across all segments. There were over 700 vehicles on display so I just took pictures of new and/or unique products.
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept
This concept is a five-passenger hatchback with a well appointed interior. The design exercise shows a potential blending of Chrysler and Lancia, which is owned by the Fiat Group. Some are speculating that this may be the next generation 300. I doubt it very much as this would be too drastic of a departure from the already well accepted and distinctive 300 styling. Why would Chrysler launch the very market-limited Fiat 500 when they have this in their stable?
More details in this article and the video below:
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept Grill
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept Exterior 1
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept Exterior 2
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept Exterior 3
Chrysler-Lancia Delta Concept Rear
2012 Ford Focus
Likely launch date is first quarter 2011. Targeted at the high-end of the small car segment and to be loaded with standard features currently considered as options for this segment. The current segment leader is the Honda Civic. I believe that lead will be cut considerably by the new Focus. Check out the rear fender flair and molded tail light – very innovative for this segment. The Focus has a clean finish and actually looks better than it photographs. Just picture this coming up in your rear-view mirror – lights blazing.
Ford Focus Exterior 1
Ford Focus Exterior 2
Ford Focus Exterior Rear
Ford Focus Exterior Front
2011 Ford Fiesta
Planed launch is this summer. 1.6-liter, 4-cylinder engine averaging 40mpg highway. Targeted at markets around the world with a sales potential of two-million units. Stateside pricing will start at $14,000 and extend to $23,000 fully loaded. While the front-end is clean but understated, the back is unattractive and disappointing – who says a “world-car” has to be so plain Jane and generic?
Ford Fiesta Exterior 1
Ford Fiesta Exterior 2
2011 Chevy Cruze
A very nice replacement for the Cobalt. Scheduled for European launch in March and mid third quarter here in the US. Choice of 1.4 and 1.8-liter engines with 6-speed automatic or manual transmissions. The 1.4 engine is rated at 40mpg on the highway. Similar to the Malibu in styling and the interior is several grades above previous GM models for this segment. Standard features include ten airbags, stability control and ABS, rear disc brakes remain an option. Like the Malibu, this may more than surprise the competition.
Chevy Cruze Exterior 1
Chevy Cruze Exterior 2
Chevy Aveo RS Concept
Hopefully, GM will get enough positive buzz from this concept to see a market justification for a production version. Who knew this much cool was hiding in an Aveo?
Edmunds’ Inside Line: Chevy Aveo RS Concept
Chevy Aveo Concept
Honda CR-Z
It looks great but the specs are disappointing compared to others already in this segment. The CR-Z has a 122-hp hybrid (zero to 60 in 9.7 seconds) but only gets a disappointing 36mpg city and 38 highway. And, since there seems to be some confusion out there: yes, the CR-Z is only a two-seater.
The 2011 Honda CR-Z Sport Hybrid Revealed in Detroit
CR-Z Exterior 1
CR-Z Exterior 2
2010 Ford Transit Connect – North American Truck of the Year
With the expected growth in the number of small business service companies operating in urban environments, this opens new markets for Ford truck sales. The Transit has a 2.0-liter Duratec I-4 engine mated to a 4-speed automatic with overdrive; 22mpg city, 25 highway; 135 cubic feet of cargo space and 1,600 pound load capacity. More info is available on the Transit Connect portion of the Ford website.
Transit Connect Exterior
Transit Connect Interior
Acura
Can you identify this and how it differs from… say, a Formula 1™ racing vehicle?
Acura
Acura 2
Jim Jackson is Chairman and co-founder of the LSN Network. Since 1978, over 100,000 OEM and dealership managers and employees have attended his seminars and workshops. Jim lives with his wife Ellie in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Jim can be reached at 
I’ll take a Revenge Verde, please.
Even though we won’t see the production version of the standard Audi A7 until this year’s Paris Motor Show, the men and women in Ingolstadt are already prepping a hotted-up version of the swoopy four-door coupe (we still aren’t used to typing that), as seen here in this latest set of spy shots. Rumors have stated that a RS7 Sportback might debut alongside the A7 in Paris, complete with a 580-horsepower V10, and it would certainly be show-stopping if Audi could pull off having all three variants of the A7 range on hand.