At the LA Auto Show

Two weeks ago I attended the LA Auto Show/ With its date change to just before Thanksgiving, LA has become a great venue for new model year rollouts.

The notable changes at this year’s show are economic in nature. General Motors and Chrysler elected not to do any press conference; neither did Acura. Ford piled it on, however, rolling out the new Lincoln MKZ, Ford Fusion/Mercury Milan with hybrid technology available and, of course, taking the wraps off the 2010 Ford Mustang.

The latter intro took place at Barker Hangar adjacent to Santa Monica Airport, a regular site for occasions of this type. Ford brought in Mustang owners for the occasion and trotted out Ford heroes like , Carroll Shelby, Parnelli Jones, John and Ashley Force, Tommy Kendall, Scott Pruett, Jack Roush, Lyn St James and Vince Gittin, who drifted the newest incarnation all around the floor!

Ford’s Tuesday night show was held under cool, clear skies. If you were entitled to a seat, you had to get in early (6PM) but the show didn’t get underway until way after seven. It was anticlimactic by the time it happened, which was a shame. Also, they served chips, soda pop and water, just right for a health conscious crowd?

Wednesday morning, Renault/Nissan head Carlos Ghosn gave the keynote speech to start the show. He did so in fine fashion – if only the Big Three’s CEO’s, appearing in Washington, D.C. had performed so realistically. Ghosn understands what’s going on in the industry and realizes the sky is falling.

That is why Nissan will have plug-in hybrids coming soon, is building more capacity here in the States and has introduced its smallest US offering, the Cube in L.A. That car was one of the stars of the show for me – another was the Kia Soul, which falls into the same micro-sedan category. Smaller cars were the hit of LA and the Green Car Journal’s Green Car of the Year went to the Volkswagen Jetta diesel, which is now starting to appear on Los Angeles streets. It wasn’t available until it met Bin 5 regulations.

Everywhere we looked there were signs of impending doom for the Big Three, who haven’t had dominance in the marketplace for way too many years yet are still referred to as “big”. They’re not, and the reason is product and wages. Product, of course, they can do something about, but not without the cooperation of the unions, who are killing their golden goose.

But enough of that! In a corner Cadillac showed its CTS sport wagon, which will be a genuine hit once it reaches showrooms. The car is drop-dead gorgeous in person; photos do it no justice, and wrapped in a deep red paint, even placed far from the action, it caused people to stop and stare.

Maserati’s presentation was notable for its appearance by a woman who claimed to be the president and CEO of Maserati North America. Her speech was stilted; the display was fragmented and I don’t understand why they even bothered. The particular car Maserati was promoting this time around was hidden behind the dais and difficult to photograph!

On the other hand, BMW trotted out the new 7 series, a huge aesthetic improvement over the previous Bangle-bump model. BMW also showed off the Mini E, which is a plug-in model. The only problem with the Mini product is finding a place to plug it in. And range, of course.

Porsche displayed the new Boxster, updated Cayenne and showed off Jerry Seinfeld’s 550 Spyder, a beautiful machine. The company isn’t going to Detroit, joining other brands that don’t feel they get the bang for buck in what used to be known as the Motor City.

Audi’s new Q5 is gorgeous and will be available with diesel. It achieved more than 33 mpg on the Audi Mileage Marathon, a cross-country parade with various models that ended at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca during the American Le Mans Series season finale. Audi’s display came in basic white – nearly every vehicle on their extensive set was winter white!

Mazda showed off its newest Mazda3 and the second iteration of the company’s mainstay sedan is way improved. It feels extremely solid and is quite handsome, as one would expect. The Mazda3 is coming in initially as a four-door sedan; a wagon will follow, and we hope there will be Mazdaspeed editions as well.

Smart Car brought in its Brabus edition, which will retail around $17 grand. The Smart is one success story in the LA area and ought to be around the country. Think these low fuel prices are going to stick around? Think again! Smart is safe, lively and well appointed. Roger Penske is the distributor in the USA and he’s got a keen eye for what works everywhere.

There was nothing from Jaguar nor from Land Rover; Mitsubishi did not have any announcements and neither did Suzuki. Hyundai showed off its Genesis sedan and coupe, which Aston Martin displayed its DB9, a gorgeous machine. Ferrari presented its California droptop and served a very nice luncheon. In their display area, there were gorgeous carbon/carbon brakes with Brembo calipers colored to match your Prancing Horse’s exterior color. Mouth watering.

All this occurred during the time when the three CEOs of GM, Chrysler and Ford made news and it wasn’t pretty stuff. Because I did not go back after the media days, I’m not sure how much the news – and the economy – impacted attendance, but I do know that media attention was up and there was plenty to enjoy.

© 2008 Anne Proffit