2010 North American International Auto Show

If I could summarize this year's show in a single word, it would have to be BLAH! I'll be making a return trip tomorrow with the wife and inlaws, but today, me and my dad made the trek. The excitement this year was lost. I couldn't find a a single new model or concept car that blew me away. In fact, I found it difficult to find a car that could keep my interest more than a few minutes.

The most in depth conversation was with the guy working the Chevy Volt display, as I have been intrigued by this car, and wonder how it will change the industry. If hybrids truly are the next generation autos, then I think a gas/electric hybrid will be the most successful. An all electric car ain't worth shit if you're planning a road trip and 200 miles in your car is dead and needs to be charged for several hours. Even with extreme advances, lets face it, if the car takes longer than 30 minutes (while stopping for lunch/dinner) to charge, then it simply is not a practical means of transportation.

While I still liked to look at the Camaros, Mustangs, and Challengers, they are all on the road and the excitement of seeing them on display is sort of pointless. Though I'll admit, the bright green Camaro caught my eye, you wouldn't catch my ass dead in it. The Plum crazy Challenger on the other hand, man, pictures don't do the color justice! Not to forget the Mustang, which has by far the best visibility of the three from behind the wheel. The Challenger comes in second, with the Camaro a distant third. The Camaro is as if you're in a cockpit with portholes to look out of. Personally, I'd still sacrifice the visibility for the styling though.

Ford probably had one of the best displays of the show, even though it's pretty much a carry over of year's past. It also seemed to have more buzz than any other companies, possibly attributed to their recent success. The new Mustang is very nice. I like the styling much better, interior is nice, though nothing over the top. The 5.0 is making a welcome return. The Taurus SHO was there, though the main display had a deep, deep green color which did little for me. A very nice color, but just not what I would choose to bring to a show.

If it needs an introduction, then you really wouldn't understand anyway.

I sat in a couple F150's, including the Platinum edition, and reinforced that Ford makes the best damn trucks on the market, bar none. The interior is so over the top compared to the Chevy and Dodge that it's as if both are a generation behind Ford. Ford had one truck on display with a step that folded out of the tailgate, along with a cane/handrail to help one into the back of the truck. Something so simple, and yet for 100 years, nobody else thought of it. Lincoln and Mercury both had solid products as well. As I said, it was obvious that Ford was the leading car company at this year's show, as apparent by their amazing products. It should also be noted that the Ford Focus seems headed in the right direction. The new version on display looked much better than the same old styling that it has had for years. It doesn't look like a damn bubble anymore, it seems stretched. As far as small cars go, it is one of the better looking models out there.

New Ford Focus

Tailgate step with handrail.

Chrysler/Fiat felt very unorganized and thrown together at the last minute. Parking your Ferraris next to the Dodge does nothing to help Chrysler products, as the products and customers are worlds apart. Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep lacked any sort of new product whatsoever. In fact, the only product on display as a center piece was the Fiat 500, which is essentially a different kind of Mini in my opinion. Sure, the car looks fun, I'm sure it's fuel efficient, but not exactly the type of product that warrants a couple of tall/slender Italian females flaunting it as if it's the sweetest thing ever. Plus, to me it looks a helluva lot like the Neon in the front.

The Plum Crazy Challenger was sweet, though as my dad pointed out, the side stitching on the seats was already coming apart on both the driver/passenger sides. I would think that most companies would have rushed a new set of seats to the show and replaced them. As is, it appears to be a serious quality issue.

GM felt very stripped down. Gone from the floor were Saab, Hummer, Pontiac, and Saturn. The leftovers felt like a much smaller company, not the behemoth of years we've all become accustomed to. They did have a few nice products such as the Buick Regal GS, the Cadillac CTS coupe, and CTS-V coupe. The Aveo was a sharp looking little compact with some very aggressive styling. The Cruze, which I know GM is banking on playing a major roll in the direction they are heading, looked bland and boring. The Volt was there in the flesh, one of about 80 production version models that have been built. The spokesperson answered a few of the questions I had, including about the $7,500 tax credit. I'll be curious how the public responds to this car. I'll admit, my life would allow me to essentially always run the car in electric mode only, which equates to about 80 cents a day.

Here's a pretty tough looking truck Chevy had on display.

The Volt

Chevy Graphite or Granite, let's just call it an ugly attempt at a Flex.

Camaro Country, complete with a "Green" version. Al Gore would be proud.

This Camaro turns into a robot.

Here is the Buick Regal GS. Truly a car capable of lowering the average buying age of your typical Buick driver by 75 years or more.

Finally! A two door Cadillac! (XLR was really just a Vette in Cadillac clothing.)

While I can't argue the styling, the turd brown color didn't look good on 1970's Cutlasses and Camaros, why go down this road again?

Audi definately pushes the envelope with love it or hate it styling. Me? I personally like it.

This thing...well, if driving a Smart car didn't get you made fun of at the office, perhaps you should try this on for size. Yes, there is seating for two! Luggage and groceries however must be hung out the window.

Amphibicar 2.0.


An aftermarket company with their own supercar, powered by your choice of Chevy or Ford powertrain.

Matchbox cars in an assortment of colors.

Chevy's matchbox...not too bad looking, pretty aggressive front.

Lexus had their super car on display. For the $375,000 I saw it was going to sell for, I am less than impressed. Again, give me a ZR1 Corvette for a little over $100K and I'll run circles around your Toyota...and MY accelerator won't stick!

Last, but not least. Here is the BYD car, which stands for Build Your Dreams. A Chinese company, it looks like a car from the 90's if you ask me. Comes complete with lead paint finish and plenty of detachable components your children can choke on. I'm sure it's cheap though, built with non-union labor inside of labor camps.

2010 North American International Auto Show