Cars In Detroit

The 2013 North American International Auto Show 

For the third year in a row i went to the Detroit Auto Show in Cobo Hall to see all the new 2013 vehicles.  Here's links to the last two times i've gone:

• 2011 Detroit Auto Show
• 2012 Detroit Auto Show

It was filled with all of the 2013 cars, trucks and the new concept vehicles for 2014 and beyond.  It seemed like every company that i can think of attended this years show, although as usual companies like Ferrari, Lamborghini and Aston Martin only brought one or two cars.  As it has always been the Big Three (Ford, GM and Chrysler) have the biggest displays and the largest crowds.  I guess it makes sense.  They are Detroit Cars and this is the Detroit International Auto Show.   

Automotive Dealer

Even before we got into Cobo Hall we saw cars in the hallway.  They were some really cool super cars like this Falcon. I've heard of this company before, i think for a while they made the fastest car in the world, which did something like 250mph. 

 Parked next to is was a Bentley and Ferrari.  This is the first time i can remember there being super nice cars out in the hallway.

The first thing we saw when we entered was this Nissan NSX Concept. 

It was a pretty cool looking car but i didn't know anything about it and kind of forgettable.  I'm guessing that since it's a Nissan it has tons of electronics that do the stability control. 

Then we made our way over to Ford, who had the same cool chairs as last year.  Click on the link up at the top from 2012 to see pictures of Karrie sitting in one.  I still really like them.  But you have to be sitting in them to really understand.  If you sit in one direction, the top part acts as a back rest, which is surprisingly comfortable.  If you spin the chair around and sit down the top part acts like a desk to rest your elbows on.

I still really like them.  But you have to be sitting in them to really understand.  If you sit in one direction, the top part acts as a back rest, which is surprisingly comfortable.  If you spin the chair around and sit down the top part acts like a desk to rest your elbows on.

There was also this really cool looking couch over by the Smart cars. 

All the furniture at the Auto Show was this sort of art deco style with bold colors and rounded lines.

2013 Vehicles

I would have to say that the highlight of this years show was the new Corvette Stingray.  I can totally see people lining up at the automotive dealer to buy this at above full price. 

The front end of this car and it's shape from above totally remind me of a Ferrari 458.  I personally think the back end of this new Corvette is a bit bulky, but so have all the Corvette's for the past 10 years.

Everything about the car was cool though.  It had a super high top speed, new gear box, lots of carbon fiber and even got good gas mileage.  All for just a fraction of what a Ferrari cost.

And the really neat thing was that in 2011 i was at the plant where this car was made, GM's Corvette plant in Bowling Green Kentucky.  Back then my favorite car was the ZR1.  I can't wait until they make a "ZR1 version" of this new car.  I bet it's going to be really popular with buyers and especially the Detroit automotive dealers that sell them.

Here's a panorama view of just a small part of the Auto Show floor.

As you can see it wasn't too busy.  We went on a weekday between 6 - 8PM.  As we were leaving it started to fill up.

But there were lots of different people there looking at cars. 

As always, the main reason for going to the Detroit Auto Show is to see the concept cars, like this Tesla.  It wasn't their Tesla Roadster, it was the newer basic sedan.  It didn't look all that amazing from the outside, but i think the interior was the best i've ever seen.  In case you don't know, Tesla is the automotive dealer that makes electric vehicles with something like 4,000 tiny lithium ion batteries.

Super simple, just 2 flat screen monitors.  One for the driver behind the steering wheel and one for the center console.  The one in the middle was the size of 2 iPads.  The cool thing about having a screen rather then buttons is that it can adapt.  Meaning that it can change and become anything.  When i was sitting in the car the top half of the screen was the radio and the bottom half was the back-up camera.

Tesla Dashboard - Touch Screen

http://youtu.be/Ug9qhiE8cGE

Then there was this concept from Honda. It was an electric car about the size of a golf cart. 

I'm still not sold on electric cars being used for an everyday driver.  (at least in my case)  But i could understand something like this.  A small "sports car" that you use on the weekends to drive around town.  I'm guessing that this "2013 vehicle" will never be built for the public but as an automotive concept i think this could work. 

Another thing i liked from Honda was their mouse button controller.  This was in the Honda Civic.  Instead of a big flat screen like in the Tesla, Honda put something like a joystick/mouse with buttons on the side.

Honda Mouse Button Click Control System

http://youtu.be/T-b4qIkjmU0

This is a car i've always liked and wanted to buy.  The Volvo S60.  It just seems like the perfect car for daily use.  Unlike that tiny electric Honda vehicle, this is practical, safe and would last for years.  It's sporty but still very practical.

And this blue color reminds me of the bright blue that is on the 2012 Mustangs.  It would be easy to find your car in a crowded parking lot i guess.

Detroit Cars

This is another really cool, and surprisingly fast car.  The Cadillac CTS-V.  I've seen these out at Milford on the GM test track and they are fast.  Tons of horse power and really good suspension for hard cornering.  It's not the typical Cadillac for a 60 year old retiree living in Florida.

The ugliest cars at the auto show were these two Ferrari's.  You might be looking at the red car here and think "what are you talking about, that looks great".  From the front, yes it's fine.  But when you move around to the side of the car you can see the silver one in the back.

This is Ferrari's first 4 wheel drive car.  It's also front engine.  It is almost like one group designed the front of the car and another group designed the back.  Then, without speaking to one another just glued their drawings together and said build this.

I did notice a lot of these types of cars.  Small, cheap rear wheel drive sports cars.  Something like the Mazda Miata craze.  

The difference between this and that 2-seater electric Honda is that these are less than $22,000 and they are actually for sale.  Like the new Chevy Corvette, i think vehicle dealers will be selling a lot of these in 2013. 

I really liked this one, the Jeep FJ Cruiser.  From the outside it does look a bit "plasticy".

But from the inside it looked really tough and rugged.  This would be the car i would choose if i had to drive in a jungle somewhere.  The shifter and everything felt very sturdy and mechanical. 

Although as a car in Detroit i'm not sure how much you need an off-road 4-wheel drive Jeep.  Maybe the automotive dealers in a State like Colorado might sell a lot more.

After we were done we left Cobo Hall and decided to take the People Mover over to the Greektown Casino. 

This was the view out of the front of the first car.

Detroit People Mover - Greektown Casino Station

http://youtu.be/h2zvmbmcz44

I liked being up front while we rode through the tunnel.  It felt like some sort of future transportation in a sci-fi movie.

Overall i did have fun at the Detroit Auto Show.  It seemed like this year there were a lot more cars.  Not counting all the weird electric go-cart things that they had back in 2012.