Accelerate Mpls

While Detroit has been down in the dumps for a while, this years auto show definitely shows things might be back on track in the D. Of course it had to snow while everyone was in town, but it gave those from the warmer climates a chance to see what us snow belt state peeps live through on a daily basis.

Some of you will remember that last year I wanted to differentiate myself. I started tweeting pictures of cars with the models and tagged them as #EyeCandy. This quickly became a hot topic. A few of my followers mentioned this year that I was not really tweeting any #EyeCandy and asked why not. The simple answer, there wasn’t any. Few booths had the babes that were in attendance last year. Though Chrysler group and Ferrari still pulled through.

But lets get down the to the product. The new Chrysler 300 looks terrific. In reality, many wondered when they saw the pictures if it can recapture the market that the 300 once had in 2005. Upon seeing the car in real life, I am happy to report that it looks much better in person. The interior really does deliver on the promise that the 300 made back in 2005. American luxury. From the great new Pentastar V6, to the growling Hemi V8 in the 300C, this is American luxury in a rear-wheel drive car.

Another car I was anxious to see in real life was the new Chevrolet Sonic. The Sonic is Chevrolet’s new B-Segment car which will take on the likes of the new Ford Fiesta, Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and many others. I have to say, while I think the new Sonic is a home run from a styling perspective, I can see how many will not. It will be either a love it or hate it vehicle. From the exposed barrel headlights to the ridiculously short rear overhang and really long front overhang, the styling is nothing short of eye catching. The interior gauge cluster is also interesting, as they actually put into the production model the Aveo RS concept’s gauge cluster. With a racing like analogue tachometer and a digital speedometer, the gauge cluster is more reminiscent of a race car or motorcycle than that of a sub-compact car. Going on sale later this year I can’t wait to get behind the wheel and see how the driving dynamics compare to the competition.

The new A6 has already won a design award without even leaving the show floor. In my opinion the new A6 takes everything that is right with the new A8 and A4 while dropping everything that is wrong with them. Smashing all the good together to make a great looking Audi. The design language has really come together for this car. The interior is terrific and the exterior is eye catching. The optional LED headlights are very intricately designed when inspecting them up close. You will see the new A6 on the road later this year.

I’m not going to really cover the CTS-V Coupe race car but I wanted to make mention of it. Two words come to mind when you walked past it on the turntable, menacing and awesome. Ok, moving on.

Toyota has finally unveiled a larger Prius. The model is called the Prius V. This is especially confusing to some since the regular Prius has trim level packages that are in roman numerals. Right now if you go buy a Prius in the top trim level you are buying a Prius V. Wait, that can’t make sense. So when you buy a top trim level Prius V will you be buying a Prius V V? This is clearly not well thought out. I wonder if Toyota realizes this yet. Maybe someone should send them a note. Regardless, I heard many people comment on how the Prius V rear end has a lot of Honda Fit in it. I can see that. The front, well it looks like a third generation Prius with a few slight tweaks. You’ll still know it’s a Prius. You will see the people mover Prius at a dealership near you in the Summer.

Ah the Honda Civic Concept. Honda waltzed Pete Wentz from Fall Out Boy on stage to talk about the new Civic Concept. Here’s the problem, either Wentz was drunk or he really could care less about being there. He enthusiasm was worse than the new Civic’s styling. He barely stumbled through his words off the teleprompter. Note to Honda: make sure your spokesperson is somewhat excited about your luke warm product.

But getting back to that product, the new Civic Concept looks as if a new Odyssey and the current generation Civic got it on in the back room. That, or a designer of the current Civic got wasted one night, and just took the current Civics lines and tweaked them a little. For a mid-cycle refresh, I am not sure how this will be competitive until 2016 with new competition from Hyundai, Ford and Chevrolet. We will have to wait and see when the new Civic comes out, but I am not holding my breath.

Mercedes had its SLS E-Cell electric car on display. In a word it is blinding. The paint job on this car can literally sear your retinas. Beyond the paint job, it looks fairly identical on the outside to the current SLS. The interior changes a little as most of the gauges and center stack are now LCD screens. This car will go into production, but if you have to ask range or price, you can’t afford it.

I don’t really want to spend much time on the Passat as I’m not sure it deserves it. I’ll reserve final judgement until I drive one. Until then, I’ll say this, Volkswagen is going downmarket to sell more cars. Is that really a good idea? Why alienate all your current customers. People that buy current Passats pay more because they expect to get better quality materials. Cheapening the car for a lower base price is going to hurt your brand image. This is no longer just German engineering, it is German engineering to a price point.

While I skipped Porsches press conference to eat breakfast at my hotel (it was at 6:30 AM), I will say looking at the car in person, it is stunning. Seeing that huge flywheel in the passenger seat, yea. This is how you build a hybrid. It is good to see Porsche looking at new technology for racing. If this car does go into the racing circuit it could change the game. With less fuel stops needed and more power on tap for instant bursts, it could be a whole new era of racing.

At the end of the day I was exhausted. Most journalists were up at 5 AM and didn’t leave the show floor till nearly 8 PM. I ran to nearly every press conference and went through approximately 6,600 milliamps of battery power for my iPhone4. It was a good show with some great product. Not everything was great, but it was a good to see where each automaker is going in 2011.

Full Disclosure- My NAIAS travel and accommodations are being provided by General Motors

It is true!  The first 2011 Buick Regal’s are hitting dealerships now and the first one sold this past weekend.  The car was sold in Elgin, IL by Woody Buick GMC dealership to 44 year old CEO at a manufacturing company.  He traded in an 2007 Saturn Outlook while also considering a Toyota Camry and Audi A4 before purchasing the new Regal.

The new owner stated “The Regal is a superb car to drive on the road, with more of a European feel than any other car we looked at,” said the new owner. “My 15 year-old daughter has already said she wants to take the car to college with her in a few years.”

GM had this to say about the first sale, “We are encouraged to see that the first Regal was sold within 24 hours of hitting the dealership lot,” said Roger McCormack, director of marketing for Buick. “The Regal is the next chapter in Buick’s modern transformation and will continue attracting new buyers to the brand.”

I personally think the Regal stands a good chance at luring more buyers at a lower age range into the Buick showrooms.  Time will tell but everyone that has driven one so far walks away throughly impressed.

Source- GMInsidenews

Why do strippers exist?  What is the point of them?  Many people say they would never touch a stripper but I am willing to bet otherwise.  Some have even touched one without even knowing it.  Hey get your head out of the gutter!  We are talking about basic cars here.

All cars come in base or entry level trim in some form or another.  This means the vehicle is lacking certain options.  Options are all relative.  For example a base Audi A4 will include leather, power windows, power locks, power driver seat, automatic climate control, and the list could go on.  That car also has a base price starting at $31,450, with which you are paying for those standard features in that base price.  Now take for example a Toyota Camry, which has a base price $19,395.  You lose the power seats, leather, automatic climate control, prestige branding, and many more options that are standard on the Audi.  Take this one step farther and you could buy a Nissan Versa for $9,990.  What does that $9,990 get you?  A car, four wheels, an engine, and air bags, along with all the things that make the car run.  No air conditioning, no power anything, steel wheels with hub caps, though you do get six air bags and a tire pressure monitoring system.  This is the essence of basic transportation at its finest.

So why do these “stripper” models exist.  I imagine you are saying to yourself, “who buys these?”  In reality these models sell in higher volumes then you think.  Two directions are taken when it comes to sales of these models.  One is fleet sales, there are a ton of stripped down or modestly equipped Toyota Camry’s and Chevrolet Impalas in rental car fleets.  The second route is simply people that want basic transportation.  Believe it or not, there are people out there that simply care about getting from point A to point B.  Sure most say they want a stereo with a CD player, and air conditioning is usually a requirement for them as well.  The fact is a base stripped down Toyota Camry or Chevrolet Impala meets those needs.  They are also relatively inexpensive to maintain.  Most even get respectable gas mileage.

Few cars come without CD players and radios.  Almost none (save for a handful) come without air conditioning.  Modern conveniences are in tow.  Safety is always there, air bags are standard on all cars (though more are sometimes optional).  Shockingly some cars do not have ABS (Anti-Lock Brakes) standard.  I personally know a handful of people that are car guys, and they feel power seats and other newer technologies are just extra weight in a car.

The point is simple, “stripper” or base cars play a vital role in sales on different levels.  Advertising the lowest price on a base vehicle is what gets people in the door.  Once they realize how many things are missing they start to think about upgrading, but that stripper got them in the door.

2010 Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon

Americans have a love hate relationship with station wagons. They love to hate them. I personally have never understood this phenomenon. Most car guys will tell you they think wagons are awesome. They combine the cargo hauling versatility of a SUV with the driving dynamics of a sedan. In Europe, station wagons are sold by the truck load. European fuel prices are higher then in the United States, so they never had the love affair we Americans had with the SUV.

The CTS Sport Wagon was in development before the crash of the economy and General Motors bankruptcy. The original plan was to export the bulk of the Sport Wagons to Europe where hopefully it would be a success and directly take on the European wagons from Audi, BMW and Mercedes. Since diesels are more popular in Europe they were also going to make the main engine choice a new 2.9 liter diesel. Since those plans obviously are not going to pan out the future of the Sport Wagon will ride on the American public. The diesel engine is not being offered here unfortunately.

The Sport Wagon is truly good looking. The sharp looks and great stance are attributed to the form over function school of thought. The roof line is raked giving off the sporty appearance and stance. Combine that roofline with a raked rear hatch and you have a rear opening that can not take tall objects. The things that stand out to people that asked me about the car are the three foot long tail lights that are reminiscent of the tail fins of older Cadillacs, and the 19 inch wheels, which are optional. The tail lights are fully LED with light pipes running down the outside edge. Light pipes are also used in the headlights on the upper trim cars.

The car has many winning characteristics. The rear hatch is power operated and can be set with a knob on the drivers door to open full, 3/4, or off. This can come in handy if you have a garage with a low ceiling or possibly shorter and can not reach the hatch when fully opened. The interior is lifted directly from the CTS sedan. The Sport Wagon has a great cargo management system in the rear hatch. There is a storage bin under the floor in the rear end that can hold things from public view. With the rear seats folded flat you have an ample 58 feet of cargo space.

The interior is literally lifted from the CTS sedan. Soft touch materials abound and soft white ambient lighting at night the interior is a win. The generously sized touch screen navigation rises from the dash when the vehicle is started (when chosen to have the settings that way). The navigation unit in the Sport Wagon is hard drive based. Rendering of the map was snappy and the street names were clean and crisp. Live traffic and weather is provided through your XM satellite radio connection.

The vehicle I had was the top of the line 3.6L Premium with optional 19 inch wheel package and optional crystal red tintcoat paint. The sticker price on this car was $55,630. The Sport Wagon has a starting price of $39,830 before destination charges. The summer performance tires were replaced with snow tires from Bridgestone. The Blizzaks handled well though added some tire noise. That is to be expected of snow tires. The Sport Wagon I had was rear wheel drive though all wheel drive is optional in all trims. Also optioned on this vehicle was the FE3 sport suspension which feels very European and more specifically German.

The Sport Wagon has two engine choices. I had the optional 3.6 liter V6, which features direct injection. This larger V6 puts out 304 hp and 273 lb-ft. The standard 3.0 liter V6 also features direct injection while only putting out 270 hp and 223 lb-ft. Both the 3.6 liter and 3.0 liter are rated at 18/26 mpg. With no sacrifice in fuel mileage, I would recommend optioning for the larger engine. Both engines mate to a six speed automatic transmission. The transmission operates fine in normal driving though, it hesitates for a second to kick down a gear when the throttle is slammed for passing. Moving the shifter to the right puts the transmission in sport mode. This fixes the aforementioned problem. Downshifts are quick and up shifts are not had until red line. Much sportier dynamics are had out of the transmission in sport mode. You can also shift manually with the buttons on the back of the steering wheel or by moving the gear shift.

GM lists the competition for the Sport Wagon as the Audi A4 and A6 Avants, BMW 5 series wagon, and the Mercedes E class wagon. When looking at the competition the Cadillac is definitely class competitive. It feels right in between the A4 and A6 Avants in size. The new Sport Wagon is a great extension for the CTS line and with the coupe coming next year, the line is only going to get better. The wagon aspect adds a dash more versatility without losing the driving dynamics that make the CTS such a great vehicle. With dashing good looks and a fun to drive ratio that is surprising for a wagon, this is one Cadillac that Americans can and hopefully will love.

Full Disclosure- This vehicle was provided by General Motors press fleet for review