Motor City Revival: Part 1

By Chad Anthony on January 15, 2014

The North American International Auto Show is finally here! Held in the COBO Civic Center, this massive production is home to hundreds of cars, from heavy duty trucks to rally rockets. Whether you’re a soccer mom wanting to find out which mini-van to shuttle the kids to and from practice or a hard core track junkie, Detroit has it…for a week, at least.

Press Day began yesterday on January 13th, 7:00 am sharp. Shortly thereafter, the truck-world was graced with an all-new, 700-lbs lighter Ford F-150. Looks wise, the Ford doesn’t disappoint due to it’s similarities to the Atlas Concept debuted last year. The amazing 2.7 Ecoboost engine will be slotted in between the two front wheels. With a turbo and direct injection, coupled with the aluminum body, this truck will be easy on the wallet, too. No word on performance figures just yet, but expect fuel economy to bump up significantly as well as pep. And who doesn’t like pep? The interior is nicely laid out.
The FX Tremor edition, as seen in the photos, is extremely practical with a hint of bad-assery. The interior is nicely trimed with a decent sized touch screen that will most likely be hooked up to Fords Sync system (fingers crossed that it doesn’t suck). There will be a slue of variations like previous years: single cab, double cab, 5.5-8 ft beds, etc. What wasn’t on display was the off-road monster SVT Raptor. I know. I’m sad, too.

Let’s play a game. I say Toyota and you say a word that comes to mind relating to the company. Ready? Set? Go! Wait, this isn’t going to work. I’ll answer for you, boring. Thankfully, boring was not on Toyota’s agenda when they debuted the FT-1 concept. Rumored to be the Supra successor, this bright red beast doesn’t elicit the yawns of yesterday’s Toyota. Not much information is known as of yet other than the fact it’s curvy and delicious. And, do I see a bit of FD-esque rear haunch? Seriously though, Toyota, if you’re reading this, make the damn thing already. Tuner-fanboys need something new (literally) to argue about.

Chrysler debuted it’s new 200. Long are the days of Sebring influences; today’s 200 is based on the Dodge Dart, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The interior is nicely appointed with cool blue lighting surrounding the gauge cluster. A page was taken out of Jaaaaaag’s book in the form of the circular gear selector. It seems this iteration of Chrysler’s entry level 4-door isn’t embarrassing.

The Z06 Corvette is a beast of a machine. It is insanely fast at a (relatively) bargain price. For a while, the supercar (yeah, I called it a supercar) was one of the best bang-for-the-buck deals since Godzilla was priced in the $70 grand range. Chevrolet astonished the public last year with the new Stingray packing a new LT1 engine that puts out just 50hp less than the Z06 of 2006. One of the focuses for the latest iteration is functional aero. Yes, functional. The overall car is lower, faster, and grippier than before. It is the most track-ready Corvette to ever grace the great states of ‘Murica.

Mercedes-Benz went to town on some showcases. The new C-Class looks and feels like a baby S-Class. The styling is more luxurious than those other German competitors. Interior wise features a floating nav screen found originally in the CLA. The GLA showed that compact SUV’s don’t have to be awkward. Although I never really understood the concept of small, essentially lifted hatchbacks, MB pulled this one off. Kudos.

BMW M3 and M4. The inline-6 looked glorious (damn hood kept blocking the light; the nerve, amiright?!). The powder blue paint scheme is extremely tasteful. Also on display was the tidy, sure-to-please M235i. Need I say more?

I’ll admit it, the M4 badge was a little weird to see.

Ze Volkswagen group took up a 4 football fields worth of space. The three-door Golf R made me drool in front of the showcase model. And you know what? I didn’t care because she was out of my league and that damn Golf R is so good! Being a three-door accentuates it’s pocket rocket lure; the boot is big enough for at least 4 medium sized things; the cabin is insulated (I shut the door to have some alone time and was immediately impressed with how little noise I heard from the bustling showroom); the seat itself is well bolstered below the shoulder line; on top of all that, with the front seat adjusted for someone my size – 5’11″ – I still had about 2-3″ of knee room, a big window to look out of, and enough head space for a Real Big Fish fedora. You must be thinking, “Uhhh oh, Chad you haven’t even driven it yet so quit fan-girling.” You’re right, reader, I haven’t. But, if it drives as well as it is practical, the Golf R will make me lust for something other than a STI. The Targa 911 was splendid and over-engineered in true German fashion. Audi’s Quattro showcased their entire S-line, complete with S7 and the new baby Audi, S3. All of which mad me want to plow a snowy road going slidewayz. MINI’s new Cooper is surprised. All the time. I still can’t figure out if it’s a good thing, but maybe it’ll grow on me. The interior is typical MINI with the big center gauge and chrome switch gear. But brisk drivers rejoice! The speedo is in front of the steering wheel so your passenger won’t know how much you’re breaking the speed limit attempting to imitate the Italian Job.

Nissan may be going through an identity crisis. For the would-be Maxima replacement, curved lines are in excess. For the 240sx revival, the front end is a modern take on Datsun 510′s of ole’. Both of which are concepts (aka both may be put into production, but neither will look as striking). But, alas! Via my good friends at Jalopnik, I’ve read that Nissan will be putting the awesome Datsun into production by 2016. Huzzah!

Be on the look out for Part 2 of my 2014 North American Auto Show coverage for pictures and information on Lexus, Infiniti, Cadillac, and Tesla! Don’t worry, reader I haven’t forgotten about that blue and gold icon from Japan. The Subaru WRX STI deserves it’s own article. Part 3 of my coverage will include interviews with Dominick Infante, the National Manager, and head of Product Communications as well as Todd Hill, Subaru Product Specialist. I’m still bouncing off the walls like a crack-addicted Jack Russel Terrier. You should be, too. The future looks bright for automotive enthusiasts. Finally, there’s hope.