| |
Production Vehicles
Dominate
Day Two
By:
The Editors of Automotive Trends
|
Yesterday was the time for automakers to show off
their visions for the future, today was about this
years' new production vehicles. Aston Martin made
journalists salivate over the newest convertible in
their lineup, the DB9 Volante. Jaguar then debuted
the revamped 2005 S-Type and Land Rover took the
wraps off its first true concept dubbed Range
Stormer. Land Rover says it isn't going into
production but several elements of the concept will
find their way into an all-new production vehicle
which will debut shortly.
Mercedes-Benz introduced the latest variant of the GST
Vision show cars, this one strongly hinting at what
will come when the production version hits for the
2006 model year.
Mitsubishi debuted a swooping Eclipse concept and a
Sport Utility Truck going by the acronym SUT. We
suspect both hint at future production models.
General Motors was eager to show off its revitalized
Pontiac lineup now complete with a Solstice
roadster, G6 sport sedan, GTO and V8 powered
Bonneville. We were impressed with our initial
impression of the G6 finding it handsome and well
executed inside with promises of strong performance
from all models.
BMW pulled the silk off of its 645Ci Cabriolet and we
are happy to report it looks even better in person
than in the pictures--and it looks pretty good in
the pictures.
Ferrari made its first ever world debut in the US with
the official unveiling of the 612 Scaglietti.
Inspired by Ingrid Bergman's famous custom designed
wedding gift this all-new 2+2 Ferrari relies heavily
on aluminum to keep weight down even though it has
grown in size over the outgoing 456.
Nissan unveiled the 2005 Pathfinder and Frontier pickup
while Volkswagen showed off a wild off-road concept
dubbed Concept T.
Scion debuted the tC which thankfully, we can report
looks much more traditional than the ungainly xB box
on wheels.
Lincoln made a trio of debuts today while hungry
journalists stuffed themselves silly. First is the
Mark LT pickup show car which will be on sale in
production form in little more than a year. You'll
remember this is Lincoln's second crack at the
popular pickup segment after their failed attempt
with the handsome but helpless Blackwood. The Mark X
is a glass-hardtop roadster built on the Thunderbird
platform. It could go into production if public
reaction is favorable. Lincoln's third debut was a
surprise teaser concept of the next generation
Aviator. It will be car based and less powerful than
the current production model. Lincoln's two concept
vehicles look good but we beg J Mays to abandon the
new Lincoln grille idea. The current waterfall
grille is elegant and leagues better than this
cheese grater idea.
Chrysler finally introduced the 2005 300C and Magnum
production vehicles as well as the latest generation
of minivans.
Hyundai released a concept that was surprisingly easy
on the eyes called the HDC8. Subaru held the
introduction to the 2005 Legacy sedan and wagon and
Mazda finished the day off by revealing a show car
called the MX Micro Sport.
Tuesday was the calm after the storm with only a few
major introductions. Chrysler unveiled the Crossfire
and PT Cruiser Convertibles as well as a stretched
Jeep called Wrangler Unlimited. Lexus unveiled the
new GS cars as well as their hybrid powered RX.
It was a show jam packed with important introductions
and we are already counting the days until NAIAS
2005.
Be sure to check out our
full auto show
gallery right here and see what made news on the
first day of
the 2004 NAIAS! |
| |
|
