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Automakers Show
Off Their
New Hardware
By:
Brandon Dye
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The second day of the Detroit Auto Show is usually
reserved for the production vehicles that automakers
will be betting the company on in the upcoming year
and 2007 was no different. With the exception of
Chrysler most of today's big news was in the form of
production, or thinly disguised production vehicles
that we're looking forward to getting out on the
road in the upcoming year. Here's our thoughts on
some of today's highlights.
General Motors
Cadillac used the help of some very talented
musicians to drive home the point that Cadillac, and
especially the new CTS, has two very different
sides. First, the traditional, classic side
emphasizes luxury, comfort and craftsmanship and the
2008 CTS has a vastly improved interior (vastly
might not be a strong enough word) to satisfy that
requirement and make the little Caddy competitive
again. The second side is the contemporary sport
sedan requirement that GM plans on meeting by
offering the excellent 3.6-liter V6 as the base
engine and a new direct-injection version
with 300 hp (on regular gas!) as the engaging that
will go head-to-head with the best in the segment.
Hours of tuning on the Nurburgring and the choice of
manual or automatic six-speed transmissions only
bolster the car's sporting credentials. We're
anxious to drive Cadillac's best seller and hope it
handles as good as it looks.
Chrysler
Since Chrysler showed off its production
minivans yesterday we were treated to two concept
cars today and one very cool drum arrangement
courtesy of the world famous Drum Cafe group. The
Jeep Trailhawk combines the rugged off-road
capability of the Wrangler with the comfort and
style of the Grand Cherokee in a package that
manages to look good and we wouldn't be surprised to
see styling elements make it into production soon.
The other concept, called Nassau, came from Chrysler
and plays off of the popular four-door coupe fad but
adds a unique rear glass treatment for good measure.
The whole thing looks better in person than it does
in pictures but it didn't exactly excite cries of
"build it!". Still, it looks better than last year's
underwhelming Imperial concept and for that we are
thankful.
Mitsubishi
The anticipation for the new Lancer was palpable
before the press conference today. Not because the
base 4-cylinder model was debuting but because a
very thinly disguised version of the next all-mighty
Evolution was supposed to show up. Sure enough, it
did, and it rocked the house. Aggressive doesn't
begin to describe the Project-X. While no horsepower
figures were revealed, Mitsubishi did tip their
cards on the secret transmission offering rumored
for the next Evo. The concept featured a paddle
shifted 6-speed sequential manual. We hope the
excellent 6-speed manual continues and Mitsu
confirmed brakes will once again be supplied by
Brembo.
Read about what
made news on the show's first day!
Visit Our 2007 NAIAS Photo Gallery
from Day One!
Check Out Our
Gallery for Day Two Here! |
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