A comment on the Challenger below.

Posted on Fri, Jan. 05, 2007



Green, lean and mean
GET UP CLOSE TO HYBRID CARS, SUBCOMPACTS, CUVS, TRUCKS

By Matt Nauman
Mercury News

Any auto show worth its salt ought to reflect market trends, and give car buyers and car lovers a glimpse at the near future. And that's exactly what people will get when they attend the San Jose International Auto Show that opens Thursday.

The downtown show, now in its 13th year, features hundreds of new vehicles from more than 30 automakers. This year's version moves from its past Wednesday-to-Sunday format to a Thursday-to-Monday run that takes advantage of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday Jan. 15.

Asked to give advice to showgoers, one auto-industry veteran sees nothing wrong with going to the show without a game plan.

``Go there to see what you like and what you want to see,' said Matt Stone, executive editor of Motor Trend magazine. The San Jose show is staged by Motor Trend Auto Shows, a Primedia affiliate.

``If you're going to bring the family, your kids, it's a good experience for them to see all the hardware,' he said. Stone remembers going to the Los Angeles auto show as a boy, his eyes growing wide looking at all the new cars.

That hardware, as Stone calls it, reflects several auto-industry and societal trends, including growing concerns about the environment, sources of oil and high gas prices. Certainly the rise of the higher-mileage hybrids and the rebirth of the small-car market have roots in these trends. And the movement away from truck-based sport-utility vehicles into car-based crossover-utility vehicles has been, in part, spurred by $50 fill-ups.

But people don't go to auto shows to see trends, they go to see cars (and trucks, minivans, SUVs and CUVs). Here's a look at what's new and what's worth seeing. (A caveat: Show lineups often change at the last minute, which means you're likely to see something new and unexpected, but something you wanted to see might not arrive. Check out www. sjautoshow.com for current information.)

• Leaning green: Americans bought more hybrids in 2006 than any year in history. In fact, the 230,011 sold through November topped 2005's total of about 200,000. That's especially true here in California, where environmental sensibilities combined with carpool-lane access make gasoline-electric cars such as the Toyota Prius and Honda Civic very popular.

Toyota has picked San Jose for the first of its ``Highway to the Future: Mobile Hybrid Experience' events. Driving simulators and other hands-on exhibits inside a touring trailer offer information on hybrids and alternative-fuel technologies. There's even a chance to evaluate your carbon footprint, a measure of your impact on the environment based on how and what you drive and other factors.

Then, between the main hall of the San Jose McEnery Convention Center and the tent-like South Hall, showgoers will be able to take test drives of the Prius, Camry and Highlander hybrids. It'll run from noon to 5 p.m. Thursday, and then 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. next Friday to Jan. 15.

Other hybrids, including the Lexus GS 450h and RX 400h, the Saturn Vue Green Line, the Ford Escape and the 2008 Mercury Mariner, all will be shown in San Jose. General Motors will bring vehicles from Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC that can run on E85, an ethanol-gasoline blend, as well as regular gasoline.

Silicon Valley's own electric-car start-up, Tesla Motors, won't be at the show as it only has two cars at its San Carlos headquarters. Production is expected to start later this year.

• Small is big: According to the state's auto dealers, small cars such as the Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit were the fastest-growing segment in California through the first nine months of 2006. The sales of subcompact and compact models grew faster than any other vehicle segment, the Californ

 

Posted on Thu, Jan. 11, 2007



AUTO SHOW REVVING UP




The San Jose International Auto Show, now in its 13th year, opens today and runs through Monday.

The show at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center features hundreds of new vehicles from more than 30 automakers. Among the highlights: Toyota's driving simulators offer information on hybrids and alternative-fuel technologies, and Dodge will display the Challenger concept, a modern version of the '60s muscle-car classic.

Information: www.sjautoshow.com.

 

No offense but Mr. Matt Newman needs to have a brief history lesson in muscle car history. The Challenger is techincally a 70's muscle car classic, even though its segment was a leftover segment from the 60s.