2014 Washington Auto Show - Pt. 1

For my first post in close to a year (I really suck at maintaining this blog, I tell you), I figured I'd do a recap of cars and thoughts I had after leaving the Washington Auto Show. Let's see what I remember

• I'm really not sure what purpose GM had in keeping this division open. They sell Chevy trucks, just with a better options package. All that and combined with Chevy they still can't outsell the Ford F-150. But Pontiac had to die. I tell you...
• The Denali line has spread from the Yukon based truck to the Acadia crossover and the Sierra pickup. I will say, the interior, wheels and trademark grill treatments still look good. The prices though? Your regular Sierra 1500 can start around $26k. Your Denali? $50k base? Professional Grade pricing, that's for sure...
• The Acadia crossover is still soldiering on as well. One of the styling refreshes GM made was to change the rear glass and hatch. Instead of something new, they simply used the parts from the now deceased Saturn Outlook (which was probably the better looking between the Arcadia/Outlook/Enclave/Traverse siblings), making it a sore spot for me, being a Saturn fanboy and all. Biggest problem there: rear seats are crap. They are low and flat and not very comfy. While 99% of the time I'd be in the front, and 98% of that time likely in the driver's seat (which was quite nice), I still couldn't buy a vehicle that made the rear occupants that uncomfortable. Still, that Arcadia Denali did look the business...

• In all white, the new Corvette Stingray convertible looks like the Mach V. It actually looks better than the coupe, probably because the vents in the rear quarter aren't there (or at least painted body colored; hard to see on the turntable). There's a lot of curves, cuts and slashes, and from some angles it looks like a mashup between a Viper and a Ferrari, but however you cut it, the thing has presence. Just paint those vents the same color GM...
• The Camaro got a nip and tuck. Front end looks OK. The rectangle lights on the rear though? FAIL. Those look better on a Malibu (which, oddly enough, have the 4 square lights similar to what the Camaro used to have). Good to see Chevy still has the same milquetoast styling team for some things. The interior, awash in cheap feeling plastics, still blows, too (but it's a pony car, so I get it)
• They did have a Chevy SS on hand. While not quite styled as well as the Impala, it's the only way to get your fill of big, brawny Aussie muscle. As the successor of the dearly departed Pontiac G8, I'm sure it will find it's share of driveways to call home. The dash is funky mix of hard plastic, alacantra-ish material and leather. I'm all for layers and contrast, but that didn't work for me. Still, for a sedan with a LS3 engine from the last gen Vette, the last thing most people will care about is the trim.
• While I'm sure the Cruze and Malibu are fine cars, they simply lack the design of any of the cars in their respective classes. That never stopped them from selling; rather for many folks that's the entire point: clean, unoffensive (or boring) styling that takes no risks and serves as reliable transportation. The fact that Chevy had to go and tweak the Malibu less than 2 years after it was refreshed shows sometimes you can be TOO inoffensive, with fresher sheetmetal moving off the lots much quicker. They're not quite stripper fleet or straight to Enterprise cars, but not much above them either.

• The new 200 looks the absolute business. While there's a lot of styling in play (you see some hints of the Sonata in the sides, a very strong Audi vibe in the rear glass and tail lights, stretched Dart at the front), it all works in the metal. With a 9 speed transmission and optional V6 churning out 295 horses, this thing comes from an entirely different planet than the current, sad excuse for a car that the 2014 200 (and it's woeful cousin the Dodge Avenger) is. Assuming they can keep the price right and reliability in check (which never was a super strong suit for the Pentastar) they may finally have something competitive in the mid size sedan market since the early Cirrus/Stratus cars of the 90's. They can't get these cars on the dealer lots soon enough.
• The 300 still looks like a hood Bentley, though they did tone the grill down and sculpt the body a bit. Still one of the few RWD full size sedans not imported from Germany, for which we shoudl be thankful. And yes, it still has a Hemi.

• The new Fusion is the business. Yes, they stole the front clip from Aston Martin. But looking like a Rapide isn't the worst thing in the world.While only available in 4 cylinder configuration, as most cars in this segment are (the aforementioned 200 and the VW Passat are the only 2 I can think of that have a V6 as an option these days), you can get the 2.0, 240HP (231 on regular gas, natch), engine in your Fusion, which is a slightly detuned version of the motor that throws the Focus ST pocket rocket around. While the dash and most places your hands touch have nice soft material, other places revert to the Tupperware plastic. And while the interior is more, adventurous than the Malibu, not everyone is going to go for the MyTouch settup that Ford is pushing. The touch screen and flat faced buttons are slow, even for someone who knows and can figure out the tech like me. The MyFord Sync voice commands work very well, though. For many, that's probably the way to go. Though if you do, you've got a crapton of buttons on the dash to deal with. Pick your poison. I think if I were buying one, I'd go for the SE trim with the 2.0 engine and possibly the appearance pack. Leather would be nice, but won't make or break me. And I'd probably skip the MyFord Touch package too, even though I can work with it. We will see later this year when it's time to go car shopping.
• They had a 2015 Mustang on display, but roped off. It's definitely a looker, and nicer in person than in pics. I'm not sold on the rear deck (maybe it's the sea of black between the tail lights that I'd rather have body colored) but the rest of the car looked like...well... a new Mustang. After 50 years you know what a Mustang has to look like. Much like a 911, you're getting evolution, not revolution. It's not as 'retro' styled as past models have been, but the lineage is strong. And finally, an IRS makes it's way into the mix as stock. Considering how they managed to get the car to handle (especially the Boss 302) with the log of a solid axle in the back, it should be fun to see what kind of performance gains they can get from this. The Camaro outsold the Mustang last year. Things may be different now.
• Last year I was really high on the Taurus SHO. I wanted to recommend it to my dad as a replacement for his aging 1996 Taurus SHO (which still has one of the nicest motors put in a family sedan. The intake runners were works of art, and prettier than anything this side of an Alfa Romeo). But I got in today and....the love was gone. First off, the Taurus was never packaged that well. For all it's size (and it's a big car on the outside) it doesn't seem like there's that much room inside. The trim, dash, and instruments are also starting to show their age. It's still a big fast car that can haul a ton in the trunk. But with cars like the Fusion occupying the same lot and looking vastly better on the inside (crapton of buttons or not), it becomes a harder sell. Still, it's better than his '96, even if it doesn't have as much character.
• The Fiesta ST looks like a shrunken Focus ST. Everybody that drove it has given it rave reviews. I couldn't get it for 2 reasons. First, it's too small (though if it were just 'daddy's car' instead of the family car I could see it). Second, the sporty Recaro seats would have to go. While the bolsters do their job in holding you in your seat, either I'm too old, too fat, or a combination of both for that to be viable for more than 45 minutes. At least Ford is getting their act together on their headrests though...
• The 2015 F-150 was also on display. Biggest news there is the aluminum construction, which should make the truck stronger and lighter, supposedly to the tune of 700 pounds. That's HUGE. Though some companies are already throwing shots (I believe someone at Ram said aluminum is great for beer cans....). The one thing I didn't care for during that presentation was the fact they kept mentioning the aluminum construction is 'the same kind we use for the vehicles for our troops'. I get the whole 'Go America' thing but please, stop using those in the military to sell stuff. Irks me to no end, I tell you. Anyway, even with the growing pains of working with aluminum, I doubt Ford will lose any sales to keep it out of the #1 spot it's held for decades.
• The Raptor is a big freaking truck. Almost makes you want to find some sand dunes and barrel over them at 90 mph.