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The current Ford Taurus is a solid car that has never excited anyone. Safe, fuel-efficient, roomy and boring, it doesn’t have the visceral allure of a Chrysler 300 or the near-luxury feel of the Toyota Avalon – it’s just an unexciting but practical full-size sedan. It shares its name with what was once the world’s best-selling car, but that hasn’t fooled anyone.
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Stung by the recession, the auto industry has been scaling back its traditionally lavish series of auto shows. Automakers use the events to show the press and the public new car models and “concept cars” suggesting future designs. There are dozens of such shows throughout the year, but traditionally the most significant take place in Detroit, Geneva and Tokyo.
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The Ford Flex will soon have a more luxurious big brother. Lincoln has designed its own take on the big crossover, the 2010 MKT, which made its first public appearance this week at the Detroit Auto Show.
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The Toyota Prius has new competition. In mid-summer, Honda will begin selling its own hybrid car, expected to cost less than the popular Toyota model. The 2010 Honda Insight looks a great deal like the Prius and will probably be the first realistic alternative potential Prius buyers have ever had to consider. With the 2009 Detroit Auto Show now open, the auto press is driving Honda’s new hybrid for the first time, and so far, while most reviewers are impressed with the car, few think it’s going to knock the Prius off its lofty perch.
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If Chrysler had worked this hard all along, they wouldn’t be where they are today.
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Chevrolet used its space at this week’s Detroit Auto Show to announce a production schedule on a SUV small enough to be built on a compact car platform but large enough to seat 7. The Chevy Orlando will go on sale in the U.S. in the summer of 2010, as a 2011 model – and the automotive press has exactly one thing to say about it – it’s spacious for its size.
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Boxster Picture.
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What do you sell to Americans who are accustomed to the space and high seating position of SUVs but need the fuel economy and frugal sticker price of small cars? Asian automakers have apparently all arrived at the same answer – little boxes on wheels. A day after the inventively-named Nissan Cube little-box-on-wheels made its debut, Korea’s Kia has brought us another one. The 2010 Kia Soul crossover/wagon/small car/small SUV is just as hard to categorize. And like the Cube, it actually seems like a versatile, inexpensive car that might make sense for an awful lot of people. At least, those who don’t already own a Scion xB or a Honda Element.
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The Detroit Auto Show is usually the biggest date on the calendar for U.S. automakers. Historically, the Big Three show off their latest products, their most advanced technologies, and their wildest ideas for future designs in their own back yard. Their Japanese counterparts traditionally put on quite a show in Detroit as well. But this year, with American automakers facing a financial crisis and begging the government to help them survive, they’re cutting back their presence in the Detroit show. Japanese brands, caught in the same market downturn, are dialing back their displays as well.
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Amid all the glum news from the auto industry this week, we have something to look forward to. A gorgeous, ultra fuel-efficient hybrid that seemed like a pipe dream just a year ago is about to make its debut as an actual production car.
