My Report From the Denver Auto Show

[SHACOS]

So, I had the pleasure of going to the Denver Auto Show this morning. Regardless if you think my opinions are qualified , I thought I'd share some of my thoughts with the group.

1. The biggest no show? That would be Porsche, who didn't have a car to be found on the convention center floor. I thought this was surprising because every other luxury automaker made an appearance and Porsche seems to be a favorite among fellow Denverites.

2. The biggest waste of money? Sadly our friends at Chrysler are back to their money wasting ways with a HUGE 4x4 demonstration area within the convention center. It was ridiculous with at least 7 SUV's being shuttled around for the eager masses. On a positive note, the event did seem to generate a lot of buzz. After all, who doesn't want to go down a 20 foot decline at 10 MPH?

3. The biggest surprise? Ford! They had the entrance dominated with the Mustang Boss 302 (which is freakin' sweet!), the nice Focus and a multitude of gas saving options. Smartly, they kept trucks and SUV's to the rear. The Explorer is not too bad. The Nissan Juke surprised me, but only because it was the UGLIEST car on the floor. I mean, seriously Nissan!

4. The biggest failure? Sadly, Chevrolet who brought all of their crap designed back in 2000 and it showed. The Impala just looked out of place, the Malibu already looks old and some new Aveo variant looked like, well, a rebadged Aveo. The Camaro's looked good, but covering the floor with 5 of them doesn't make up for the age displayed in their designs. Buick, on the other hand, was looking extra youthful with the Regal GS, which is also freakin' sweet!

5. My favorite? The BMW 1M. For $43K, you get a mini M3. Best of all, it fits my 6'8" frame, so it immediately went on the wishlist. The other cars on that wishlist are the Audi A5/S5, BMW 550, Audi A8/S8 and the Volkswagen Passat. Yes, the last one doesn't exactly fit, but all of these allowed me to fit comfortably. My serious pick for the Denver climate once my GTI lease it up with be the A5/S5 which just plain sexy.

Overall, it was a good show and well worth the $8 to get in the front door. Not too many freebees to be had, but VW was nice enough to give away from plastic Jetta's to add to my collection. The styling (sorry Chevy) was for the most part very stylish, modern and leaves me with plenty of hope for the automotive industry. Now, I just need to have someone in Colorado to let me back in.

[XDCX]

Thanks for the recap - I've been meaning to add a post to this thread.

I'm also surprised Porsche didn't have a car at the Denver Auto Show. It seems like there's lots of money in the Denver area and there are so many beautiful destinations nearby a person could drive to and enjoy their new car.

Concerning Jeep's display, if they had the "eager masses" lined up to go on a mini test drive it was probably money well spent.

Concerning GM, that's an interesting assessment and runs somewhat counter to what I experienced at Barrett-Jackson where both GM and Ford had vehicles on display. Overall, I tend to like GM's design, but maybe that's because I have a "pro Bob Lutz" bias.

Concerning BMW, I think they've done a great job with the 1 Series. I was a skeptic when I first heard their plans for bringing the 1 Series to the U.S. but I now concede it was a smart idea. That said, I agree with the AutoExtremist that BMW has weakened their brand by trying to offer something for everyone. (I still cringe when I see a BMW Station Wagon or their new X6 crossover vehicle.)

Thanks again for the post - it's great to hear something positive about the car business.

[OutDrive.ca]

I'm sad to report that the Vancouver International Auto Show was not anything to write home about. a few highlights included the Hyundai Veloster, Chevy concept FireBreather (best recreation of a modern-day Firebird), and BMW's new X1 with the N20 4 cylinder turbocharged engine.

[SHACOS]

I swear, if there is not a segment for it, BMW will create it. Is there really any need for an even smaller SUV below the X3?

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by SHACOS

I swear, if there is not a segment for it, BMW will create it. Is there really any need for an even smaller SUV below the X3?

That's the #1 complaint Peter De Lorenzo (The AutoExtremist) always makes about BMW and I agree with him.

BMW should not be a brand that offers something for everyone - they'd be much better off to stay true to their old slogan - The Ultimate Driving Machine.