STUFF OF DREAMS
Lexus LC 500 (pic above)
This was easily the star of the Detroit show. When this production model hits the road in 2017, it’ll bring with it concept-car drama milled from pure sex appeal. If staring at this thing doesn’t get you breathing heavily, then how are things at the Wet Blanket Club of America? A forward-looking platform and a 467-hp starting point make the LC even more compelling. Still not sold? Betcha the brand will do convertible and F Sport versions someday, too. It’s a good-looking sign that Lexus is finally ready to be taken seriously at the high end of the luxury market.
Kia Telluride
Sure it’s a concept now (did the suicide doors and first-class captain’s chairs give that away?). But the styling is unique and production-ready and the Kia/Hyundai parts bin could be easily raided to come up with a large crossover platform, V-6 engine and all-wheel-drive oily bits to make this thing a reality. Toss in a great upscale name (how was that not already trademarked?) and a polished demeanor and Korea’s quieter brand could really be on to something.
Nissan Titan Warrior
Plenty of truckmakers have rolled out lame attempts to copy the Ford F-150 Raptor’s swagger. But none has figured out that no one buys a (high-margin) Raptor because he needs to prerun the Baja 1000 faster than Hades and burn a gallon of gasoline every mile. He just wants his buddies or the nerd in the Prius that he cut off in traffic to think that he does. Nissan’s Titan Warrior concept gets that this is a want-based segment and gives us plenty to want. Cummins diesel engine, hairy-chest styling, big ol’ rubber tires. The message to Nissan at Cobo Center was universal: Build this.
Acura Precision Concept
Pay no mind to the rear-wheel-drive-infused proportions of this car. Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne will merge FCA with Heinz ketchup before Acura has a rwd vehicle. But bits of this head-turning concept will show up on production models soon — as in this year — probably on the freshened MDX that’s coming. The biggest change will be the death of Acura’s “beak” grille, but look for interior changes as well. Other changes come later, likely on the next-gen RLX. Acura knows its sedans need a wholesale reboot, and throughout its lineup the brand is keen to do what my ex-girlfriend wouldn’t: Bring some emotion to the equation. This concept is an encouraging sign.
Honda Ridgeline
Echoing around Cobo Center in the wake of the Ridgeline’s debut were cries of “It’s not a truck!” Since I was sober, I didn’t yell back, “That’s exactly the point!” But it is. Honda flubbed the first Ridgeline big time by letting the engineers run the styling. One flying buttress later, the company had a sales dog on its hands. Not this time. Essentially a Pilot crossover wearing a bed on its back, the new Ridgeline hangs on to the good stuff from its predecessor: in-bed storage, unibody handling and, very likely, rock-star reliability. It’ll do what the original so badly wanted to do: offer the open-minded crossover or truck buyer utility and refinement without a guilty conscience.
LET ME SLEEP ON IT
Buick Avista
Buick is starting to remind me of that girl on the dating sites my mom signed me up for who makes an instant connection online but then never shows up to dinner. The ultrasexy Avista coupe is the second consecutive Detroit debut from Buick that is nothing more than a tease; last year it was the Avenir sedan. While the Avenir might make it to production, the Avista almost certainly won’t, according to our man Mike Colias. China doesn’t like coupes and Opel couldn’t sell it in meaningful numbers. So we’re stuck with one of the best-looking, production-ready cars at the Detroit show that will never see the light of day.
Chrysler Pacifica
The next-gen minivan from Chrysler isn’t a bad vehicle. A Chrysler 200 with a backpack, it should inject some much-needed life into Chrysler’s lineup. But that name. Why? Chrysler and Dodge invented the minivan. Town & Country and (Grand) Caravan are industry pioneers. So why run away from a good name and try to hide a minivan under a false name? Memo to Chrysler: Minivan owners long ago traded their egos for diaper bags and sippy cups. They’re cool with minivans. You should be, too.
ZZZZZZZ
Mercedes-Benz E class
Taking the “same sausage, different length” approach to heart, Mercedes-Benz’s new E class landed at this show with all the chutzpah of a wet noodle. Trading the moderate styling chops on the previous version for total anonymity, the E class looks no different from the smaller C class. Why trade up when your neighbor won’t know the difference? It’s so boring, I don’t want to spend time looking for big words to describe how boring it is. But the interior is a gem and there will be eleventeen variants (diesel, plug-in hybrid, AMG, wannabe-AMG) that hopefully will bring some life to the Mercedes’ profitable midsizer.
Ford brand
There wasn’t anything inherently wrong with Ford at this year’s Detroit show. Because there wasn’t anything inherently there. Debuts were limited to a freshened Fusion, a four-door 2017 F-150 Raptor and some Legos. This quiet year seems weird given the previous three Detroit shows. Remember: Ford lowered the Atlas concept truck from the ceiling in a 2013 show worthy of Broadway, debuted the current F-150 in 2014 and sucked the air out of the room in 2015 with the GT supercar. Apparently Ford’s idea of being a mobility company means providing plenty of open space to move around. Showgoers deserved more from one of the hometown teams.
VW itself
What didn’t go wrong for Volkswagen this week? It showed a plug-in hybrid variant of the redesigned Tiguan that’ll never sell in the U.S., California regulators flatly rejected its proposed fix for its cheating 2.0-liter diesel vehicles, and its CEO claimed to NPR that the company “didn’t lie” to regulators, forcing a quick about-face the next day, complete with scripted apology. At least the company had a meeting with the EPA to look forward to, even if it ended with a terse 14-word statement from the agency. Ouch. I’d send CEO Matthias Mueller my condolences, but honestly, VW had this coming.
Genesis G90
The first Equus was a paint-by-numbers luxury car: It checked all the boxes of what a full-size luxobarge needed but didn’t back it up with execution or panache. This new Equus, the first vehicle to carry the Genesis badge and a new G90 name, is better. But it’s not on the level of a Lexus LS and not even in the same building as a Mercedes S class. Plus, after promises that the G90 would come with heaps of styling from the Vision G Concept at Pebble Beach last summer, we barely got a whiff of it.
