Random notes - Milwaukee Auto Show

shatner saves

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Jan 13, 2004
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First, the bad news: No 2005 Mustang! No 2005 Focus. No Pontiac G6. No 2005 Golf. No 2005 Dakota. No C6 'vette (except on the sign in front of the Chevrolet section. This makes no sense to me.

They had the Ford GT up on a turntable with an announcer doing the dog and pony show. That thing is absolutely perfect. They also had the silver '05 mustang concept car parked next to it. Still looks good, even though I saw it last year.

The cabin in the new F150 is truly amazing. Dare I say, Audi-like in it's execution. If this is an indicator of the fit-finish in the new mustang, I will be very impressed. Body fit-finish and panel fits were also very good.

The Ford 500 and Freestyle are much better looking in person. The Freestyle was especially surprising, with a more aggressive stance and being generally better proportioned than I was expecting. I couldn't get too close to them but from what I could see, their interiors looked as good as the F150.

There seemed to be more parity this year among auto manufacturers with respect to paint finishes. I didn't see anything really offensive. I would say the best looking finishes went to the high dollar european stuff, but it was pretty obvious that a lot of those cars had been hit with a buff and polish before they went to the show. Maybe they do this as part of their normal dealer prep, I don't know. Bang for the buck, the american cars were the best. Jaguar was the best overall, dispite the fact that there were no tell tale buffing marks in the paint.

There were two morons standing around a Merc. SL600 roadster, droning on and on about the bad fuel economy indicated by the window sticker. I guess they failed to notice the big V12 under the (open) hood.

Pontiac had a GTO there, up on a platform, roped off so you couldn't get in it. Come on guys. This thing has been out for a year already. I can go to the luxo car section and get into everything form and 5 series bimmer to a $100k Mercedes. Even the 'vettes (C5) are open to everyone.

The Chevy Aveo is $10k, and is shows. The interior was was actually quite good for the cost but the shifter had the worst linkage I've ever experienced. Like it was made using spaghetti or some other pasta-based technology.

The award for the most aggressive seat bolsters wen to the golf GTI with recaro's in it. I had to contort my body so much to clear the side bolsters that I banged my leg on the steering wheel every time it got in or out. This got old real fast. The seats in the SVT Focus and Civic Si were just as good and didn't require a bronze medal in gymnastics to dismount the vehicle.

The Hummer H2 is still crap.

The new Chrysler 300 is pretty amazing, inside and out. Some people might be put off by the styling, but I like it.

They had a cut-away of a new dodge hemi engine on a stand. It seems that they have applied some of their NASCAR tech to it, as the camshaft is located very high in the block. I had to do a double take to make sure the engine wasn't tipped over on the stand because the exhaust valve pushrods are nearly horizontal.

I'm still very impressed with the interior in the Mini but I get more annoyed every time I get into it. I expect if I spent any amount of time in that car, I'd have to punch someone. The very definition of overstyled. I bet my nieces would think it's cool. It's just too bad the oldest is only 7.

The RX8 is very nice. I'd like to see where a turbo version comes in price wise.

Car I could spend the most amount of time in: Jaguar XJ8.

I was really impressed with the Volvo s40. judging from the proportions, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a Mazda 6 chassis under there. The thing that really interesed me was the seats. They looked a lot like the ones in the new mustang. I have heard a few people say that the headrests in the new stang look like volvo units, but even the side bolsters and seat cushions look a lot like the photo's I've seen. They are very comfortable and provide a surprising level of support. If the units in the '05 mustang are like these, I don't think you'll hear anyone complain.
 
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shatner saves said:
The Hummer H2 is still crap.

The new Chrysler 300 is pretty amazing, inside and out. Some people might be put off by the styling, but I like it.


I'm still very impressed with the interior in the Mini but I get more annoyed every time I get into it. I expect if I spent any amount of time in that car, I'd have to punch someone. The very definition of overstyled. I bet my nieces would think it's cool. It's just too bad the oldest is only 7.

I was really impressed with the Volvo s40. judging from the proportions, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a Mazda 6 chassis under there.

Agree on the Hummer. I hate those things. Also agree about the Mini interior. Kind of kills the car for me. Way too much.

I can't wait to see the new Chrysler 300 and Dodge Magnum wagons. :nice:

The S40 used to be part Mitsu, but that was put into development before Ford came along. I have to say Volvo has turned to total cr@p--not Ford's fault, I think they were already headed that way once they switched to FWD with the 850. The old RWD Volvos are absolutely indestructable. The FWD cars are a mess--not as durable, tons of electrical gremlins, and they depreciate like mad.

Just read some more on the new S40. It's based on the next gen Focus platform and is being built at a new factory in Belgium. Crazy stuff. I think I'll stick with RWD cars. Hope the new Mustang and DC LX platform cars work out well...
 
I like the H2 :shrug: but it has a love-it-or-hate-it style.

The Magnum is cool, if I needed a family hauler it would definatly be a Hemi powered Magnum drag'n wagon.

I'm supprised you couldn't sit in a GTO, They are selling them on dealer lots now. Everyone should really check out a major autoshow (detroit, LA, Chicago, NY) they are the best and you can see all the cars :nice:
 
I don't hate the H2 on principal, at least no more than any other gi-normous SUV. I just don't think the build quality is there for a vehicle demanding a $50k+ price tag. The styling looks good to me but the bodywork and passener cabin are very cheap IMO. I also don't see the "sport" or "utility" in it. Aside from negotiating the dealership obstacle course during the test drive, how many of these are going to see real off road duty.

And I just love to hear people who own these kinds of things drone on about the price of fuel. Clowns.
 
You should head down for the Chicago show if you're not too far away.

They had the GTOs open there. I like the interior design, but was stunned at how flimsy and cheap it felt. Same with the Malibu Maxx...it was a great concept that I wanted to like, but was let down by a chintzy feeling monotonous grey plastic interior.

I was reminded anew why I've never owned a GM product. :shrug:

On a side note, the Mustang looked just as good in person, although the silver/white stripe scheme to match the GT and Shelby in attendance wouldn't be my first choice.
 
The H2 has no where the space inside that it looks like it should have. My Expedition has much more room for both people and payload. The rear cargo area loses like 1.5 feet on each side from the wheelhousing and interior dress of it. If I have something that size, it better be able to haul whatever I need. Otherwise I would just go with a jeep.
 
shatner saves said:
I also don't see the "sport" or "utility" in it. Aside from negotiating the dealership obstacle course during the test drive, how many of these are going to see real off road duty.

"sport" = its off road ability (not that 90% of the people that buy one will use it for that, but arn't most 4x4 SUVs that way)

"utility" = TONS of interior room, it can tow a lot, and has more ground clearance than most SUVs.

shatner saves, did they have a Pontiac Solstice there? I saw the production version in Detroit, they did a great job of going from concept to production. The F-150 King ranch looks awesome too, I loved the interior.
 
Z28x said:
"sport" = its off road ability (not that 90% of the people that buy one will use it for that, but arn't most 4x4 SUVs that way)

"utility" = TONS of interior room, it can tow a lot, and has more ground clearance than most SUVs.

shatner saves, did they have a Pontiac Solstice there? I saw the production version in Detroit, they did a great job of going from concept to production. The F-150 King ranch looks awesome too, I loved the interior.

According to studies done by the auto makers, your typical SUV driver has a deep-seated fear of crime. Hummer drivers look particularly nervous to me--they tend to be peroxide blonds or middle aged men. I'm always tempted to walk up to them and yell "boo!" But they'd probably try to run me over or shoot me with pepper spray while dialing 911.
 
Z28x said:
"sport" = its off road ability (not that 90% of the people that buy one will use it for that, but arn't most 4x4 SUVs that way)

"utility" = TONS of interior room, it can tow a lot, and has more ground clearance than most SUVs.

shatner saves, did they have a Pontiac Solstice there? I saw the production version in Detroit, they did a great job of going from concept to production. The F-150 King ranch looks awesome too, I loved the interior.

No solstice. The show was basically a re-hash of last year, with some exceptions. They did have a Chevy SSR though, and you were allowed ot get into it. I didn't think it was too bad. The interior has some really nice elements. If only they could do something about the price.

A buddy of mine has a king ranch. It's like sitting in a baseball glove. :nice: