LA Auto Show
“It’s the first big American auto show of the season: the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show. And, you know we were on hand to catch all the headlining acts.”
Some of the biggest coverage went to one of the smallest, lowest volume cars at the show. We’re talking about the return of the Fiat 124 Spider. It looks much more inviting in person than in the spyshots, and we can’t wait to see what a little turbocharged Italian magic can do to the Mazda Miata platform.
The Italians made things even hotter with the U.S. debut of the Alfa Romeo Giulia, including its top Quadrifoglio trim. Engine choices will be between a 276 horsepower 2.0 liter turbo 4, or a 505 horsepower 2.9 liter twin turbo V6.
We saw plenty of hometown pride from this all-new Buick LaCrosse, bringing much of the style of the show stopping Avenir concept to reality.
Lincoln did their part too, adding the Continental concept’s grille to a refreshed MKZ. Behind it, a new 3.0 liter twin turbo 400 horsepower V6.
Honda took the wraps off the Civic Coupe, and it looks just like we expected. Some unexpected news is that the 1.5 liter turbo will soon be paired with the six speed manual.
The future of the Mazda CX-9 was laid bare, with a total redesign. There’s more room inside and a turbo 4 powertrain as the only motivation.
Cadillac is moving on from the midsize SRX crossover to this all-new XT5. Lighter and more luxurious, it should be their best seller.
Nissan restyled the compact Sentra, bringing it more in line with its current “hot look” 4-door, the Maxima.
Meanwhile, Hyundai unveiled their sixth generation Elantra compact. With a more mature look, it adds class leading technology-- including auto braking.
New styling was everywhere on the L.A. floor. Mercedes-Benz showed a refreshed SL hardtop roadster, and the GLS, a renamed GL.
Infiniti gave the U.S. market a look at the production QX30 compact crossover…
…And Land Rover had everyone talking about the Range Rover Evoque Convertible.
True concepts were few…
But Subaru did its part, showing this Impreza Sedan Concept…
And once again we saw Toyota’s C-HR crossover concept. It’s now officially headed to production as Scion’s first all-wheel driver.
“And something that’s become a staple at the LA Auto Show- the Green Car of the Year Award. It went to the second-generation Chevrolet Volt. And that’s it from lovely LA and this week’s Motornews.”