LA MOTOR SHOW: Tinsel Town not Motor City
Musings of an Editor-in-Chief... Out of the office (for once) and on the show floorLike so many exports from tinsel town, the Los Angeles Motor Show was big on glitz but short on substance – with a few (very few) notable exceptions.
As the show opened there was a degree of anticipation at many stands. Any one of the many cars covered in silk could have been a showstopper, a surprise waiting to be unveiled and set the cameras whirring... In the end, most we'd seen before – if not in the metal then very certainly on the electronic pages of this website and others like it.
It was so very Hollywood. Promise so much and deliver – well, just enough to get by... Our man Josh Dowling is already delivering a wrap so I'll keep this to brief (and hopefully different) observations... Snippets that don't warrant a spot on their own but will still interest many... Errr perhaps a few... Well, one or two of you...
At first view, the brand's new three-row softroader gets at best a C-... So far Infiniti's styling has been quirky but acceptable – witness the FX sports crossover... The JX, like its US-only new-Patrol based QX stablemate, seems to have little externally to endear itself... To anybody.
We're guessing the JX is based on the same platform as Nissan's Murano (certainly the 3.5-litre V6 and CVT running gear are familiar) and it's packed with all the techno goodies you can imagine. But the only thing of interest we could derive from the LA Show presentation is that the car has a world first Backup Collision Intervention (BCI) system.
Says Infiniti: "With this technology, when the transmission is in reverse, the JX will help the driver detect crossing vehicles and objects behind the JX and, if necessary, the system can automatically engage the brakes to help avoid a collision."
We've quizzed Nissan Australia as to whether the JX will be a likely starter for Infiniti Down Under – no answer yet. For their sake, let's hope not... In the metal it looks like a Hyundai Santa Fe with a charisma bypass.
It was here that a modest number of tuner cars were on display. In truth LA is not a big show for this set – they strut their stuff at SEMA in Las Vegas. But of those that came to LA a few were crackers – and then there was Frankenstein's Monster... A gangsta Phantom.
No, it wasn't another brand with a badly applied Pantheon grille and hastily bolted on suicide doors. At the risk of Messrs Rolls and Royce rolling in their graves, it was a fair dinkum Roller on 24-inch (or perhaps bigger wheels) with matt grey paint. And yes the grille and other brightwork was blacked out.
I thought Mansory's ostrich skin McMerc was the height of bad taste, but stand up and take a bow Platinum Motorsports, you take the chocolate ripple.
Special mention for the world's ugliest GT-R two stands away, while we're at it!
200C anyone? No, I thought so.
The latest 300C SRT8 turns wallflower in the presence of its Dodge Charger counterpart and the Grand Cherokee SRT8 is simply outrageous – in a good way. In fact, we can see the beleaguered brands' Australian distributor selling a shedload of all three cars when/if they come Down Under.
The SRT8 Grand Cherokee especially will carve itself a niche with Aussies, I reckon. The Charger didn't make it to Oz in the last generation but it really should this time around. It's a cracker!
The strength of the Koreans in the US market was evinced by the strong attendances at their presentations. The crowds and the amount and variety of product were in strong contrast to Toyota's presence in LA. There it was new Camry and the rest sort of beiged into the distance. The burghers at Toyota City must be watching Seoul like hawks.
At least Toyota's stand fronted a main walkway – Mitsubishi was tucked away so far of the beaten track half the Australian media contingent couldn't find it. When the other half did they wondered why they bothered!
JLR's presentation was early on and was hyped by the rumour that the company has swapped its CX-16 Concept for the production car that is set to evolve from it. And that another Defender concept might appear. The rumour was no doubt started by JLR staff themselves – such teases!
Special mention here for the chutzpah of Kia... The big made in American stickers on a number of its key models were hard to miss.
Like other EV start ups, the Californian based company is funded by a number of large institutions and "high net worth individuals". Unlike some others it's just confirmed series production of its first model – a small four-door sedan that seems to owe some of its heritage (at least in styling) to the Daewoo Holden insisted on badging Viva Down Under.
The cars are part assembled in China and then are shipped to the US for electric powertrain and system installation and final assembly. That way they earn a US VIN number.
The small sedan seats five (at a pinch – given the size of many Americans) and Coda claims 150 mile (240km) range.
All very interesting, but even more interesting are the auto industry heavy hitters behind the company. CEO is ex-GM China chief Phil Murtaugh and also within the executive group, senior DaimlerChrysler (remember that company) and later Chrysler sales chief, Tomas Hausch. A start-up to watch perhaps?
Scion's star was yet another version of the Toyobaru sportscar – essentially FT-86 II with a different coat of paint. The car will sell in the USA as a Scion... Probably... Proving once and for all that it won't be called Celica!
The other Toyota model gifted to Scion for the USA is iQ, the Japanese giant's version of a smart. So keen is Scion on playing up the sportiness of its brand that for SEMA it built an iQ-based roofless Pit Boss. It was on show again at SEMA -- complete with tyre track and tool draws. Snap-On of course...
The big van is Sprinter sized and is, we assume, based on the US only light truck platform that underpins Nissan Titan. It's undoubtedly just what the US tradies ordered, but has anybody else noticed its resemblance to a pig? It's got the snout and everything...
Somehow then it was fitting that Nissan chose to debut the truck at LA Show as two modified vehicles. And what were they... To please all those with their snouts in the trough, take away food vans, of course
More LA Motor Show news on motoring.com.au
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