I’ll get some pics up soon…just some thoughts from attending the 2010 Louisville Auto show
- It’s much better going with your 3 year old daughter than with your 1 year old daughter. Maria was my wingman…er…wingdaughter. Awesome!
- The Ford display triumphed. They had position right in front of the entrance, and the cars were great. They (understandably) didn’t have the 2011 5.0 Mustang GT on display–who would by the 2010 4.6?
- The new Taurus is incredible. Great styling. Sumptuous interior. I can’t believe this platform began as the VW Passat-derivative Five Hundred. It’s a completely different car just when America’s ready to return to cars after gorging on SUV’s for 20 years.
- That being said, the new Fiesta’s too small. Unless they can make money on this car at $14k or less, forget it. People will buy the redesigned Focus instead.
- Toyota’s display, right next to the entrance as well, was a ghost town. I felt sorry for these guys as there are some superb cars in the lineup. Maria loved the Scion xD, and I thought the the new Prius to be the perfect replacement for my 2000 Camry–only it gets double the mileage.
- BMW has lost its way, big time. I though things were bad when Bangle took over, but $100,000 UGLY, IRRELEVANT cars (X6? 5 series GT?). Those posers snatching-up the Beamers are BROKE, you Bavarian Dullards. Those who remain are the hardcore faithful, and you’ve given them nothing but complicated, overpriced, ugly cars that break with British regularity. ::sigh:: Still want an E39 530i Sport. Probably a 2001 model. :-)
- Honda: WHAT ARE YOU PEOPLE THINKING?! The Oddysey withers on the vine, the Civic is a disaster, and the Accord remains ugly (as it has since 1998). Meanwhile, we get the Accord Crosstour.
- Meanwhile, the Fit remains a joy. Pity it’s overpriced and lacks taller gearing for the highway. Still, play with those folding rear seats, work that snick/snick shifter, and feel the quality of the controls–this is Honda Motor we-can-engineer-better-than-you Company at its best.
- Jump in a Mazda 6, then into a Hyundai Sonata, and tell me why Mazda’s still in business.
- The Mazda 2 won’t sell. It’s an uglier Fiesta, with less space.
- GM is still the “too many divisions, too many nameplates” company. And the new Regal (a rebadged Opel offering only a 4-cylinder engine) is too small.
- Finally got in a Camaro. Maria liked it because it’s red. It has so little headroom and such bad outward visibility, I felt like I was in a coffin. I don’t see that car having even the legs of the 4th Gen Camaro/Firebird. GM has a talent for useless styling exercised (SSR, anyone?) This feels exactly like that.
- Acuras make BMWs seem attractive. Yikes.
So yeah, I feel like an old fart–I like reasonable cars, with good styling, interior appointments, and room. I dislike gimmicks and needless complexity–they seem like sleight-of-hand to hide bad engineering.
Ford’s definitely got it going on, as does Hyundai.