California Dreaming

2023 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 09:36

America's auto industry is still on a stick. The good mood from Los Angeles could only be saved sporadically to Dark Detroit. Some stumble, others drum and many beam - mostly for no reason.

By Stefan Grundhoff

At the beginning of December, the Los Angeles Auto Show in sunny California brought another remarkable success for the American auto industry, but visitors to the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) hardly see any light at the end of the tunnel. Even if more than 50 novelties celebrate their premiere in the usual unadorned Cobo-Hall in the heart of Detroit; real confidence and optimism look different. 2009 was a catastrophe for the American auto industry. Of the once more than 16 million new registrations per year, it is estimated that hardly more than ten million remain. Local manufacturers in particular conjure up the patriots' buying spirit; but a lot in Detroit is hot air or a good face for the bad game.

Focus as a trade fair highlight

The undisputed highlight of the NAIAS 2010 is the Ford Focus. The traditional manufacturer from Dearborn, just a few miles south of Detroit, wants to turn 2010 into the year of the turning point. «We will not forget 2009. The year 2010 will be exciting for us, "beamed Ford boss Alan Mulally and applauded himself as if on a commercial TV show," we are fully committed to the new focus. " After the European Fiesta was introduced in the USA and so far there have been tentative 4,000 orders, the new Focus is to carry the compact class to the USA. “We want to sell a total of 25 percent more cars worldwide by 2012,” said Ford North America boss Mark Fields, “that's a total of 3.4 million vehicles. We want to grow particularly in the compact class."

The Focus will be on the market at the end of 2010; initially in the USA and in early 2011 also in Europe. By 2012, two million new Focus models should populate the streets of the world. Ford, of the three big US manufacturers, still the best on the road and still badly damaged from the 2009 storm, shows itself capable of learning. Those in charge seem to know that small cars alone will not be successful. There is a new powerful V8 engine for the flagship Mustang GT.

Tribulation at Chrysler and GM

At Chrysler the world is still upside down. This is not only shown by the Dodge RAM, which weighs tons and greets you threateningly when you visit the multi-brand stand under the ceiling. Chrysler alone was yesterday. The mega stand in the heart of the Cobo Hall is home to corporate brands such as Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Fiat, Maserati and Ferrari under one roof. The right concept and new cars seem to be missing. That was not the only reason why the Italian-Americans simply skipped a press conference and wanted to show the Chrysler world of tomorrow with a broad product portfolio. But when the only innovations at the home fair are sports and electric versions of the Fiat 500 and a Lancia Delta with a Chrysler grille, things look bleak for the future of the former Mercedes companion.

Even General Motors can hardly shake off the miserable mood of the last few months. Innovations like the small Chevrolet Aveo RS or the study of the GMC Granite, a mixture of an Opel Meriva and Scion xB, should show that the signs of the times have been recognized. But can an Aveo or the Buick Regal GS as the sporty twin of the Opel Insignia OPC give customers courage for the future of General Motors? The crossover GMC Acardia Denali and the particularly sporty Cadillac CTS-V Coupé are proudly shown. But urgently needed innovations are missing. Modern engines and future-oriented technologies - also beyond hybrid and electric concepts - also look different.

Restrained Asians

Detroit's Asian automakers are surprisingly cautious. Honda, Toyota, Kia, Hyundai and Lexus - all heavyweights in the US market seem to have mentally pushed the Detroit Motorshow into the second row. Nissan and Infiniti have removed them from the calendar entirely. Honda is still most in the limelight and is showing the production version of the CR-Z Hybrid for the first time.

The new edition of the former fun-maker CRX with part-time electric drive is a step in the right direction. But when it comes to design, Honda has not been lucky in recent years. The rear and the interior will not only be a topic of conversation in Europe. With the FT-CH study, Toyota shows that hybrid drives should also gain a foothold in smaller vehicle classes in the future. Around half a meter shorter and significantly lighter, the city hybrid is intended to attract new customer groups who are mainly on the move in the city.

Printed by German manufacturers

German manufacturers are known to put pressure on in Detroit year after year. After all, the established US home players falter and so Volkswagen, Mercedes, BMW, Mini and Audi want to gain both image and market share. New series models such as the remarkable Mercedes E-Class Cabriolet, the 340 hp BMW Z4 sDrive 35is and the luxurious Audi A8 receive as much applause as the Mini Beachcomber studies, BMW Concept Active E or the realistic vision of the VW New Compact Coupé (NCC). The coupé, which is worth seeing, with strong references to the Audi A4 and A5, gives a near-series outlook of the next VW Jetta, which will be launched on the international markets as a series model in 2011. The hybrid version in particular is supposed to attack the pioneer Toyota Prius.

In Detroit, Audi is continuing the idea of a sporty electric car. After the number one e-tron in the style of an Audi R8 at the Los Angeles Motor Show, a second e-tron shows that it can also be smaller electrically. “Similar to the quattro for our all-wheel drive vehicles, we want to position e-tron as a brand name for our electric vehicles,” says Audi developer Thomas Kräuter, explaining the double naming convention, “this e-tron is 3.93 meters in length and is smaller than an Audi TT and performs well with a weight of 1350 kilograms 150 KW / 204 PS. The car has a pure rear-wheel drive. Somehow a lot in Detroit is just different this time.