2012 Detroit: Worst in Show

By John LeBlanc Despite what the local media were saying, this year’s Detroit auto show was a bit of a yawner. Okay, a real, big yawner. Not only were the number of true concepts at an all-time low, but most of the types of exotic brands car enthusiasts drool over (i.e. Lamborghinis and Rolls-Royces) didn’t even bother to show their wares. Needless-to-say, the disappointmens were easy to find this year in the show’s traditional Cobo Hall setting:

Chevrolet Code 130R & Tru 140S

I have no qualms with Chevy’s pair of compact coupe concepts. The red one, the Code 130R (at top), is rear-wheel-drive and looks like a mini-Camaro. The white one, the Tru 140S, sends its power to its front wheels, and is supposed to look like it came from Italy. Fine. Both look like they would give the likes of the Hyundai Veloster or Honda Civic a run for their respective money. No. The problem I have is with Chevrolet, the company. Apparently, Chevy is going to let us, the unwashed masses, decide which of this duo will get the go-ahead for production. Really? I mean shouldn’t its professional product planners and other wily and sage executives make that decision? C’mon, Chevy—grow some!

Chrysler 700C

Chrysler quietly rolled out its 700C concept minivan during the first Detroit show media day, almost as if it was a last-minute decision. Which after taking a gander at this half-baked creation, just as well may have been the case. We know Chrysler is working on its next-gen minivans, due around 2014. But the 700C’s dated-looking “aero” shape looks like it was penned about two decades earlier. It’s as if Chrysler designers were channeling the jelly-bean-shaped 1996 to 1999 Ford Taurus for inspiration. Thank goodness, though, Chrysler admitted this is only one of several design studies it’s working on for its next generation of minivans, and will likely not be the final production design. Phew!

Volkswagen Jetta Hybrid

Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! I thought VW was all about the great and almighty diesel engine  when it came to saving fuel. But what do we have here? A gasoline-electric version of the new Americanized Jetta? This has me confused. Maybe the hybrid Jetta is part of VW’s plan to score Toyota-like sales numbers. I mean, its Americanized Jetta is the most Toyota-like VW you can buy (that’s not a complement, by the way). So going whole-hog and adding a hybrid seems like the next logical, Toyota-mimicking move. What’s next from VW? A compact rear-wheel-drive sports car?

Honda Accord Coupe Concept

After the show car for this fall’s 2013 Honda Accord Coupe debuted here in Detroit, a disgruntled American colleague of mine wanted to change the name of the Japanese automaker from Honda to “Hondud”. Based on the mild restyle of a coupe that’s been around for four years, I can understand his misgivings of the once innovative brand. Especially after last year’s not-so-well received 2012 Civic. In an act of generosity, though, I’m not going to pass judgment on the new Accord until I drive one. Honda is promising a host of new technologies, including  new engines with direct-injection with more power and better fuel economy. Perhaps this book will read better than its cover.

Toyota Prius C

The new C is the fourth addition to Toyota’s Prius hybrid family, along with the original hatchback, the plug-in version, and the V wagon. It will be priced below $19,000 in the U.S. (about the same as the Honda Insight ) when it goes on sale in March, and will use the same hybrid system as the larger Prius, but with a smaller 1.5- instead of 1.8-litre gas engine, resulting in Toyota promising the four-door hatch will score the highest city fuel economy of any vehicle that is not a plug-in on the market. Sounds great on paper. But the Yaris-based Prius C’s looks don’t exactly scream “new” or “high-tech”. Whatever happened to the great-looking concept we saw here at last year’s auto show? Why can’t we have that car? There’s none of the flair we saw with Toyota’s Lexus LF-LC or NS4 concepts, here in Detroit.

Volkswagen E-Bugster

Broken down, the E-Bugster (“E” for electric, “Bug” for Beetle, and “ster” for its chopped-down “speedster” roofline), is an evolution of the 2005 New Beetle Ragster concept that inspired the new 2012 Beetle’s looks. Got it? Good. But the VW concept is a dichotic mess. You’ll never see this body and drivetrain combination in production. The E-Bugster’s look is supposed to remind you of Porsches (i.e. Boxsters and Speedsters), but the concept’s "Blue e-motion" 114 hp electric motor and lithium-ion battery (stored under the floor) powertrain is all about saving the planet, not driving fun.

Bentley Continental GT V8

Welcome to the era of government-mandated super cars. Because, really, meeting tougher fuel economy regs seems like  the only reason I can think why Bentley would offer an Audi V8 in its Continental GT instead of its traditional W12. Sure, the blown 4.0-itre V8 has 500 hp, and gets better fuel economy than the twelve-cylinder cars, that will continue to be sold. But if I’m going to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to separate myself from the rif-raf, I don’t want to own a car being powered by the same engine in said rif-raf rides. Please, Bentley, stick to the hoity-toity stuff, and let the lower classes suffer with the lower class engines.

Buick Encore

Pictures only can’t really describe how tiny the Encore is. Skipping the midsize class entirely, Buick has decided to make its second crossover two sizes smaller than its full-size Enclave. That’s right, the Encore is based on parent General Motors’ subcompact chassis, same as the Chevy Sonic, which, in my mind, has created two strikes against the Encore before it goes on sale next fall. First, its styling looks incredibly awkward. Where Buick’s traditional flowing lines and sweeping hoods look OK on larger cars—like the LaCrosse—on the very short Encore the look is terribly forced, almost pinched. Secondly, Buick describes the Encore as a vehicle suited to “young urban professionals”, the same type of customers who are jumping into  Nissan Jukes and Mini Countrymen. But honestly? Do you think anyone under the age of retirement is going to look at anything with a Buick badge on its hood? Good luck with that!

Audi A4 Allroad

I’m not sure whom I should be blaming here: Audi, or the American buyers who refuse to buy anything that even remotely smells like a station wagon. To recap, for 2013, Audi is supplanting its quite useful A4 Avant sport wagon with this Allroad version. If you think Subaru Outback versus Legacy wagon or Volvo XC70 versus V70, you get the idea. In other words, the Allroad is an A4 Avant that is taller, will ride softer, and wear quasi-SUV styling, and —drum-roll, please—cost more than the outgoing A4 Avant.

Smart ForUs Concept

The Smart ForUs concept is a two-seat “urban pickup”, the third in a series of show cars Mercedes-Benz has been rolling out to hype the next-generation Smart cars, due for 2013. Let me repeat that: the ForUs is an “urban pickup”. Like, say, the enormously successful 1995 to 1997 Suzuki X-90? Oh my… Going against the usual cry to make a concept a production car, I’m encouraging Mercedes to leave the ForUs on the auto show floor. As a city car that can barely hold a pair of bikes. Maybe the concept should have been called the ForNobody.

The No-Shows

Technically, I counted a mere half-dozen real concepts (as in not-likely-to-see production as-is) at this year’s Detroit show, a number in years past some of the larger automakers would roll out in one presentation. What’s worse, as I mentioned, the exotic automakers stayed away as well, including Aston Martin, Bugatti, Ferrari Lamborghini, McLaren, Jaguar, Rolls-Royce. And some automakers, like Infiniti, Kia, Mazda, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, , Nissan, Subaru and Suzuki didn’t bother to have media presentations.

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