2009 South Florida International Auto Show
Today I went to the South Florida International Auto Show. The turnout was pretty low, and the exhibits smaller than in previous years. The crisis has undoubtedly weighted down on the automobile industry. Some highlights:
American car makers are building some exciting vehicles, with improved looks and quality. The Camaro is back, Buick seems to be finally living up to its brand promise of being an affordable alternative to Cadillac, and Ford scores big with the Taurus and the Flex. I also saw a nice Mustang GT with a blue and white Cobra paint scheme. With big SUVs almost absent from the show, US makers are going back to their roots and focusing on mid-to-large comfortable cars. On the luxury front, I saw the new 4-door Porsche Panamera, Porsche's answer to the Maserati Quattroporte; there was also a huge Jaguar XJ on display. Mini Cooper showed a few pimped out Mini's including a convertible, a 50th Anniversary Mayfair edition, and a Clubman woody. On the Japanese front, nothing new, really. The most exciting thing was a display with eight pimped out Scion, including a sibbling of my little xD in much sportier gear. Finally, in a good move on Ford's part, its heavily social-media-hyped Fiesta was available for test drive outside the show, where everybody coming in could see it (kudos to @scottmonty).