Thoughts From The Motor City

I have just completed 4 days of shooting at the North American International Auto Show came away from the event with a number of lasting impressions.

First and foremost was the ALMS press conference on Tuesday morning. Without the question the series' finest hour, as 150 + automotive journalists (not racing journalists) listenied to ALMS CEO Scott Atherton and representatives from the DOT, EPA and SAE speak on the topic of green racing. Atherton had his finest 20 minutes of his reign at the ALMS. His message was clear, precise and direct. His message of the ALMS being the most relevant series in the world was heard loud and clear. Furthermore the presentation - a large five minute stop watch counting down until the beginning of the presentation, with the voices of race control going through their last minutes check list - left a lasting impression to the audience of the high tech world of the ALMS. The countdown continued until your heard the starter shout "green, green, green..." and the presentation began. Without question the most buttoned up presentation in the 10 years of the series. Let's hope this level of performance continues through the 2008 season.

Every car show has its highlights and less than stellar moments. Among the better moments at NAIAS was the stunning Audi R8 V-12 TDI. Sweet Jesus, what a car. It takes the current production R8 into a whole new orbit. The new Corvette ZR1, the new Land Rover SUV concept, and the Fisker were all stunning. Perhaps the biggest dog of the show, at least in my opinion, is the new Mercedes GLK - a small, short and stubby SUV inspired by a Suzuki/Subaru one-night stand from the early 1990s. The GLK's early claim to fame is that it will appear in the upcoming "Sex In The City" movie. Waking up in the morning and seeing this in your driveway will make you rethink how much you had to drink the night before. Likewise the new BMW X6 left many folks wondering exactly how many housewives really need a car, no a SUV, no a "SAV" - "sports activity vehicle" to tool around in? This is a niche vehicle if there ever was one.

The vibe from the GM and Ford camps were quite similar. Time to get back to what we do best and produce products that will make money. The Ford F-150 remains the best selling vehicle at Ford and a big money maker. The latest version will not disappoint. Expect to hear plenty of E-85 talk from GM and they may be sitting on a gold mine of technology in this area.

Finally, a comment on the powers-that-be in Detroit being able to get things done. Remember the success of this year's Detroit Grand Prix. The same mentality carries over to the NAIAS. 6,000 journalists and virtually every press conference and car presentation went off without a hitch. The internet in the pressroom - think about the bandwidth needed for this many writers, photogs and tv uploads - was staggering quick - about 2 megabytes a second upload speed. Hello Mosport.....you can do this too! The show staff was polite, professional and well organized. Thanks to everyone for another great trip to the Motor City.