I went to the Chicago Auto Show yesterday and now I have 200 pictures up from the show. I’ve tried to summarize what I saw below, but you can see all of the pics yourself here: Pictures from the 2007 Chicago Auto Show
The Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG was the most amazing production car that I saw at the auto show. Every corner of the CL63 looks like it has been thoroughly reviewed and perfected. The Audi R8 was one of the great cars on display at the auto show. I know the R8 is really just a redone Gallardo, but it still looks amazing in person. The BMW B7 Alpina was very nice, but to me it was still no "M." The 21 inch wheels on the Alpina were especially nice.
The Chrysler Nassau was one of the best surprises of the show. The Nassau just whispered class and quality. I hope Chrysler makes the car and moves toward being a real Luxury brand.
The Lexus IS-F was one of the cars I most looked forward to seeing and the only disappointment was the tailpipes. The wheels on the IS-F were very nice. Toyota had their FT-HS hybrid sports car concept on display, but I really just wondered it was really just a hybrid version of the Lexus LF-AF. It looks like Toyota has only strengthened its Scion brand with the new xB and xD. The xB gets bigger and a more powerful engine, giving Scion customers a broader range of cars to choose from.
Honda did not have much to show, but the Accord Coupe Concept was very nice. I look forward to the new Accord, but I really wonder if the styling of the coupe concept will find its way to the new sedan.
I have been looking forward to an Altima coupe since I got mine, but the Altima Coupe Nissan had on display wasn’t as wild and sporty as what I had imagined it would be. The design on the Marc Ecko Nissan Pathfinder was nice, but I don’t see the point of making one-offs if they never use anything from the custom cars in production. I really only need one word to describe the new Nissan Sentra SE-R, and it is lame.
Chevrolet’s Camaro Convertible Concept drew a lot of attention at the show. The Camaro’s interior has a stylish, futuristic design to match the exterior. I hope a lot of this car makes it to production. The Corvette C6R was the best race car that I saw that day. The C6R costs as much as some homes, but it’s still nice to see such an amazing car that still looks so much like a regular Corvette. I thought the Chevys on display were rather bland with the exception of the HHR Panel. The custom 2-door HHR that they brought out was rather nice too.
The Dodge Charger SRT-8 looked aggressive, as usual, but it still couldn’t compare to the sharp lines of the Dodge Viper SRT-10. Dodge also had a Dodge Charger SRT-8 Super Bee on display, but its styling comes off as cheap and generic. The Dodge Viper SRT-10 Mopar Concept was also on display and probably one of the best production-based racecars at the show.
The Ford Interceptor embodied all of the boldness that Ford has promised. Ford plans to carry over some elements of the Interceptor to the Crown Victoria. The Ford Airstream, on the other hand, doesn’t look like it will see any of its elements in an actual production vehicle. Ford also had a full race-spec Mustang FR500GT on display. Ford’s boldest move was probably having Funkmaster Flex DJ at the Ford booth next to Ford Expedition Funkmaster Flex Concept.
I had the opportunity to see a Jaguar XKR in person for the first time at the Chicago Auto Show. People were more interested in the silver XK8 that was next to it, but that was probably because they could sit in that car.
The Mazda Ryuga was said to be the basis of future Mazda designs. The design of the car is best described as wild and supposed to be based on "natural" lines.
The Pontiac Solstice Weekend Racer Concept makes me an official Solstice fan. The hardtop, 325HP turbo engine, and ground effects make a huge difference in this car and we can only hope that it makes it to production.
I finally got to see the Thunder Bunny Concept and it looked amazing. It’s a cool car, but with Rabbits and GTIs coming in 2 and 4 door models it would be hard and almost pointless to differentiate between the cars. The VW R GTI was also a looker, but I tend to appreciate cars that are more practical and likely to reach production. I would like a set of the wheels from the R GTI though.
The new Volvo XC60 concept was nice, but the trendy of heavy use of chrome is disturbing. I hope that annoying trends like that are toned down next year.
