Tuesday, February 14, 2012 I

TechNews

RYAN HYNES ae@technewsiit.com

Chicago Auto Show

By Ryan Hynes
A&E EDITOR

The TechNews Editorial Staff attended
the 2012 Chicago Auto Show Media Day to
brush shoulders with fellow reporters and
journalists, and to get a good look at just what
the automotive industry has to offer in 2012.

The Auto Show is hosted every year
at McCormick Place, a quick trip from campus.
The show runs through February 19th, and
features virtually every major automaker, from
Aston Martin to Subaru, it covers the entire
automotive spectrum.

Your TechNews crew paid special
attention to automakers’ offerings in the hybrid
and alternative energy category. Among the
standouts were Toyota’s FCHV Prius, which
utilizes a hydrogen fuel cell as its power plant,
the Nissan Leaf, one of the most popular and
practical electric vehicles on the market. The
Chevy Volt is also a contender, but is hindered
by its high price tag, $39,145 and relatively low
range of 40 miles.

Chevy also introduced two new
additions to the compact car market, the Spark,
an affordable ultra—compact, and the Sonic, a
sporty hatch that made its debut in Chicago
band Ok Go’s music video Needing/ Getting,

 

which premiered during the Super Bowl. The
Sonic is competing with another Suber Bowl
star, the Fiat 500 Abarth, which boasts one of
the most controversial ads of the game. The
Abarth is a souped up ‘rollerskate’ that promises
performance at the expense of value. The 500’s
stiffest American competition, the Ford Fiesta,
was proudly bedecked in racing trim for the
World Touring Car Championship. The Fiesta
is perhaps the best value in the hatch market,
offering performance on par with the 500 and
VW Golf, but at several thousand dollars less
than the pricier Europeans.

For those with less conservative
tastes, there were also plenty of muscle and
high performance exotics on display. American
Muscle was well represented by the new
Centennial Corvette, celebrating Chevy’s 100th
anniversary, along with the 45th anniversary
Camaro. Ford’s Mustang is available in GT
and Shelby trim, and a new Boss 302 edition, a
throwback to one of the great early Mustangs.
Mopar madness was rampant at the show. The
Dodge Charger, Challenger, and a reissue of
the Dart were nostalgic, while incorporating
modern automotive sensibilities. The most
impressive exhibit was Chrysler, who has
unleashed an incredible marketing campaign
designed to reignite the brand and reclaim the

market share that maligned management lost
over the past twenty years. Their Detroit— centric
strategy is an inspiration for the automaker, and
the city itself

Foreign automakers were no slouches
though. Mercedes introduced a new roadster
version of its phenomenal SLS Coupe, Lotus
unveiled its new weekend—racer track specialist
Evora, and Aston Martin and Porsche’s four
door offerings, the Rapide and Panamera also
made strong showings. The Asian automakers
were even more exciting. Lexus brought an
entire fleet of its hit—tech LF—A, a car who’s
performance is rivaled only by its price. The
Nissan GT—R, each with ahand built engine, still
dominates the Asian high—performance market,
but the Acura NSX may challenge Nissan’s claim
to the title. The Subaru BRZ and Scion FR—S also
look promising, and while they may not offer
the same performance of the higher end sports
cars, they are much more realistic for drivers
who still want to go fast.

Media Day was a great first look at
one of Chicago’s longest running exhibition,
and your TechNews crew was there to cover the
action and bring you an exclusive look of some
of 2012’s hottest cars. The Auto Show leaves
town this Sunday, and is definitely a worthwhile
trip.

Photos by Ryan Hynes & Ryan Kamphul's

 

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