So I headed down to Philly today to check out the Auto Show courtesy of Chevrolet, which is kind of funny considering that the kids were a total disaster and I didn’t even get near the Chevy booth before I had to take them home. I still got to see some cool stuff, so here’s some random observations in no particular order along with a few pictures.
The new G Wagen is awesome inside and out. I don’t think I could ever justify that kind of coin, but if you can… Before the redesign they were kind of stupid and a waste of money, especially to be a mall crawler, but now it’s pretty legit!
The shine has fallen off the NSX a little bit, which I don’t think is necessarily a bad thing. At prior shows it was fenced off from the public. Here you were able to check it out up close and sit in it, which helps define it better if you ask me: The “Accessible” Supercar. Those seats are really snug though!
I was really disappointed in Alfa Romeo’s offerings at the show, and that’s coming from a fan that would love nothing more than a Giulia Quadrifoglio. The Stelvio was really underwhelming, perhaps the Quadrifoglio is better, but what they had to display was a bit of a letdown. I love the Green color (Wife hated it), but no painted brake calipers? Really? And for a brand fighting perception issues, perhaps you could get a car there that doesn’t have a broken rear view mirror on DAY ONE of the show?
The McLaren Senna was the big reason I made the trip, and it definitely didn’t disappoint! It’s looks are “polarizing” to say the least, but if you ask me, it’s gorgeous in the right color scheme, as shown here in the F1 MP4/4 inspired colors. Wish I could gotten closer!
Anyway, there was of course lots more, but I wasn’t able to take as many pictures as I wanted to because I was busy carrying a small human half the time. It’s definitely worth checking out if you are in the area.
I was there today, too (I try to fly in to go with my Dad). I’m most astonished at how small the show has gotten - one floor, basically, vs the 3.5 it used to be. No Cadillac and no BMW. But surprising.
My favorite car was the blue Genesis G70. Man that car is gorgeous inside and out.
I think that the internet has pretty much killed the trade show as we know it. All in all it was a nice way to kill a few hours on the weekend. One day I’d like to go to the Black Tie opening night party, but that’s a pretty expensive night out!
No kidding. It’s really kind of sad. For me, it was a perfect way to spend an afternoon with my Dad with the added bonus of being able to really spend some time with SUVs we are considering to replace the X1 when the lease is up without a salesperson hovering.
Have a feeling that I may have to sacrifice the deal for the next car to make sure we get what works for us.
I went on Saturday with my girl, courtesy of a dealer I do a lot of business with in the area. Aside from having to drag her away from the Range Rover station (it’s a rebadged Ford Explorer / Ford Escape!!!), it was really disappointing not to see BMW show up. Also, the most impressive interiors were, by far, in the Volvos. I was floored by the quality of the Bowers & Wilkins audio (it has been a while since I did an S90 with that option - many more 2017’s had it than 2018’s). Geely has done a very good job repositioning the brand as a legitimate luxury option in the US market.
Cadillac and Genesis were the only 2 notable omissions from the Pittsburgh Auto Show I saw, which is still disappointing because we would like to see the XT4/XT5 and I was really hoping to see a G70.
The Maserati display for the McLaren Philly related dealership was funny. Big attention to the Senna, some other McLarens up front, and a Quattroporte and Levante tucked in the back
Three then…Harrisburg, Philly + Pgh next week. I’m not surprised BMW skipped Philly…I’m surprised they went to Pgh instead of Philly though. I guess if NYC had BMW, that’s a couple hours away vs 4 on the other side of the state.
