DC Auto Show Thoughts?

[G.Irish]

I saw on Facebook that some of you guys went to the DC auto show this year and was just wondering what everyone's thoughts were on what they saw.

Camaro
Thoroughly impressed with how much GM has improved the interior quality on the Camaro. Still not my style but it really looks good.

Canyon
Very nice for the money, I liked the soft close gate. Still doesn't have the interior volume or practicality my Ridgeline had, even though it looks way better.

Alfa Romeo Giulia QV
Wow. I thought it looked good before but in person it looks even better. Lots of little touches of style with carbon fiber tastefully integrated throughout. The front seats were carbon fiber buckets (which I'm sure are $$$), something I've never seen in a sedan. This is probably a really expensive car but it's definitely the style leader in the segment.

ATS-V
Good looking exterior, cheap looking interior. A shame because the performance puts it at the front of the pack.

New Civic Sedan
I was only at the concept launch last year, hadn't seen the interior in person yet. This is easily the best Civic Honda has ever made, looks more expensive than it is. Which is a problem for the Acura ILX, because the Civic makes it look cheap by comparison.

Jaguar F-Pace
Very sexy, definitely worth a look when they go into production. Unfortunately there was a line to step onto the turntable and check out the interior and I didn't feel like waiting.

McLaren 570S
Looks better in red than the pewter color I saw it in before. Didn't get close enough to see if they fixed some of the chincyness I saw at the unveil. Hope I get a chance to see/drive one in Vegas this month.

BMW M2
Looked cool, but the fender flares were a bit wimpy, just not as visually impressive as I would've liked.

Miata
I loved this car way. I've never really felt attracted to the Miata, I've always liked what it represented but I've never felt the want. The ND just looks more aggressive and scultped, and the interior really was great for a $24k car. Modern, sharp, and great build quality. I really liked the body color inserts on the doors. Makes me think about eventually having two street cars but realistically that doesn't make sense for me right now.

[JPolen01]

I hadn't been to the auto show in years and the last one I did attend was the NYAS. Saying that I felt a little disappointed. I can't put my finger on exactly what the let down was. Manufacturers do weird things which bother me - Acura didn't bring the NSX, Porsche didn't even show (possibly snow related?). Mercedes put the AMG GTS on a platform 2-3 ft up in the air so you couldn't get close to it or even see the interior very well. I must have missed Jaguar altogether because I didn't see them anywhere. Maybe they left prior to Sunday when I was there?

I second your thoughts on the Giulia. It was stunning in person. I would have chosen a different color to display it in (Rosso Red or Montecarlo Blue), but whatever. The carbon fiber accents and the bowling ball sized shift knob just worked so well. Also my first time seeing the 4c in person and that is also a beautiful machine. Looked great in yellow with all of the carbon fiber. It was painful for a Alfa dealership owner trying to explain to the general public what the car is. "So it's like the poor man's Porsche?" Seriously one of the lines I heard. The owner was like no, it's pretty much the opposite of that being a niche car with only 2000 examples made.

I still cannot get behind the new Miata. I don't get the hype at all. The car looks way to big and the rear end just doesn't sit right for me. Contrary to you I hate the paint matched door card inserts. It screams cheap painted plastic to me. It was also covered in finger prints which would drive me insane.

You didn't address the new Lexus GSF. I have no idea on specs or pricing, but it looked really good spinning around on the platform. The blue exterior clashed hard with the red interior and orange calipers. I think it would have looked better with a black interior. That way the orange calipers wouldn't have looked so out of place.

[G.Irish]

Yeah I was surprised Acura didn't have an NSX out there. They're spending a shit load of money for a halo car, then not bringing it to a car show where it would attract people to your booth and boost your brand. They've got plenty of prototypes running around, they should've had one at the show. Porsche usually only does the big shows like NY, LA, and Detroit. I've never seen them at the DC Auto Show. Same with McLaren, Aston Martin, etc.

Jaguar was towards the back with Land Rover. They had their full model lineup out there on Saturday, can't imagine they pulled out before Sunday.

Dumbest thing I heard was some dude saying that if you bought a M2 you could resell it and make at least $30k. I'd love to see a bunch of speculating idiots buy that car thinking they could flip for a big profit then losing their asses.

[D_Eclipse9916]

Dumbest thing I heard was some dude saying that if you bought a M2 you could resell it and make at least $30k. I'd love to see a bunch of speculating idiots buy that car thinking they could flip for a big profit then losing their asses.

Even now the GT4 people still pay money for an allocation. Porsche is thankfully being smart and making it for more than one year. The 1M got away with it since 1 year. The M2 is expected to be full production line and certainly won't have that same magic.

I bet ownership of a Porsche Cayman GT4 would be less expensive over 5 years than a brand new BMW 328i. I can't beleive prices commanded for Cayman R still even with the GT4 out.

Edit: Just as a side note, the amount of Cayman GT4s being used on track at PCA events is INSANE. There were at least a dozen Cayman GT4s if not more at Sebring this past weekend. (Then again there was the new 911 Pro RSR there..at a club event...jesus christ). Caymans are becoming the go-to track car for Porsche Club Racing. GTB1 has exploded with caymans. I almost want to build one to resell, decent GTB1 builds are selling for 75-120k.

[BLINGMW]

Miata

I test drove one from the dealer maybe a month ago, I highly recommend taking one for a spin. Now that I have one, I pretty instantly "get it", and the ND is fantastic IMHO. Clearly some smart people looked at the NA design requirements and just said, "let's do that again and better". Like what I always wish BMW did with the E30...

The car looks way to big

This HAS to be a good thing right? If it's the size and weight of the original but "looks" bigger and is better thought out inside, this can only be a compliment. :dunno:

[G.Irish]

Yeah I think GT4 won't depreciate very much, even if they make more of them for this model year. Certainly would lose less value than something like a 335 or even M3.

Edit: Just as a side note, the amount of Cayman GT4s being used on track at PCA events is INSANE. There were at least a dozen Cayman GT4s if not more at Sebring this past weekend. (Then again there was the new 911 Pro RSR there..at a club event...jesus christ). Caymans are becoming the go-to track car for Porsche Club Racing. GTB1 has exploded with caymans. I almost want to build one to resell, decent GTB1 builds are selling for 75-120k.

That's surprising, but also fucking great that people are using the car as intended. That's one thing Porsche has over Ferrari, Porsche people actually get out and drive on track in far greater numbers. You don't see many people bringing their Speciales, Scuds, GTO's, or CS's to the track

[D_Eclipse9916]

Yeah I think GT4 won't depreciate very much, even if they make more of them for this model year. Certainly would lose less value than something like a 335 or even M3.

Edit: Just as a side note, the amount of Cayman GT4s being used on track at PCA events is INSANE. There were at least a dozen Cayman GT4s if not more at Sebring this past weekend. (Then again there was the new 911 Pro RSR there..at a club event...jesus christ). Caymans are becoming the go-to track car for Porsche Club Racing. GTB1 has exploded with caymans. I almost want to build one to resell, decent GTB1 builds are selling for 75-120k.

That's surprising, but also fucking great that people are using the car as intended. That's one thing Porsche has over Ferrari, Porsche people actually get out and drive on track in far greater numbers. You don't see many people bringing their Speciales, Scuds, GTO's, or CS's to the track

The more I learn about Porsche the more I respect their leadership team in regards to their track prowess. Porsche hugely supports Club Racing and Pro Racing (just gotta have the checkbook).

Take your 911 GT3 out to Summit and pop a coolant hose? Call up the Porsche dealer for pickup and warranty. Completely different culture than Mitsubishi/Subaru that were tracking owners at autoxes/road racing in the early 2000s to deny warranty claims.