Neatest Thing at the 2014 La Auto Show

With lights shinning on world debuts and hundreds of models around it is hard for any car in particular to stand out by the end of the night at a major international auto show. Lines are blurring between segments it's not unusual anymore to see more advanced technology in a 15,000 entry level model from a big box brand than what is available from "handcrafted" legendary brands. Materials and craftsmanship is harder to execute or fake but brands are getting better every day at making their interiors look expensive. Leather (like) covered dashes with French stitching on mainstream models create a marketplace where it takes a truly unique feature to stand out. Unique in this case means simple and elegant. Volvo XC90's frameless rear view mirror was by far the most memorable feature at the 2014 LA Auto Show. It's a fresh take on something that is in every car and one that makes a true design statement. Much like an edgeless flat screen, the mirror looks great and makes you wonder why no one else has done it sooner. Volvo is proud of the neat touches it has put in the long overdue XC90 but the all glass mirror is the one that works the best. It won't push anyone to buy the very nicely done XC90 but it is something the rest of its very strong competition does not have and that is a win for Volvo.

Why Going Downmarket Doesn't Hurt

With the ability to get into a new Audi, BMW or Mercedes for less than the average new car on the market there has been a lot of chatter of the German 3 dropping down. Whether through underboosted engines or through physically smaller models the cost of entry is under 30,000 for two of them and the other gives you a 5,000 discount. With such a seemingly low price point many have wondered if the brands are diluting themselves and their heritage and if their top of the line models are still special. While some of the media has called out the brands the consumer has paid little attention. Neither the recently introduced A3 sedan nor the earlier debut of the CLA has hurt either brand's sales of its top of the line models. The people that are buying the flagship Mercedes and Audi models costing over 100,000 aren't concerned that someone else can buy a Mercedes or an Audi for only 30,000. As long as they are getting a product with power, design and technology commensurate with the price of admission the existence of an entry level model won't bother them. Even for the few status conscious that do want to show off how much their car is worth there is little to worry as it isn't hard to see that an S class or an A8 retail for a quite a bit more than 30,000.

As with everything there are practical limits and thresholds that shouldn't be breached but so far both Audi and Mercedes have introduced a new model at the lower end of their spectrum without missing a beat at the top. The second round is coming right up as both are introducing the crossover version shortly.

Observations from a non major autoshow

LA, Detroit, Chicago and New York comprise the major auto show circuit in the US that gets the coverage, but you can find an auto show in any major convention center. KWF set out to find out what kind of an automotive experience one can have at these other shows and see what we can observe. No world debuts to catch, no concept cars to see, is this even worthy of being called an auto show? While lacking all the flash and glamour of the big shows you still get an opportunity to see almost every make and model on the market today.  What follows are random observations after numerous hours of looking up and down from all angles, sitting in every back seat and stroking every dash.