South Florida Autoshow -- Miami

[ScottB]

Well did the annual visit to the Autoshow. Being that my father has been in the business for as long as I have been alive, it has become an annual ritual. Long gone are the days with tents, and Gryo's out on the concourse. Showcars are offered to spice up the "wow" factor, but I am there to simply visit and sit in cars I want or aspire to own.

STS-V
Boy do I want this car. Pricing is ludicrious especially given that you can now order an STS Sport with everything but the supercharger and wheels for over 10k less. 2100.00 GAS GUZZLER TAX. You would not want to have seen the true car and all the swirls introduced by using wool dusters on it. Floor model was black and available. The detailer kept saying "its a corvette-eater". It would be nice to fit four and still keep the quarter at 13 seconds. Any pulley and chip combo's made yet ???

Camaro Concept
The new design lended itself well to the color red. Gone were the days where seams did not meet, and items were tacked on. This car was a stunning rendition and my show favorite. It is the hope that when released in 2008 it sports the LS3 and design is not modified. Keeping the price at 35k for the SS would be a smart move. (not show pic)

Other than that, I found the show to be slightly boring. Ford had a GT500 Convertible on a spinner and beauty describing it was well versed in it being a limited production and dealers would be re-pricing in certain areas. She did not like me asking why it could not outpace a standard C6 with only 400 horses. Chevrolet offered the new Z06 in a lighter orange coloring. Allowing children to sit in it and generally beat a 75k car was probably not a good idea. And finally the updated Navigator .... YUCK !! I believe someone chromed a hibatchi and attached it the front, no wonder the commercials offer only rear views. (Escalade will still remain the king it appears) .

GM did offer one unique item, a test drive of several of the more popular cars outside the show. They had a Sky, Corvette, C6 Coupe/Convertible, and several others. In truth the former Auto Show in Motion was much better, but I hear that is now cancelled after starting a live motion drive in Las Vegas called "The Ride".

 

[abrcrombe]

Good review, that camaro looks SWEEEET!! The front end reminds me of the movie Cars though. A little cartoonish. Still would not mind having one. And the STS is the only cadillac that I would own. Maybe I should go to my convention in January and make a review.

 

[Surfer]

Got to drive the STS-V at an event in Sebring. Honestly, wasn't really impressed, car was plenty fast for a large sedan but I was expecting similar performance to the last E55. Not even close, the E55 would destroy the V. So far looks like a few guys at the strip are pulling off low 13's around 108-109. Something about the looks I didn't like either, I personally love the CTS-V, but the design doesn't seem to flow well on the STS body. I'm actually looking at the CTS-V right now b/c I can't seem to find e39 M5's with decent maintenance history and most are out in freaking Cali, already had one guy on the M5 board test drive one for me and he told me the clutch and a few issues needed work the seller didn't mention. CEO from QoS Lab is across our office and got a new Audi S6, beautiful and what a sound, but ehh...no manual trans and awd which I can't stand the feel of. I'm gonna ask him for a "ride" LOL. I'm just going nucking futz without a manual trans right now.

And yes that new Navigator, blechhh, interior is great, but that front end just ruins the truck. Not really a fan of the new Lade either. But go figure, I saw a blacked out new body Denali (blacked out tails etc) slightly lowered on Weld Evo wheels, was very clean looking.

Tell you what, one the car I'm craving is the Charger concept. BTW have you seen what some companies were doing with the Sky/Solstice, dropping in the LS2 etc. I would love to grab one of the those puppies for a playtoy on the side and drop in an LS7, god that would be killer on a road course.

 

[ScottB]

Sheehan Pontiac has a Solstice on the floor with an LS2. Mallet I believe...

 

[Surfer]

Sheehan Pontiac has a Solstice on the floor with an LS2. Mallet I believe...

Yup, little buggers move. Imagine with a blower and head cam package, that would be sick. Best part is they keep excellent weight distribution, I don't think people realize how light GM's LS motors are.

 

[supercharged]

Looks like this new Camaro will have HID Xenon headlights.

 

[MikeyC]

This thread brings back memories. I used to go to the South Florida Auto Show every year when I lived in Florida. Actually, I've been going to the auto show every year since I was 16. Most of them have been the New England International Auto Show in Boston though which is not as good as the SF show where there are usually more exotic brands respresented.

Anyway, I'm not a big fan of that Camaro. It just looks too overdone for my taste almost cartoonish. Also, I agree that the new Navi is UGLY and $10K definitely seems like too much of a premium to upgrade to the STS-V.

You want to talk upgrade prices then let's talk about the Audi RS4. Clearly a huge performance upgrade from the base A4 (~$35K) to the RS4 (~$70K). The problem I have is paying so much money for a car that looks almost exactly like the one someone paid $40K less for. I know there are a lot of people who like "sleepers" but still this is a bit much.