2015 LA AUTO SHOW HIGHLIGHTS

ALFA ROMEO 
Giulia

WHAT'S NEW?

• Ferrari supplied 505 hp Twin Turbo V6 (or) Alfa supplied 275 hp Turbo 4-cylinder
• Rear (or) All-Wheel Drive
• 19" Forged Alloy Wheels
• Lane Departure Warning
• Full Stop Adaptive Cruise Control
• Forward Collision Warning
• Blind Spot Monitoring
• Rear Cross Path Detection
• Front/Rear Park Assist Sensors
• 3D Navigation w/ Gesture Recognition Rotary Control Pad
• Leather/Alcantara Sport Seats (or) Sparco Racing Seats
• Base & Quadrifoglio trim levels
• Goes on sale September 2016; starting @ $70,000

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Ohhhhh HELL YES it would! Did you see this thing??

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?
I think if my bank account ever allows me too I'm gonna snatch one of these bad puppies up that's what I think!

FIAT 
124 Spider

WHAT'S NEW?

• 160 hp MultiAir Turbo 4-cylinder
• 6-speed Manual (or) 6-speed Automatic
• Rear Wheel Drive
• First 124 cars will be Luxury Premiere Editions in Italian Blue w/ Saddle Leather
• ParkView Rear Camera
• Rear Cross Path Detection
• Blind Spot Monitoring
• Adaptive Headlamps
• FIAT Connect 7" multimedia touchscreen
• Bluetooth, Keyless Enter-n-Go, & Heated Seats
• 9-speaker BOSE Premium Audio
• Classic & Luxury trim levels
• On sale June 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
I absolutely would at least check it out. However, I  would proceed with caution when considering buying ANY FIAT product due to the lousy reliability reputation they had when they last left the American automotive marketplace

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

I think it's cute as hell & would probably be a kick in the pants to drive on weekends! Not being a fan of any FIAT currently for sale these days I think that's saying something. I am wondering though how well this car will sell when it's main competition is the Mazda MX-5 Miata which is the very same car's platform it's built from.

HYUNDAI 
Elantra

WHAT'S NEW?

• NEW 17" wheels, LED turn signal mirrors, door handle puddle lamps, & taillamps
• 150 hp 4-cylinder
• 6-speed Manual (or) 6-speed Automatic
• Front Wheel Drive
• Rear View Camera
• Rear Cross Traffic Alert
• Lane Change Assist w/ Blind Spot Detection
• Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection
• Hands Free Smart Trunk, Smart Cruise Control, & Dynamic Light Bending
• 8-speaker Infinity Audio w/ Navigation & Android Auto
• NEW Connected Care Package, Remote Package, & Guidance Package
• Next Generation Hyundai BlueLink
• Goes on sale January 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Absolutely. 

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

The Elantra ranks within the top 5 compact cars available today in my book. It's always been every bit as good as any Sentra, Corolla, Civic, and/or Focus

INFINITI 
QX30

WHAT'S NEW?

• Collaboration w/ Mercedes-Benz built in a new factory in Sunderland, U.K.
• Intelligent Parking Assist
• Around View Monitor
• Intelligent Cruise Control
• 210 hp Turbo 4-cylinder
• 7-speed Automatic 
• Intelligent All-Wheel Drive
• Standard Black Cloth interior; Black (or) Beige Nappa Leather is optional
• Infiniti InTouch Infotainment
• Goes on sale June 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
On The Fence

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

I have quite a lot to say both good & bad about this & its sister car the Q30 but I don't want to draw this out so here's the gist. THIS IS A FREAKIN GLA-CLASS wrapped in a familiar body with the Infiniti kink trade mark design style thrown in. No kidding literally THE only features exclusive to Infiniti are the exterior design, wheels, & maybe the infotainment setup. The bulk of this car is all Benz baby & if you've ever owned one in your lifetime that won't be hard to see.

LAND ROVER 
Range Rover Evoque Convertible

WHAT'S NEW?

• Triple layer cloth top folds up/down in 18 seconds at speeds up to 30 mph
• InControl Touch Pro Infotainment w/ 10" touchscreen display
• 240 hp Turbo 4-cylinder
• 9-speed Automatic
• Terrain Response All-Wheel Drive
• SE Dynamic & HSE Dynamic trim levels
• On sale June 2016; starting @ $50,475

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
If I was actually in the market for a convertible crossover then yes

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

I'm willing to bet $ that once these hit dealers there are only two cities you'll see these in; West Hollywood & South Beach....just sayin

LINCOLN 
MKZ

WHAT'S NEW?

• NEW Black Label interior themes; Chalet & Vineyard
• Enhanced Park Assist
• Pre-Collision Assist with Pedestrian Detection
• 400 hp Twin Turbo V6 (or) 245 hp 4-cylinder Hybrid  
• Front (or) All-Wheel Drive
• Adaptive LED Headlamps
• Panoramic Moonroof
• On sale June 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Quite Possibly

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

I'm still heavily rooting for Lincoln. This facelift looks pretty good however I really think they should've done it on the bland MKS instead. Unless of course they already have plans to do so that is.

MAZDA 
CX-9

WHAT'S NEW?

• NEW 18" & 20" wheels
• NEW Signature trim level has Nappa Leather w/ Japanese Rosewood trim
• NEW Machine Gray color
• 250 hp SkyActiv Turbo 4-cylinder
• i-Activ All-Wheel Drive
• i-ActivSense tech & safety packages
• Mazda CONNECT touchscreen infotainment
• 12-speaker BOSE premium audio
• Goes on sale April 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
I can't think of a reason why not

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

FINALLY this car gets a facelift & a darn good one I'd say. Overall looks are pretty stylish in comparison to others in its class.

MERCEDES-BENZ 
SL-Class

WHAT'S NEW?

• 360 hp V6 (or) 450 hp V8
• 575 hp Twin Turbo V8, (or) 620 hp Twin Turbo V-12
• 9-speed Automatic
• Rear Wheel Drive
• SL450, SL550, AMG SL63, & AMG SL65 trim levels
• 5-spoke 19" Alloy Wheels
• NEW Automatic Trunk Separator
• NEW Parking Pilot
• Active Lane Keeping Assist
• DISTRONIC + Steering Assist
• Active Blind Spot Assist
• Active Brake Assist w/ Cross Traffic Function
• PRE-SAFE Braking
• NEW Brilliant Blue & Designo Selenite Grey colors
• NEW Saddle Nappa Exclusive Leather interior
• 11-speaker Harman-Kardon Logic7 Surround w/ 600 watt DSP amp
• 12-speaker Bang & Olufsen BeoSound w/ 900 watt DSP amp
• Goes on sale April 2016; AMG models go on sale in May 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
On The Fence

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

The SL-Class has always been a luxuriously fast grand tourer but as of late the designs have left something to be desired in my opinion. This latest version however seems to be easier on the eyes

MITSUBISHI 
Mirage

WHAT'S NEW?

• Re-design outside makes it a tiny bit more tolerable to look at
• 10-year warranty means you can beat the piss out of this thing on Mitsu's dime!
• Re-design inside includes new cloth seats, steering wheel, & shifter area
• 300-watt Rockford Fosgate audio w/ EcoPunch Subwoofer & Apple CarPlay
• Nearly 80 hp 3-cylinder (WOW! Do you drive it or mow lawns with it?)
• Goes on sale April 2016

WOULD IT BE ON MY SHOPPING LIST?
Ummmmm...NO!

WHAT DO I THINK OF IT?

Oh c'mon! It only has 80 freakin horsepower...I mean how excited am I supposed to be?