As the Los Angeles Convention Center prepares for this years L.A. Auto Show spectators will find a little less ‘flash’ in the showroom. Even though Southern California is one of their biggest markets, car makers like Bentley, Ferrari, Maserati and Lamborghini will be no-shows. For the consumer looking for the ‘green’ car, there won’t be many of them either.
Due to the worst automobile sales slump in decades, this year, the automakers will be focusing on affordable small cars and minivans. In fact, the main attractions is the redesigned Toyota minivan. Economy cars like the Ford ‘Fiesta’ and Chevrolt ‘Cruze’ will also be debuted in an attempt to win fuel-economy fanatics away from the Asian manufacturers. The car based SUV’s, Kia Sorento and Hyundai Tucson and the Mazda 2 will also join the lineup in an attempt to increase their sales.
For the show goer who still wants to see ‘flash’ there will be several pricey vehicles including the $245,000 Rolls-Royce Ghost, Porsche Boxster Spyder and the $375,000 Lexus LFA super car. There will also be the futuristic concept cars that often look great on auto show display stands but rarely make it to dealer showrooms. And for the green consumer, Toyota will stage the North American debut of its long-awaited Prius plug-in hybrid concept, first unveiled in September at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
