EchoBooming in Birmingham

This week is the 2006 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit.

Media days started yesterday and the first thing I want to mention about the show is this damn fine looking BUICK that GM rolled out yesterday.

Biggest Shocker

Sexy Buick….two words that have never before been allowed in the same sentence….

It is called the Enclave, and it shares it’s platform with the replacement Saturn Vue and an Opel (Opel is a GM brand in Europe).
GM’s move to consolidate GMC, Buick, and Pontiac dealerships was a great move in my opinion, and fresh good looking product such as this may very well save GM. I wish them good luck, they’re going to need it.

And most of the most… Lexus rolled out the new LS460L.

That extra L stands for LOOOOONG. Try a 203 inch wheelbase (that’s almost 90 inches bigger than the monstrosity that is the HUMMER H2), 19 speaker audio system w/ an internal hard drive that can store 4000 songs (first thing out of my wife’s mouth when I told her about the hard drive in the car: “How in the world would you get the songs on to the hard drive?” I’ve created a nerd monster, I’m so proud!), and eight (yes gears in the automatic gearbox. The 4.6L V8 promises 380 hp, 370 lb-ft of torque and zero to 60 times of 5.5 seconds. A hybrid version will be shown at the New York Auto Show in April.

Biggest throwback to yesteryear

The Chrysler group recycled two names bringing back both the Challenger and the Imperial nameplates.
Both cars are built on the LX platform shared with the Chrysler 300, and the Dodge Magnum/Charger. Stretched 17 inches in the form of the Imperial, and shortened by 4 with the Challenger.


The thing I’m most happy about? They’re finally putting a manual transmission on those wonderful marketing machines known as the HEMI engine.

More to come…