{"id":21465,"date":"2017-12-01T12:04:10","date_gmt":"2017-12-01T16:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=21465"},"modified":"2017-12-01T12:04:10","modified_gmt":"2017-12-01T16:04:10","slug":"paynes-10-best-from-the-la-auto-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2017\/12\/paynes-10-best-from-the-la-auto-show","title":{"rendered":"Payne\u2019s 10 best from the LA Auto Show"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/-mm-\/1874e56789807adc3f380241470a1d81ef4182fd\/c=1827-1093-5141-3585&amp;r=x404&amp;c=534x401\/local\/-\/media\/2017\/11\/30\/DetroitNews\/DetroitNews\/636476572605729665-1-intro.jpg\" alt=\"636476572605729665-1-intro.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div><p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\"><em>Los Angeles\u00a0<\/em>\u2014\u00a0Drive to the Detroit auto show, and the General\u2019s Renaissance Center reminds this is Detroit 3 territory. Take Interstate 105 to the Los Angeles Auto Show, and you know this is Elon Musk\u2019s town.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">Space X headquarters \u2014 with a tall rocket marking the spot \u2014 anchors Hawthorne Airport where Tesla recently debuted its semi-truck and lightning-quick Roadster supercar. Model S sedans are as common as Cadillacs in Motown. Californians embrace Musk\u2019s electric vision as surely as Michigan loves V-8s.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">LA is very green and very rich, and its auto show generally echoes that demographic with world premieres of battery-powered cars and luxury chariots. Enter the show floor and Tesla\u2019s booth of premium Model S, Model X and Model 3 sets the tone. Jaguar, Audi, Mercedes and BMW follow with their own green machines.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">But new SUV debuts from Subaru and Jeep and Corvette remind that Californians are hardly monolithic in their vehicle choices. They have big families, love the rugged outdoors and crave power. At this show they\u2019ll find a diverse lineup of vehicles to scratch every itch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Here are the 10 best new vehicles on the floor:<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Jeep Wrangler:\u00a0<\/strong>The original World War II Willys Jeep would be jealous. The Wrangler gets a modern makeover including the latest UConnect infotainment system, smartphone app connectivity, rear heat and air conditioning, and sippy hybrid turbo-4. Nice. But this rugged, adult-size Lego toy is still about escaping to the Outback. The roof, doors \u2014 even the front windshield \u2014 are easier to snap off so you can lock the differentials, climb mountains and ogle nature.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ad-position-812\" class=\"partner-placement partner-spike\" data-monetization-id=\"native-article_link\" data-monetization-sizes=\"fluid,3,3\">\n<div id=\"ad-slot-7103-mi-detroit-C1561-native-article_link-money-autos-814\" class=\"ad-slot\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_7103\/mi-detroit-C1561\/native-article_link\/money\/autos_2__container__\"><iframe id=\"google_ads_iframe_7103\/mi-detroit-C1561\/native-article_link\/money\/autos_2\" title=\"3rd party ad content\" name=\"google_ads_iframe_7103\/mi-detroit-C1561\/native-article_link\/money\/autos_2\" width=\"100%\" height=\"0\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Audi A8:\u00a0<\/strong>The Audi packs a different kind of versatility. The all-new flagship sedan packs more toys into its long wheelbase than Santa\u2019s bag: rear-seat foot massage, touchscreen display (goodbye rotary dial), 360-camera views and electronic body control which smooths every road wrinkle. Wrapped in an elegant design, it\u2019ll even drive itself when Traffic Jam assist comes online. A 48-volt battery supplies the juice for all the new gizmos.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Mercedes Project One:<\/strong>\u00a0Talk about applying racing technology to the street. Ripping the driveline right out of F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton\u2019s Malaren, the 1,000-horsepower, 1.6-liter, V-6 Merc hybrid is a 217 mph, all-wheel drive weapon. From its F1-style steering wheel to its carbon chassis, this is a grand prix car with fenders. If you have to ask how much it costs you can\u2019t afford it.<\/p>\n<div class=\"partner-outstream\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Corvette ZR1:\u00a0<\/strong>Corvette wants some of that high-tech performance for itself, which is why its building a mid-engine sports car of its own. Watch for it at January\u2019s Detroit show. In the meantime we have the throwback ZR1 which pushes the very limit of what a front-engine sports car can do. With 755 ponies, 13 heat exchangers and a supercharger poking through the hood, this Hulk is busting out of its shirt. Without 1,000-pounds of downforce, this rocket would fly.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Nissan Kicks:\u00a0<\/strong>Nissan kicks its funky Juke to the curb. The frog-eyed Juke is no more as the Nissan\u2019s subcompact design pendulum swings wildly to the conservative side. The Kicks joins the Chevy Trax and Honda HR-V as conventional utes in the segment, downgrading the Juke\u2019s 188-horse fun-factor to a 125-horse, CVT-driven four-banger. Want a quirkmobile? Try a Toyota C-HR.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Subaru Ascent:<\/strong>\u00a0A year after dropping the extra-extra-large Viziv-7 concept on the LA show, Subaru is back with the real thing. The eight-passenger Ascent is the all-wheel drive second shot at the three-row market (after the late, failed Tribeca), and this one should stick. That\u2019s assuming Subie buyers can stomach an un-PC supersized ute. They\u2019ll feel better about its sippy, CVT-driven turbo-4 \u2014 though I hope it\u2019s not too underpowered for the big fella.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>BMW i8 Roadster:\u00a0<\/strong>BMW dropped a stunning eight new models on the LA show, but the topless, gull-winged i8 was the showstopper. The plug-in hybrid Roadster ditches the coupe\u2019s small backseats and the top goes down in just 16 seconds up to 31 mph. Battery-only range grows from 15 to 18 miles, but like its supercar peers the BMW puts the battery to best use in acceleration. Zero-60 in just 4.4 ticks.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Porsche Cayenne:\u00a0<\/strong>This is the SUV that started it all. Today, every premium performance automaker has translated their sports car DNA to a Frankenstein SUV: Maserati Levante, Alfa Romeo Stelvio, Jaguar F-Pace \u2014 even Ferrari has committed to a crossover. The Cayenne, now in its third generation, mints money that Stuttgart plows back into sports cars. The new ute sheds 143 pounds with 550 horses available from a twin-turbo V-8.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Mazda Vision\/Mazda6:\u00a0<\/strong>I don\u2019t normally honor design concepts with a top 10, but if the Vision\u2019s vision eventually translates to the already pretty, production Mazda6 sedan, it\u2019ll be the best-looking sedan made. Period. The simple, sleek Vision is so luscious you want to lick it. The story of the production Mazda6 that debuted this week is under the skin, where Mazda introduces the nimble mid-sizer\u2019s first turbo-4 \u2013 a 310 pound-feet of torque stump-puller.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\"><strong>Tesla Model 3:\u00a0<\/strong>Making its debut on the auto show circuit, the Model 3 deserves its hype. Though not as lovely as big-brother Model S, it is no less stunning for its simple, iPhone-like interior and electrifying performance. Motor Trend\u2019s LA-based team were the first journalists to test the low-center-of-gravity Model 3 and confirm it\u2019s as nimble as it is quick out of a light.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Los Angeles\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Drive to the Detroit auto show, and the General\u2019s Renaissance Center reminds this is Detroit 3 territory. Take Interstate 105 to the Los Angeles Auto Show, and you know this is Elon Musk\u2019s town. Space X headquarters \u2014 with a tall rocket marking the spot \u2014 anchors Hawthorne Airport where Tesla recently debuted its [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21465"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21465"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21465\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21466,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21465\/revisions\/21466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}