{"id":29781,"date":"2022-09-18T13:32:45","date_gmt":"2022-09-18T17:32:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=29781"},"modified":"2022-09-18T13:32:45","modified_gmt":"2022-09-18T17:32:45","slug":"mustangs-dinosaurs-and-ducks-the-top-10-attractions-at-the-detroit-auto-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2022\/09\/mustangs-dinosaurs-and-ducks-the-top-10-attractions-at-the-detroit-auto-show","title":{"rendered":"Mustangs, dinosaurs and ducks: The Top 10 attractions at the Detroit auto show"},"content":{"rendered":"

Detroit<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 The Detroit auto show is finally back after a long hiatus. But it\u2019s now more Detroit Fair than auto show.<\/p>\n

Walk over to the totally revamped Huntington Place exhibition center Sept.\u00a017-25 and you’ll find animals (Rams, Mustangs, Broncos), games (VR, simulators, raffles), food (elephant ears, corn dogs, pizza), thrill rides (Bronco Mountain, Camp Jeep, Lightning launches)\u00a0and flying machines.<\/p>\n

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Even the weather has changed, with pleasant, carnival-like, 80-degree\u00a0temps so attendees can walk outside and enjoy the day. Or the giant duck (another animal).<\/p>\n

Of course, automobiles are still the centerpiece of the fair \u2014 er, auto show. But they are presented on acres of carpet like an oversized dealer lobby \u2014 not surrounded by the multimillion-dollar\u00a0mega-stages of yore that looked right out of a Broadway theater. The Detroit Three automakers dominate the show floor with Ford sandwiched between the General Motors’ brands in the South Hall and Stellantis brands to the north. Gone are sprawling stages from BMW, Volkswagen, even Mercedes that once rocked the South Hall with bold autonomous cars and $100,000 AMG SUVs.<\/p>\n

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A more compact show is in their place so that mom and dad can easily shop for their next family car. But when the kids get antsy \u2014\u00a0Dad, can we see something other than cars?!<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 the parents can follow the neon green footsteps across the hall to the Dinosaur Expedition and time-travel back to the Late Jurassic.<\/p>\n

I used to write about the Top 10 cars at the Detroit auto show. But in recognition of a show transformed, here are the Top 10 attractions.<\/p>\n

1) The Concepts.<\/strong>\u00a0Detroit auto shows have seen some wild concepts over the years, and ’22 is no different. Electric vehicle platforms and the electronics revolution have given designers new tools to play with. Check out the sleek Buick Wildcat. Or the wicked Dodge Charger Daytona Banshee, which will shriek as loud as a V-8 Hellcat thanks to its Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust.<\/p>\n

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Or check out the bling-tastic Lincoln Star Concept. It features a see-through frunk that turns opaque when you load it with cargo. It has a slide-out work desk in the front seat \u2014 a drink chiller in back. And it one-ups Rolls Royce \u2014 replacing the umbrella in each rear door with a \u201cdigital briefcase\u201d compartment so can charge your laptop while accessing its files on the Star\u2019s multiple screens.<\/p>\n

2) Camp Jeep.<\/strong>\u00a0Jump in a Gladiator pickup or Wrangler Rubicon on the show floor and a driver will demonstrate the dirt kickers\u2019 diverse off-road skills. The highlight (pun intended) is a climb to the top of a rollercoaster-like hill where you get Huntington Place\u2019s best views.<\/p>\n

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3) Ram pull.<\/strong>\u00a0Next to Jeep is the Ram ride where you can luxuriate in the pickup\u2019s palatial interior while the truck clean-and-jerks a 7,000-pound cement wall off the show floor. Dad will be pulled kickin\u2019 and screamin\u2019 out of this ride. The Ram 2500 Limited, for example, has a 850-torque diesel, camera mirror, multiple camera angles, and a console screen the size of the Henry Ford IMAX\u00a0theater.<\/p>\n

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4) Corvette Z06.<\/strong>\u00a0The Biden Administration wants the industry to go electric, but someone forgot to tell Joe Biden. The president is the owner of a \u201967 \u2019Vette and his favorite car when he toured the show floor Sept. 14 was the new, V8-powered, 670-horsepower Corvette Z06 that\u2019ll sing like an F-15 on afterburners when you put your foot into it. It made all the evening newscasts. It\u2019s painted orange so you don\u2019t miss it.<\/p>\n

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5) Rubber duckie.<\/strong>\u00a0Painted yellow and unmissable is a 61-foot inflatable duck in front of the convention center. You can see it from space. It honors the Jeepster tradition of getting \u201cducked.\u201d If \u00a0a Jeep owner likes another Jeep, they put a duck on it. Sign up for Jeep\u2019s $100,000 raffle and you\u2019ll get a tiny rubber duck, too.<\/p>\n

\"Detroit<\/p>\n
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6) Dinosaur Expedition.<\/strong>\u00a0Rivaling the duck in size are the Brontosauruses in Matt Flynn\u2019s Dinosaur Expedition. Just follow the green footprints in the lobby and they will lead you to the Ballroom, which has been transformed into a dino playground. Take a dinosaur ride, listen to dino stories, buy dinosaur toys. It’s dino-mite.<\/p>\n

\"Detroit<\/p>\n
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7) The Mustang.<\/strong>\u00a0The \u2019Vette isn\u2019t the only car resisting the electric trend. The new, 2024 Mustang is in the house. It\u2019s muscular, it\u2019s menacing, it\u2019s got a V-8 . . . but the surprise is a 21st-century\u00a0interior with huge digital screens run by Unreal Engine 3D. That\u2019s right, the same gaming company that designs your kids\u2019 Fortnite video game.<\/p>\n

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8) Chrysler 300C.<\/strong>\u00a0The 300C\u00a0is heading for the exits after 17 years, but not before 2,200 copies of this final edition model are made (they\u2019ve already sold out). With its slab sides, big grille\u00a0and Hemi V-8, this is the ultimate gangster getaway car.<\/p>\n

\"Detroit<\/p>\n
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9) Aircraft.<\/strong>\u00a0Since you\u2019re no longer freezing in January, the Detroit show wants to invite you outside and scan the skies. There you\u2019ll find the Drone Show with 300-400 drones celebrating Opening Day of the show’s public run at 9 p.m. Saturday. Inside you\u2019ll find the biggest commercial drone you\u2019ve ever seen:\u00a0the six-engine ASX that will deliver people \u2014 or packages.<\/p>\n

\"Detroit<\/p>\n
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10) Lap the Detroit GP.\u00a0<\/strong>Also outside, get in line for a lap around the Detroit Grand Prix\u2019s new\u00a010-turn, 1.7-mile course as the race returns to city streets next June for the first time in 30 years. The track winds north ’round the RenCen, skirts the waterfront, then shoots back west along Jefferson Avenue. At press time, a show spokesman said that VW and Chevy would be giving\u00a0rides.<\/p>\n

We hope the Chevys are Corvette Z06s.<\/p>\n

\"Detroit<\/p>\n
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Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Detroit\u00a0\u2014 The Detroit auto show is finally back after a long hiatus. But it\u2019s now more Detroit Fair than auto show. Walk over to the totally revamped Huntington Place exhibition center Sept.\u00a017-25 and you’ll find animals (Rams, Mustangs, Broncos), games (VR, simulators, raffles), food (elephant ears, corn dogs, pizza), thrill rides (Bronco Mountain, Camp Jeep, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29781"}],"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\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29781"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29781\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29782,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29781\/revisions\/29782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}