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Had a chance to attend the show a few days ago - overall it was a bit smaller and understated than in previous years with very few true concept cars.
BMW / Mercedes - Both had great setups at the show and a bunch of cool cars including various M/AMG.
Sitting in these cars and playing with the tech - both of these brands are on top for a reason, they offer almost everything you can want and there are really no compromises here. Styling, Performance, Interior Quality, Technology, Customization, etc. If you have the $$$ look no further.
Audi - They had nice display with RWD R8, new RS5, new A6, A7, A8.
I'm not a fan of the styling at all on the new ones and the interiors of new A6,7,8 are not my cup of tea especially the strange steering wheels. The Audi trend of the FAKE exhaust tip with a cover is just super tacky.
Genesis - They are really doing some amazing things.
G80 Sport - fantastic design with just right balance of luxury and sport, i think it is probably the best looking midsize luxury sedan. The interior is good quality but a step below Eclass/5series. Lots of room in the back and car comes fully loaded. This might replace our Legacy, i was really impressed.
G90 - WOW besides the Lincoln Navigator this was the other car that really left an impression. The interior quality, design, huge NAV, and enormous space in the back. I think the exterior styling is good as well. A lot of current LS owners need to see this thing if new LS is not for you.
Cadillac - All the cars look great and especially new CT6 Vsport but the interiors and CUE system are still really bad.
Lincoln - The brand is hopefully on its way back. To me the new Navigator was the Most Impressive of the show from the regular cars, it had a lot of buzz at the show. I sat in the Black Label and I was blown away by the interior quality, design, attention to detail, new NAV display etc. It was the blue/white leather. Honestly I think it was on par with the Sclass designo interiors and the seats are just amazing. You can definitely see why these are selling so well and just shows when you make great products people can tell and it will be successful. The new Aviator looks great and will be another hit. Sitting in the Continental after the Navigator makes you want to cry.
Volvo - I was REALLY impressed by all their cars and interiors are really good quality. Love the styling as well. Their cars had a lot of attention.
AlfaRomeo - Giulia and Stelvio look great but interiors and tech are really bad. The NAV display shutoff 3 times on me while i was trying to use it.
Range Rover - Another brand that is doing great things. The new Velar will be a major hit, it looks like a concept car. The interior has some new tech and bigger NAV. Quality of materials is good.
Jaguar - They need help badly. The Fpace looks great but interior is crap. XE and XF both have cheap interiors and styling is boring imo. Ftype is still amazing!
XJ still looks great but has dated interior and tech.
Acura - New RDX looks great, everything else is meh. NSX - can they give us a cheaper RWD non hybrid version???
Infiniti - Not a fan but new QX50 looks nice and will prob sell, i was not impressed at all by its interior.
Subaru - Finally made it to the main floor of the show! If the crowd was any indication - the new Forester and Ascent will sell like crazy.
VW - Holy crap the new Jetta is cheap feeling inside.
Kia - Nice lineup of cars / suvs overall. I was NOT impressed by the Stinger interior. I sat in the Stinger GT and for $50k it felt a bit cheap and certainly not on same level of a Genesis G80.
Ford - Mustang Bullitt looks good and Ford GT, from a design perspective this car is amazing.
g80 - exterior great, drives great, but yes, interior needs a refresh
g90 - yup, that's why i got one.
volvo - they're on a huge role and i look at them as the stealth chinese invasion
vw - seems to design/place/price products in the u.s. as if they they think being 'german' (no matter where they're actually made <cough> mexico? </cough>) is enough to justify cold/old interiors, boring exteriors, pricing that's mostly high for what you get, and just overall meh. it just comes off as arrogant and set up to protect the high paying german union jobs.
Had a chance to attend the show a few days ago - overall it was a bit smaller and understated than in previous years with very few true concept cars.
Thanks for your write-up....good job. I have some comments, though.
Cadillac - All the cars look great and especially new CT6 Vsport but the interiors and CUE system are still really bad.
The Cadillac sedans pale in interior quality compared to the rock-solid materials used in the Genesis G80 and G90. I can't comment on the new CUE system as I haven't tried it yet. I don't remember the Caddies at the D.C. show being powered up like the Buicks were.
Lincoln - The brand is hopefully on its way back. To me the new Navigator was the Most Impressive of the show from the regular cars, it had a lot of buzz at the show. I sat in the Black Label and I was blown away by the interior quality, design, attention to detail, new NAV display etc. It was the blue/white leather. Honestly I think it was on par with the Sclass designo interiors and the seats are just amazing. You can definitely see why these are selling so well and just shows when you make great products people can tell and it will be successful. The new Aviator looks great and will be another hit.
Yes, the Navigator was also hit at the D.C. show. I agree wth the Best-in-Show award....I (privately) gave the one here the same thing (so did some of the local journalists here).
Sitting in the Continental after the Navigator makes you want to cry
It's THAT bad in your view? I'll respect your opinion, but that seems to exaggerate it some. Like the Cadillac Escalade and 1Gen Buick Enclave SUVs, The Continental is typical American luxury-sedan chrome-and-glitter bling from the distant past......something we haven't seen in a sedan for quite some time.
Volvo - I was REALLY impressed by all their cars and interiors are really good quality. Love the styling as well. Their cars had a lot of attention.
Volvo does a nice job with the light-colored Birchwood trim......something you don't see from many manufacturers.
Range Rover - Another brand that is doing great things. The new Velar will be a major hit, it looks like a concept car. The interior has some new tech and bigger NAV. Quality of materials is good.
I hope, for once, that the quality of assembly and reliability is as good as you say the basic materials are. Land Rover has a long history of unreliability.
Jaguar - They need help badly. The Fpace looks great but interior is crap. XE and XF both have cheap interiors and styling is boring imo. Ftype is still amazing!
XJ still looks great but has dated interior and tech.
Depends on what you call "dated"....though I agree with much of how you put it. A number of people, me included, feel that the older Jag interiors with wood and Connally leather were far superior to some of their products are offering today.
Subaru - Finally made it to the main floor of the show! If the crowd was any indication - the new Forester and Ascent will sell like crazy.
The Forester has sold like crazy for years.
VW - Holy crap the new Jetta is cheap feeling inside.
How else would it be, after all the money VW has had to pay out in recent fines and settlements? That's money, of course, that they couldn't spend on interiors.
Kia - Nice lineup of cars / suvs overall. I was NOT impressed by the Stinger interior. I sat in the Stinger GT and for $50k it felt a bit cheap and certainly not on same level of a Genesis G80.
Looking cheap and feeling cheap is often two different things. I grant you the Stinger interior is not luxury-car-grade in terms of looks (especially compared to a G80, although a more fair comparison would have been to a G70). But cheap or flimsy materials it is not, at least IMO...everything feels and operates rock-solidly.
Ford - Mustang Bullitt looks good
Agreed, but it probably would look even better if they had used the original 60s-style five-spoke Cragar mag wheels.
In regards to Lexus - I don't want to be negative since this is CL but nothing was that impressive out of all their offerings.
Lets start with the good - they had a beautiful LC500 on the stage in new Blue color with the Blue/Orange interior, amazing!
GSF and RCF 10year Anniversary Editions both looked great and the blue accent interior looks superb in person.
New UX is ok I guess, better than old HS and CT.
Now the bad - LS500
To me the new LS was a huge disappointment in terms of styling, interior room, interior quality, NAV graphics are ancient!
1st i hit my knee on the protruding angle of the dash board getting into the damn thing. It is really small and low compared to G90/Sclass/7series. The legroom in the back is mush smaller than competition and on par with G80 not G90. Besides the small dimensions, the interior quality surprised me the most. It felt considerably cheaper than the G90. I will post pics of detailed examples. I predict the LS will not sell well and the target market is way different on this one than previous gens. Maybe there is a Luxury version of the car but the one on display was an Fsport which was anything but luxurious.
In regards to Lexus - I don't want to be negative since this is CL but nothing was that impressive out of all their offerings.
Lets start with the good - they had a beautiful LC500 on the stage in new Blue color with the Blue/Orange interior, amazing!
GSF and RCF 10year Anniversary Editions both looked great and the blue accent interior looks superb in person.
New UX is ok I guess, better than old HS and CT.
Now the bad - LS500
To me the new LS was a huge disappointment in terms of styling, interior room, interior quality, NAV graphics are ancient!
1st i hit my knee on the protruding angle of the dash board getting into the damn thing. It is really small and low compared to G90/Sclass/7series. The legroom in the back is mush smaller than competition and on par with G80 not G90. Besides the small dimensions, the interior quality surprised me the most. It felt considerably cheaper than the G90. I will post pics of detailed examples. I predict the LS will not sell well and the target market is way different on this one than previous gens. Maybe there is a Luxury version of the car but the one on display was an Fsport which was anything but luxurious.
The F-Sport version does not do the LS justice. You must experience an LS500 with a $12K Luxury package or $17K Executive package to get more or a sense of a Lexus flagship. The Quilted double stitch, perforated semi-aniline leather interior trim for example is wunderbar lol
The F-Sport version does not do the LS justice. You must experience an LS500 with a $12K Luxury package or $17K Executive package to get more or a sense of a Lexus flagship. The Quilted double stitch, perforated semi-aniline leather interior trim for example is wunderbar lol
That still doesn't solve the limited cabin space for a car in this class or the old graphics of the multimedia system.
Honestly i was more impressed by the Volvo S80 interior.
The new G90 though is what the LS460L used to be just more modern and for like $70k!
Genesis - They are really doing some amazing things.100% agree. Quality, styling, and performance, value.
Cadillac - All the cars look great and especially new CT6 Vsport but the interiors and CUE system are still really bad.100% agree. Cheap stitching and average plastics.
Lincoln - The brand is hopefully on its way back. Sitting in the Continental after the Navigator makes you want to cry.100% agree. Fit/finish in the Conti is not competitive. Navigator finally puts Lincoln on the map.
Volvo - I was REALLY impressed by all their cars and interiors are really good quality. Love the styling as well. Their cars had a lot of attention. 100% agree. They have become a true luxury brand with their latest gens. Downside is the 4cyl/NVH powertrains.
Jaguar - They need help badly. The Fpace looks great but interior is crap. XE and XF both have cheap interiors and styling is boring imo. Ftype is still amazing!
XJ still looks great but has dated interior and tech.100% agree. Cheap cheap cheap interiors is why I walked away when I considered an XE a couple years back.
Acura - New RDX looks great, everything else is meh. 100% agree. On paper, I'd buy this RDX over the current NX (and over all else in this class).
Kia - Nice lineup of cars / suvs overall. I was NOT impressed by the Stinger interior. I sat in the Stinger GT and for $50k it felt a bit cheap and certainly not on same level of a Genesis G80. Mostly agree. Disagree with the Stinger's interior being cheap but for 50 large USD, you might have a fair argument but it's no worse than an IS or A4/A5, 3/4-series in that price range. Think also XE (that's the worst one...). Also, the Stinger "competes" more with a G70 for which it is based on that a G80 which is a class above.
Lexus well, I too am disappointed with the LS but to Hoovey's point, the non-F-Sport presents itself so much better on the inside...
Good writeup!
Now the bad - LS500
To me the new LS was a huge disappointment in terms of styling, interior room, interior quality, NAV graphics are ancient!
1st i hit my knee on the protruding angle of the dash board getting into the damn thing. It is really small and low compared to G90/Sclass/7series. The legroom in the back is mush smaller than competition and on par with G80 not G90. Besides the small dimensions, the interior quality surprised me the most. It felt considerably cheaper than the G90. I will post pics of detailed examples. I predict the LS will not sell well and the target market is way different on this one than previous gens. Maybe there is a Luxury version of the car but the one on display was an Fsport which was anything but luxurious.
I don't know what you're smoking but the LS500 interior easily blows away the G90 in both design and quality.
I saw them both at the autoshow as well as the competition and you just lost all credibility with that statement. There is no comparison.
That still doesn't solve the limited cabin space for a car in this class or the old graphics of the multimedia system.
Honestly i was more impressed by the Volvo S80 interior.
The new G90 though is what the LS460L used to be just more modern and for like $70k!
You have to keep in mind the LS500 is not as traditional as LS's past, so that's not surprising. The 'limited' cabin space is part to the styling. I akin the new LS to more the Panamera, XJ, and Quattroporte rather than A8, 7, S-Class these days.
There's only two sedans in Volvo's stable. The one you're referring to is called the S90. 2016 was the last time there was an S80.
Dunno about the 'old graphics'. Sure it's not google maps, but they look pretty crisp compared to past Lexus navigations
Now the bad - LS500. To me the new LS was a huge disappointment in terms of styling, interior room, interior quality, NAV graphics are ancient!
1st i hit my knee on the protruding angle of the dash board getting into the damn thing. It is really small and low compared to G90/Sclass/7series. The legroom in the back is mush smaller than competition and on par with G80 not G90. Besides the small dimensions, the interior quality surprised me the most. It felt considerably cheaper than the G90. I will post pics of detailed examples. I predict the LS will not sell well and the target market is way different on this one than previous gens. Maybe there is a Luxury version of the car but the one on display was an Fsport which was anything but luxurious.
Originally Posted by Mr. Burns
I don't know what you're smoking but the LS500 interior easily blows away the G90 in both design and quality.
I saw them both at the autoshow as well as the competition and you just lost all credibility with that statement. There is no comparison.
I have not seen the new LS500 interior close-up or checked out the materials (I plan to look at it later this spring), so I won't comment on it now. But I see no reason why RNM GS3 should be accused of "smoking something" just because he or she doesn't like the way that Lexus did the new LS500, and posted an entirely subjective opinion. IMO, we can all disagree with someone (I might disagree with RNM GS3 myself when I see the interior....we'll see)...without resorting to language like this.
I don't know what you're smoking but the LS500 interior easily blows away the G90 in both design and quality.
I saw them both at the autoshow as well as the competition and you just lost all credibility with that statement. There is no comparison.
I have no reason to lie about this and its my opinion but i posted pics to back up my points.
The good thing about the auto show is you can sit in these cars back to back and compare quality, tech, size etc.
For a new flagship for Lexus after 11years for previous gen, I expected more.
Cars like new Navigator, Genesis G90, Volve S90 really impressed because these brands are not known for producing top quality interiors in recent history.
My standard for Lexus is much higher and the Fsport LS500 failed to impress even compared to those lesser cars.
The pics are of me sitting in the back and you can clearly see the limited legroom and also plastic on lower dash, behind front seats, and weird cheap looking door design details.
Hopefully the full luxury version is much better but the Fsport is also probably $80-90k.
I don't know what you're smoking but the LS500 interior easily blows away the G90 in both design and quality.
I saw them both at the autoshow as well as the competition and you just lost all credibility with that statement. There is no comparison.
I have driven both the G90 and the LS500 with the interior upgrade package and I disagree with your conclusion. They have vastly different styles, but the fit, finish, and material quality are very comparable. I happen to prefer the more traditional style of the G90. I have not seen one of the very high zoot LS interiors, so they might look better. What they can't change is the vast difference in interior room and roomy feel with the much larger G90 interior.
I don't know what you're smoking but the LS500 interior easily blows away the G90 in both design and quality.
I saw them both at the autoshow as well as the competition and you just lost all credibility with that statement. There is no comparison.
I agree. The LS500 is far nicer in design and materials than the G90. The G90 is nice. The LS500 is interesting and you need to want to pay the premium for it.
Cars like new Navigator, Genesis G90, Volvo S90 really impressed because these brands are not known for producing top quality interiors in recent history.
Unlike the other two, though, the G90 is a relative newcomer, and doesn't have a brand-history per se, unless you consider Hyundai itself to be its "history". And Hyundai certainly did a nice job on the 2Gen Genesis interior....the car that became the G80.
My standard for Lexus is much higher and the Fsport LS500 failed to impress even compared to those lesser cars.
Lexus used to pride itself on the slogan "the Relentless Pursuit of Perfection". Notice how you don't see that in the Lexus ads any more.
04-07-18, 09:17 AM
2018 NY Auto Show - Observations
I have some comments, though.
