mmarshall

Once again, we had a pretty nice show here at the Washington D.C. Convention Center, though, of course, not quite the size or scope of the Detroit or Los Angeles Shows. Still, the D.C. show is nothing to sneeze at. Unlike many other shows, it is sponsored by a dealer organization, WANADA.....the Washington Area New Auto Dealers Organization (when available, that often means free show-passes given out at local dealerships). I always pick up several passes each year, both for myself and for others, though this year, they didn't seem to have printed quite as many as before, and they didn't come in until the last minute. The D.C. show, for many years, unlike Class-A Detroit and L.A., was considered a Class-B show. But, when the new D.C. Convention Center was built, it was upgraded to a borderline Class-A show and moved to late January, so that Members of Congress and local/national government officials could attend. The old D.C. show was held just after Christmas, overlapping into the New Year, when Congress was in recess, most members back home in their districts, and D.C. was pretty much shut down. Now, of course, more VIPs attend. In fact, a couple of years ago, President Obama and his Secret Service team came by one day in the middle of the week (he wanted to see the latest alternate-fuel vehicle displays, which his Administration advocates....they were in a separate section), and the Secret Service, for security, cleared the ENTIRE lower-level of the show out (yes, including me) for a couple of hours while he was there.

http://wanada.org

http://www.washingtonautoshow.com

This year, the Detroit Show ran until January 25th, so, of course, it overlapped the first two or three days of the D.C. show (which started January 23rd), and, with the overlap and prime importance of the Detroit show, meant that, as usual, it got some displays that were missing from the D.C. show...examples were the Buick Cascada convertible and Avenir concepts, Chevrolet Bolt (no, not Volt....BOLT, a full-electric), Mazda CX-3, Honda HR-V, and the next-generation Toyota Tacoma. I had especially wanted to see the HR-V, as my brother is (maybe) going to need a good reliable small AWD vehicle like that in the future, and that seems like one of several good potential choices. Still, we'll see it later in the year here in D.C., at the dealerships...yes, I'll probably review one.

Toyota DID have two Mirai Fuel Cell vehicles (a small-to-medium size sedan) at the show.......one inside the show and one parked outside on Toyota's local test-drive circuit. Honda also had its latest FCV fuel-cell car (which, of course, will probably be the Mirai's closest competitor) inside on a static-platform. That was perhaps my biggest disappointment at the show....JUST barely missing a chance to briefly test-drive a Mirai. The dark blue sample they had outside had pretty much been reserved for the formal press. When I told them I was a CL Editor, though, they considered that a semi-journalist, and said they would try and schedule me. But, unfortunately, there were just too many already-reserved slots for the regular press, and that particular car was not going to stay there for the entire show. Probably not that big a deal, though....the Mirai, like Honda's fuel-cell FCV, is not really intended for the local D.C.market, but primarily for California, where they have more of an infrastructure in compressed-hydrogen refueling stations for it. The electric motor in it runs on a fuel-cell/electrolysis mechanism that uses very highly-compresed hydrogen, creating electricity for the motor and water vapor in the exhaust. We just don't have much, if any, of an infrastructure for a car like that here in this area. Even California, its most likely market, only has a very limited number of hydrogen-refilling stations.

Toyota and a couple of other automakers (sometimes alternating each day) did have a number of other vehicles ready on the local test-drive circuit.....the same one they use each year, and shared this year by the Mirai fuel-call car. It's not really much of a circuit, mostly stop-and-go on local potholed D.C. city streets, but it does give you an indication of what the suspension and general comfort is like on rough roads. But, of course, for a real test-drive, you need to go elsewhere...another reason why I was not even more disappointed not getting to sample the Mirai. I sampled the latest Toyota RAV-4 and Highlander on the drive-circuit, as a colleague of mine, from my church, is interested in one.....maybe replacing his old 1999 RAV-4. I won't go into the new RAV-4's details here, except that its overall interior, workmanship, materials, and stop-and-go driving feel in city traffic were better then I had expected. Again, with the Highlander, I won't go into many details (not really much of a test-drive).....except to say that its electric power steering was surprisingly heavy in its steering-effort at low speeds, even for my big arms.

Inside, as usual, Chevy, Ford, and Toyota each had enormous square-footage of display space, dwarfing the space of the other manufacturers. As has been the case for several years now, there were no displays from Porsche or Mitsubishi, even though both still sell in the American market, and I didn't notice any formal display from Tesla, either.....odd, considering how well the Model S sells here in the D.C. area. Mitsubishi dealerships seem to be folding faster than an outgunned poker player, and I'll be surprised if they are still formally in the American market next year. Also as usual, there were a few exotics and mega-luxury cars on the floor, but no real effort from their manufacturers to provide formal displays. Last year, Flemings Garage, a local dealership in Rockville, MD specializing in antiques/muscle-cars/classics, had a rather large display of their restored 50s/60s/70s vintage cars, but was not there the year....GM itself filled the antique-car gap with their 50s-vintage concept Futurama bus and a couple of concept 50s-vintage Cadillac and Pontiac convertibles. Jeep didn't have a particularly large area for their latest-model static-displays, but made up for it with the usual (for the last several years) indoor obstacle/simulated-off-road driving/riding course, which, of course, took up a lot of real estate.

Among the GM vehicles there, I was particularly impressed with the new Chevy Colorado/GMC Canyon. Not that they were anything that glamorous or striking in themselves......they weren't, just run-of-the-mill mid-size pickups by today's standards. But, IMO, what made them worth looking at, the year, was the huge, and I mean ENORMOUS improvement over the old Colorado/Canyon (also sold as the Isuzu I-series pickup before Isuzu left the American market). The old 5-cylinder Colorado/Canyon, IMO, was an insult to truck-buyer's pocketbooks. On a static-review, I was so put off by its third-rate fit/finish and material build-quality that I walked right out of the dealership, and didn't even bother to test-drive it......and, according to later test by Consumer Reports and other publications, I didn't miss much. Well, happily, that old truck is gone, and is now replaced by a REAL mid-sized truck, with what appears to be quality workmanship and good materials inside and out......:thumb up: it should be great competition for Toyota's upcoming new Tacoma.

Over at Ford, of course, the new lighter-weight, aluminum-bodied F-150 full-size pickup got a lot of onlookers, as to be expected with the F-150's enormous sales numbers. But I wasn't that impressed with its interior or general fit/finish compared to its Silverado and Ram primary competitors. I might (?) review or test-drive it, though, as Ford, like the last several years, was signing up people at the show for prepaid $50 debit-cards for dealer test-drives (yes, of course, I signed up). The new 2015 Mustang, not surprisingly (usually more popular than its Camaro and Challenger competitors) got a lot of onlookers. Though I didn't formally check the new dimensions, the Mustang seemed lower and shrunk a little in overall size this year, but its exterior was just striking....arguably the most aggressive-looking regular-production Mustang ever built. The dash/gauges seemed well-done, too, with high quality materials....but I found the sheet metal, doors, and door panels, despite the striking looks, somewhat tinny in feel, lacking trim, and not up to the rest of the interior. The main problem I had, though, were the ultra-narrow, high-bolstered sport-seats. They were WAY too narrow for my wide, oversized frame, the stiff bolsters dug sharply into my back and rump, and the side-bolsters, in the versions displayed there, didn't adjust out like in some cars. No thanks, no matter how good looking or nice-driving it may be, I could never actually own or drive this car.......save it for smaller adults and Pony-car fans.

Fiat had the interesting 500X AWD 5-door crossover small SUV up on a turntable (ditto for Jeep's small Renegade), but I couldn't actually sit in them. There's been lots of talk lately about Scion's possible discontinuation, but they still had a nice display there, though somewhat understaffed. As usual, I won a number of the auto-trivia question-games at both the Scion and Toyota displays, but gave away the prizes to the kids on both sides of me. I love to see their little eyes light up when I get the prize, turn around, hand it to them, and say "Merry Christmas".

As a Verano owner, I was somewhat disappointed in the Buick display this year, even though, like for the last few years, it was the very first display as you walk inside the upper show-entrance, and are the first vehicles you look at. As aforementioned above, the interesting Opel-derived Cascada convertible and Avenir concepts were still up on display at Detroit, and not shown here (perhaps not surprising, given the Detroit show's greater importance). The existing LaCrosse, though nice, isn't really a true flagship, and Buick tried to show off a sport-oriented version of it, up on a platform, with oversized wheels and ultra-low-profile tires. There were almost no onlookers (who in their right mind wants a sport-sedan LaCrosse, a car that is supposed to be a smooth, quiet cruiser?), and the girl on the platform doing the narration seemed to be taking to the wall. They only had one Verano there this year, and, though it had the typical Verano ultra-comfortable front seats and well-assembled high-quality interior, the sheet metal and door solidness didn't seem quite up to the levels of my own personal car, and the doors and latches had a slightly tinnier sound as they shut, even though the car has not had a major redesign yet. Still, I think this car is a excellent deal for the money (24-30K), and I'd buy another one in a heartbeat.

Since I'm writing this primarily on a Lexus forum, many of you are probably wondering how the Lexus display was. Although the standard ES350 and LS460 models were there, and drew a lot of show-traffic, I didn't see an LS600HL, but I might have just missed it, as displays sometimes vary each day. But the clear emphasis this year, without question, was on the F and F-Sport models. There were a number of different versions there, although, once again, the full GS-F was at Detroit.....the Lexus reps there said they didn't have a second copy available for D.C. Lexus, IMO, had one of the most interesting displays at the show this year, especially since Jeep didn't have its usual indoor obstacle-driving course set up this year for space reasons. Anyhow, Lexus had a IS F-Sport jacked up some seven feet off the ground, on four solid steel posts, so that one could walk under it and examine the F-Sport underbody components....that, not surprisingly, also drew some show-traffic. Both the RC F-Sport and full-F coupes were there...several versions of them, one with a stunning bright glow-orange color, and another with a DEEP electric blue that were both just stunning and, IMO, among the best and most mirror-smooth paint-jobs at the show. I sat inside a couple of the unlocked RC coupes, but I had (to a slightly lesser extent) the same problems as with the new Ford Mustang seats......too large and wide a torso/rump for the seat-bolster width, even with all of the seat's numerous power-adjustments.

The Mazda display was somewhat disappointing, as the new prototype Miata and CX-3 compact SUV (both of which I had wanted to see) were.....(where else?)......in Detroit. The CX-3 is another good possible future choice for my brother, and, of course, I don't have to expound on the Miata's popularity...it speaks for itself. As usual when I'm at the show, I spent some time in the current manual-top Miata, demonstrating to onlookers how ingeniously simple the top-lowering mechanism is.....with a couple of times for practice, one can raise or lower it in about 3 seconds. A power-hard-top version is also available (and was on display).....that, of course, provides extra security from thieves/break-ins, the weather/elements, and makes it easier for those who have disabilities with their hands/arms/shoulders. Still, probably I couldn't own a Miata......it clearly is not designed for a person my size, and, like most pure sports-cars, is primarily a good-weather vehicle not suited for slick roads.

Hyundai had a sign-up contest giving away a new Sonata Turbo (worth some 35K), and $500 cards, but I didn't get involved, and it didn't seem to attract much floor-traffic (I'm satisfied with the gift-cards Ford and Lincoln give out for their test-drives). Kia had the usual entertaining big hamster-displays for the Souls...and an all electric Soul EV out on the floor.

I was far more impressed with the Audi display there than the competing BMW display, as the BMW display (as has been the case for a number of years) was manned by somewhat aloof, indifferent reps that didn't seem particularly interested in who looked at their vehicles and who didn't. In addition, some of the newest generation of BMWs themselves have some well-publicized issues with the electric steering, mushier suspensions, indifferent fit/finish, and ho-hum handling/driving feel taking away from the superb Ultimate Driving Machine experiences of yesterday. In contrast, the Audi display had much friendlier (though still somewhat aloof) reps, vehicles that seemed to be significantly more carefully built/painted/finished/assembled, and, IMO, simply a better value for the money. A couple of the new 3-series models I looked at, in contrast, not only had marked orange peel in the paint, but very small bumps/burrs in the paint which looked like there was maybe dirty air or particles in the paint-shop at the plant.

The show also included its usual schedule of musicians, entertainers, TV personalities and past/present Washington ***skins football players (though I myself don't think it's a big deal, I won't publicly use the team's full name because of its controversy and the fact that it offends some people). While it is officially part of the show, I usually don't get involved much with the non-automotive displays (or write about them), since, as a car enthusiast, I go to the show primarily to see and write about cars, and, IMO, the rest of it is a waste of time....I don't care about celebrities. I DID, however, miss John Davis this year....I didn't see him at the show then I was there, where he often has a seat in the auto-press-booth. He's not really a close friend of mine, but I (casually) know him, and sometimes talk with him. He and Pat Goss, of course, do the local TV Motorweek show. The last couple of years, I've seen and talked with Warren Brown there, who writes a weekly auto-review column for the Washington Post newspaper, but I didn't run into him this year either.

All in all, a nice show again, as usual for recent years.....and, to be fair, MUCH better than the B-Class D.C. shows of years ago. Of course, IMO, it would be better if more new displays were included here that typically are shown off first at Detroit (or sometimes at L.A.) The D.C. area sells some six times the number of new vehicles each year that the Detroit area does......and the L.A./SoCal region some ten times the number. Both are probably the two top new-vehicle markets in the U.S.....though Atlanta is rising fast. But, like it or not, the Detroit Show has become such an established tradition that, even though much of the auto industry's corporate office-space has actually moved out of the region to other areas, and the city's condition and economy has been deteriorating for years, it is still clearly the main event on the show-circuit, and receives most of the attention.

(Sorry for the lack of pictures in this initial post, but, among other vehicles, I did take some cell-phone digital-camera shots of the RC-Fs there on both the turntable and the floor, as I know that CL has a lot of interest in them. I'll try to include them if I can get past some issues transferring them from my camera and posting. In the meantime, I included some show-links).

So far, I've used up two free show-passes with three actual show visits (On the second visit, I managed to fool the people at the gates with left-over ink on my left hand from the first visit that didn't wash off quickly. They didn't change the hand-stamp color the second time I was there, and enough ink was left over on my hand, in the proper marking, to appear that I had just gotten a fresh stamp. I'm not a dishonest person by nature, but I don't consider that cheating.....just taking advantage of something they themselves did on my hand the first day that was more than necessary. Since the show runs till Sunday, Feb. 1, I plan to go back at least one or two more times with my two remaining free passes, perhaps with friends/colleagues who are actually shopping for a new vehicle or interested in one....but I probably won't be doing any additional write-ups on the show, unless I get a chance to test-drive something I wasn't expecting.

Last, a hearty congratulations to CL moderator bitkahuna on his brand new Jeep Grand Cherokee and LexsCTJill's father on his brand-new Lexus ES350. May the 2015 D.C. show be dedicated to them.

And, as usual, my traditional sign-off...........

Happy Car Shopping.

MM

dseag2

This may be totally off topic, but when I bought my Audi S5 a few weeks ago the salesman bent over backwards to make sure I got the car/deal I wanted, then surprised me by having it in the showroom when I got there to sign the paperwork. It had to be shipped from another dealer, and he told me I could sign the paperwork and pick it up several days later. They shipped it overnight. Nice surprise!

Also, the Finance Manager had what I can only describe as a desk whose top was a huge iPad. He would turn it around to face me, I would go through all the online paperwork, then simply sign online and hit "next". It was a great experience. It truly does seem like Audi is trying to be more user-friendly a tech-oriented.

Lastly, I just had my windows tinted yesterday. The salesman met me personally to take the car and gave me the keys to a brand new A5 S Line with B&O and only 13 miles. The plastic had just been taken off of it.

Seems Audi is trying harder and harder to bring themselves up to Lexus service standards and even surpassing them.

dseag2

(moderator: no need to quote the entire show report to add one line below. )

One question... was the Infiniti Q60 coupe concept at the show? If so, what did you think?

mmarshall

Congratulations on the new S5. Both the A5 and S5, IMO, rank among the best-looking coupes in the industry......and I know I'm not alone in making that statement.

Did you inspect your S5 thoroughly before you signed for it? It may have been sitting in the showroom all nice and spiffy for you when you got there, but if they actually drove it on the road down from another dealer, it could (?) have picked up some scratches or dings, especially on the front of the hood, windshield, lower-body panels, or around the headlights. On the other hand, since they were so nice to you at the dealership (I found the Audi reps at the auto show generally a little nicer than at BMW), if a little scratch on it is, otherwise, no big deal to you, then fine.

dseag2

Oh, yes. As excited as I was I would never have taken delivery of a car that wasn't pristine. It is flawless, and as good-looking as it is, it drives even better!

This is actually my fourth Audi. I had an '09 A5, a '10 S5 Cab and an '11 S5 Cab. This is the best yet because it has the structural rigidity the Cabs don't have so it feels like a vault and is a blast to drive. I had my '13 GS F Sport for 3 years, and it was also a fantastic car, but I was missing that "personal coupe" feel and the S5 design still gets me everytime!

I'm actually afraid of what the next gen S5 is going to look like because Walter D'Silva's design was so timeless I can't imagine them improving on it. They did a great job on the A7, so all hope is not lost!

mmarshall

The Q60 just made its debut at the recent Detroit show. I didn't specifically see it here at the D.C. show (yet).....but, since the Detroit show is now over and the D.C. show runs four more days, till Feb. 1, they might (?) bring it down here from Detroit for the tail end of the show. I've made a note of it, and will check on it for you next time I'm at the D.C. show (I plan on going at least one or two more times). What I've read and seen from auto-press reports on it, though, it is basically a more modern and highly-styled replacement for the old G35/G37 coupe which itself once shared a (somewhat) common platform with the even-older Nissan 370Z pure sports-car.

dseag2

I like what I see so far, and we have a G37 Convertible with a lease coming up in 2 years. I could write a book about the squeaks, creaks and road noise in the G Vert, but I'm not the daily driver. I hope they improve things in the new Q60. It may be a consideration.

mmarshall

Good. When you put out the kind of $$$$$ it takes to get into an S5 (they start at some 52K), you deserve something flawless. And Audi's fit/finish is as good or better than any other mass-produced brand in the industry.


Agreed with you on the styling.....except for the oversized Audi grille, it's hard to find a better-looking coupe today. Sometimes the S5 is criticized for not having quite the kind of power you will find in comparable Mercedes AMG or BMW-M series cars, but I'd still take one over its upmarket German competitors. And, even so, the S5 still has WAY more than enough power to get out of its own way. ....and if still more power is needed, the RS5 model will fit the bill, and be somewhat closer to AMG and M power levels.

You mention that you are getting window-tint. If you want it, here is a link on the tinting laws in the state of Texas.

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/rsd/vi/...windowTint.htm

LexBob2

I saw an interview a while back with a VP from Audi and her job is to improve the customer experience in both sales and service at Audi dealerships. She said they are using Lexus as the benchmark, and feel they have a good plan in place but acknowledged the challenges of getting them implemented at the dealership level. It sounds like a high priority at Audi.

TangoRed

If it makes you feel better know that the previous 3-series convertible was no better. I can say this from experience and from hanging out in the E93 forums in the past. These 3-piece folding hardtop designs are not good from a creak/rattle perspective. Regular lubing of the seals seemed to help but meh.

mmarshall

Among all the vehicles there, I didn't bother to give a personal-opinion Best-in-D.C.-Show award like I sometimes do, since I didn't think that anything in particular this year necessarily stood out above the rest of the vehicles there. But, even though considering that it is still simply an ordinary mid-size pickup, the new Chevy Colorado/GMC Canyon is such an enormous improvement over the Crap-O-Matic previous version that I would not be surprised if some publications give it their Truck of the Year or Vehicle of the Year award. True, the upcoming Toyota Tacoma will also doubtless be an improvement, but, unlike the Colorado/Canyon, the previous Tundra was also quite a good truck.

mmarshall

How long did it take from when it was brand-new till you started hearing creaks/rattles?.......or did you buy it used?

spwolf

thats nice to hear... many dealer groups own different brand dealerships, so i guess that many groups that own Lexus dealerships also own Audi's as well, so I always wondered why are the scores so different.

I remember when i lived in SoCal, my buddy went to buy loaded A4 3.0i on the spot, with money in the pocket and since we are IT guys, we came in our usual work outfit, which was old tshirts and worn cargo shorts, and we walked around the lot for 15 minutes with 5 sales guys looking at us and not wanting to come out. That kind of p* us off so we just walked away. Of course, this being SoCal, we just drove 8-9 miles to next dealership where they were awesome and he got the car right away :-).

dseag2

Well, in all honesty I purchased an '11 S5 Cabriolet from this same dealership (almost $70k) and it was the same salesman that I dealt with. He welcomed me back into the Audi fold. I used to think of myself as not brand loyal, but it's pretty much either Lexus or Audi for me at this point. I like Infiniti too, but they have fallen so far behind. Hopefully that will change.

TangoRed

Took about one year for the creaks/rattles to start up. They were louder/more frequent in cold weather.