pbm317

No Bronco, not sure what made you suspect that, as it hasn't debuted, but Ford did bring the Escape, which debuted at their Detroit event last week. Toyota has a red Supra on display, Lincoln had one Aviator. As expected by most here, nothing notable and nothing special for a regional show. Does that make it a bad show? No, it's just driven for regional consumers.

As LexusNN noted, the Jaguar ride is in the I-PACE this year, was the same little circuit with the E-PACE last year. EV ride experience, as well as the Jeep indoor ride (not as built up as the Land Rover driving experience).

No Mercedes or BMW, but Audi and Porsche have vehicles on the floor, including the Audi E-tron.

tex2670

I don't think that's how this works. Everyone is entitled to express their views or their opinions. Whether someone "cares" is not a prerequisite here, and you know that as well as anyone.

Johnhav430

That's interesting--never thought about that. Do you happen to know if Philly is about the local market/dealers association, as well? My hunch is yes.

Even with free tix, Phila. isn't even worth paying for parking to go to the show. Believe it or not, the flower show is the big event up here!

mmarshall

Agreed.....and I understand your point, but that wasn't the point I was getting at. It was why complain about the direction a thread is going in if you do not care about the thread in the first place? IMO that doesn't make sense.

mmarshall

You get free tix there in Philly too? And, as far as parking goes, doesn't Philly have a big subway system like D.C....or a subway station at or near the show site? of course, there is the question of parking at the station itself. I'm fortunate enough to have commuter-buses that run from very near my house to the subway station.

Johnhav430

Not recently, this was from my last employer...one of the best freebies from them was a Chinese New Year's dinner in Chinatown, the real deal (8 course is it I think? a banquet), even the mayor was in attendance. Then the next year they gave me tix again, and it was at the Hilton Garden Inn, and may as well been catered by P.F. Changs, awful food).

haha I've lived here since 1999 and never rode the subway, but have ridden regional rail, like when we went to see the Pope. Our parking is not that expensive so multiplying transit tix by 2 or 3 and parking is cheaper...

tex2670

Philly's subway system is limited, but both lines have stops within 2 blocks of the convention center. The regional rail system is much more extensive, and all lines stop underneath the convention center. It's not like DC's Metro system where it's a "subway" that becomes a regional rail going out to the 'burbs. It's more like NYC, with the subway almost entirely within the city limits, and the regional rail continuing out to the 'burbs.

If you go on a weekend, you can get parking within 4-5 blocks under $10. But @Johnhav430 is right--this year, my son and I went on a Tuesday. We parked 5 minutes away--I think for $18--for cheaper than 2 regional rail tickets.

Johnhav430

The Pope's visit really tested SEPTA, and I would give them an A. I've never experienced anything like it, imagine being pressed from every direction for 4 hours just to get there, and I have been to Dead shows in football stadiums, Soldier Field 2015 being the last. I took public transit to that from Evanston and I would rate their system worse than Phila. Phila. really isn't that bad to get around the burbs. But it is too expensive--makes little sense when driving and parking can beat public transportation...we took NJ Transit to a Devils game and I asked my cousin, that price is for one-way, we still have to buy another ticket, right? Nope, what I thought was one way was round trip. At least NJ wins there.

mmarshall

I'm dog-tired this evening (at my age and weak left leg, I always use up a lot of energy at the show), so I'm not going to write a whole lot tonight. I took in the whole top floor of the show, and got in latest-loop-drive of the VW Atlas on the way out (I'll do the lower-floor next week). Got some shots with my new i-Phone 7....I'll post them tomorrow morning, after some rest and a good meal.

In a nutshell, though, there were some highlights and disappointments on the top floor. Ford did NOT have the new Bronco there....the reps said they officially changed its designation from a 2020 to 2021 model, meaning they will also skip the New York Show and probably introduce it at Detroit. Ford did have the new 2020 Explorer there, up on a stand, and the 2020 Escape out on the floor but locked. Ford also had the $50 Mastercard test-drive offer again, so I signed up. Jill, you'll probably like this....Toyota had the new Corolla Hybrid there, on the floor, unlocked. I was far more impressed with it than I have been with any Prius, and it has the same gas mileage in a far more conventional package. The biggest disappointment from Toyota was the base Tacoma, which I thought was far less appealing than even the base Ranger or Colorado/Canyon. I won't go into what I had to say to the Buick and Chevy people (most of you can guess LOL) ...though I remained reasonably polite, and did not let too much of my composure get away from me. And, at the Chevy display, as I had suspected, the new Blazer was not getting much traffic.....less than the Equinox and Traverse, for that matter. The reps told me (and it appears credible) that only the people young enough not to remember the K5/two-door truck-Blazers or 4-door Trailblazers were showing any interest in it. And most of them can't afford the price, particularly on the top versions.

Steve (or anyone else from the D.C. area).......if you are going, be prepared to walk a little more than usual. They moved the baggage-inspection room down to near the front entrance, so, from the subway-exits, you have to walk at least two blocks down the street and turn the corner to get to the entrance. However, the subway glass doors are still used for the exits, so you have a much shorter walk on the way out, and avoid the weather.

Signing off for the night.....I'll try to post some pictures in the morning.

Toys4RJill

I saw the new Corolla at the show in Toronto. It’s at dealers now. Thanks for thinking of me.

mmarshall

Here's the new Supra....which was one of the feature-displays on the upper floor.

The stage-narrator went over it stem to stern, but never mentioned the BMW-source of the engine...when I reminded her, quietly, after the talk, she just winked and said 'Yes, you're right, but we don't tell people that" LOL.

mmarshall

Here's the new Corolla Hybrid. I think this is going to take a number of customers away from the Prius. Same gas mileage (52 MPG combined) and a much more conventional package.

mmarshall

I had to get a shot of this for old time's sake.

That's the Avenir, the top-dog Lacrosse, with the 20" wheel option.

To add insult to injury, the Buick people stuck it back in a corner, next to the wall, while all the other Buicks were out in front of it.

mmarshall

And here's the 2020 Ford Explorer. I've got review-requests for it, and I'll sample it whenever I get a chance. It looks pretty nice, inside and out.

These pictures with my i-Phone7 aren't perfect, but they are noticeably better than the crap-shots my old I-Phone 4 used to take.

mmarshall

(These shots are not from my camera)

I'm not an SUV fan per se, but I did like the GMC Acadia Denali. Hefty price tag, though...a lot more than my Lacrosse ran. I might do a test-drive next time I'm at the GMC shop.

My biggest concern wth this vehicle, though, is the fact that GM has sometimes tended to use passenger-car transmissions in heavier crossover SUVs, and that puts a strain on them and sometimes shortens their life.