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LA Auto Show 2011: Small SUVs, meet sex appeal
Most automakers saved their big debuts for the Detroit show, but LA offers eye candy all its own
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There’s no better illustration of the gulf between auto enthusiasts and everyday car buyers than this year’s LA Auto Show. Few automakers rolled out the hybrids and electric vehicles that dominated past shows; those that did were overshadowed by 180-mph sports cars and hot hatchbacks. One automaker — BMW — used its time in the limelight to introduce a trailer of the next the "Mission Impossible" series, along with the film's lead actress, Paula Patton, who extolled some of the Bavarian brand's sportier virtues along with Tom Cruise's driving skills.
But the new stars with the best box-office prospects were a trio of boxy small SUVs: the Ford Escape, the Honda CR-V, and the Mazda CX-5. Americans' demand for tall wagons with all-wheel-drive — the cross-training sneakers of the auto world — has never been more fervent, and for their makers, the stakes have never been higher.
For Ford, the new 2013 Ford Escape attempts to replace a decade-old model that was once the bestselling SUV in the country. Designed to be sold around the world as the Kuga, the new Escape eschews the block styling for a slipperier shape that mimics the Ford Focus, with which it shares basic components. Three engines — including two EcoBoost turbo four-cylinder models — replace the V-6 and hybrids offered previously, while promising better fuel economy and up to 237 hp.
Although the Escape will boast a long list of tech features — from automatic parallel parking and shutters for better aerodynamics at highway speeds to a liftgate that can open with a kick under the rear bumper — it's no longer available as a hybrid. Ford says the smaller C-Max hybrid will serve the same market when it debuts next year, and that the smaller EcoBoost actually offer betters mileage on gasoline alone, for a lower cost.
