The Future of Automobile - Detroit vs Las Vegas!

Jens examines the battle over the preferred venue to showcase the future of the automobile – Detroit versus Las Vegas!

A few years ago, there was no doubt about the fact that the automotive year takes off with the Detroit auto show. It was the must-go-to event that you couldn’t miss. But times have changed. This year, carmakers dealt with Detroit in a variety of ways. Mercedes-Benz launched the new G-Wagen in an impressive show. The Big Three – Chrysler, Ford and General Motors – promoted pickup trucks and diesel engines. But others dismissed the show altogether.

Its fiercest competition came a week earlier, in the form of the CES show at Las Vegas – the former Consumer Electronics Show, a meeting place for computer geeks, engineers and investors. The auto industry likes to latch onto it to prove it’s in tune with the times.

In fact, CES is getting more interesting every year. As carmakers are shifting their attention from powertrain technology to telematics, connectivity and infotainment, it provides a near-ideal venue to showcase their forward-looking solutions.

One of the most impressive models was the new A-Class by Mercedes-Benz. Daimler invited me to come along for ride in a disguised prototype of the new hatchback, and I jumped on it without hesitation.
 
While I appreciate carmakers’ efforts to improve connectivity, my personal approach is to go for a frugal car and just use my mobile phone for navigation. But I have to admit that the new A-Class offers options far beyond that. Meet “Mercedes,” the automotive equivalent of Alexa. She listens attentively.

In fact, it’s difficult to come up with a semi-logical command or question that “Mercedes” doesn’t understand. Ask her whether you’re going to need an umbrella or sunscreen, and she’ll share the weather. Whether you prefer McDonald’s or a Michelin-Star restaurant, you get a curated list of restaurants, complete with driving instructions and patron ratings. If this is the future, bring it on.

CES, of course, focused on electrics as well. Two start-ups were especially prominent – Faraday Future, with its offsite event, and Byton, with the debut of a concept car that hints closely at a production model. Henrik Fisker promoted his Emotion concept, to be commercialised shortly. The future of these electrics is doubtful, but they give CES a contemporary and forward-looking aura.

Fast forward by a short week – the Detroit auto show didn’t even bother with electrics. There were a few electric concepts, but none aiming to be taken seriously. Instead, diesel is back! The “Big Three” – Chrysler, Ford and General Motors – are fitting them into their pickup trucks. The diesel scandal seems over, although the Germans appear to be still obsessing over it. BMW continues to offer an oil-burner in the US, while the VW Group and Mercedes-Benz are pulling out. In the passenger car segment, Chevrolet and Mazda are rushing to fill the gap.

It’s unfortunate that many important brands chose to skip Detroit, including Aston Martin, Bentley, Bugatti, Ferrari, Jaguar Land Rover, Lamborghini, Maserati, Porsche and Volvo. 

The few impressive show cars included the Infiniti Q-Inspiration, Karim Habib’s first great effort. The most impressive show was put on by Mercedes-Benz, with a captivating pre-night event that included not only the G-Wagen, but also former actor, bodybuilder and California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. At the show entrance, they placed a 42-ton amber-coloured resin sculpture containing an original G. And the show stand featured an impressive presence of historic and current G models. 

While carmakers focused on “old-school” technology, suppliers showed the way forward. ZF, Schaeffler, Röchling, and others showcased technologies for autonomous driving, electrification and improving the internal combustion engine. Their task is not made easier by an EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) that has lost its clear mission and is struggling to cope with the new reality of a presidency more concerned with creating jobs than with the elevated goal of saving the climate.

The Chinese threat, by the way, was present in Detroit as well – not in the form of electrics, but of an affordable brand with cool design and modern combustion engines. Called “Trumpchi” in China, the near-premium brand by GAC shed its model designation for obvious reasons. But the brand is dead serious about launching in the US market. And, thus, the Detroit auto show may have given it a more realistic view of the future than the competing expo in Las Vegas.