Covering the Silicon Valley Auto Show

We DID have boots on the ground for the Silicon Valley Auto Show (namely, mine and my toddler son's) and we're gonna do our best to give you some of the highlights of the show.



Above is a Lamborghini Gallardo provided by Club Sportiva (think of them as a high end sports car sharing company. One of the few cars that looks good in yellow.


Look out! It's Godzilla! The Nissan GT-R is one of the hottest cars on the market, and one of my all time faves.


The legendary BMW M3. Long the gold standard of the luxury sport sedan market, this specimen was dressed in a matte black paint job that looked absolutely stunning.



Fiat had a selection of their 500's to peruse. The best looking in my opinion was this 500 Sport in Nero paint with a Nero interior. Amazingly, I was able to fit all 6'1", 240 lbs of me in the back seats. Note the tachometer inside the spedometer. Nicely laid out.




This is the cockpit of the new 2012 VW GTI, the great granddaddy of the Hot Hatchback. Like the rest of the car, the interior was refined. Spartan (and for some reason missing a piece of the bottom part of the steering wheel), but highly functional. Plus, I like the fact that they offer it with a dual clutch and flappy paddles.


Practically dripping with retro charm, this 2012 Challenger SRT-8 is one of my personal favorites of the current muscle car offering. Sadly, most of the car's lesser guises are too heavy for the engines currently mounted in them. But it's so charming you won't care if it farts in bed and picks its nose. This is a cool car.
(Does not include booth babe).




The two above pictures show the exterior and interior of Mazda's Mazdaspeed3, probably the best answer to the GTI. As you can see, the interior is a little busier and the styling is pure boy-racer. Then again, it's got 60 more horsepower than the GTI, and more torque. This is another one of the cars on my personal "short list" of cars to own.



Another new showing from Mazda, this is their all-new CX-5. While it's not the first Mazda vehicle to feature their patented Skyactiv technology (supposed to deliver better fuel performance without sacrificing performance integrity), the CX-5 is the first vehicle to be designed with Skyactiv from the ground up. Sadly, since this was one of only 2 actual vehicles stateside, we weren't able to tour it.


Finally, the Mazda MX-5 (aka the Miata). The roadster reborn, there's little that can be said about this car that hasn't already been written, save that I can actually fit my bulky self in there.
Barely. But I can.


One of the best selling rally-cars around, this is the 2011 Subaru WRX. Featuring a blown H4 flat Boxer engine good for 260 horsepower and all wheel drive, the WRX is a potent vehicle. Below is the interior for the hotrodded WRX STi. Sadly, Subaru were unable to ship the all new BRZ for their show, but if they had, you'd bet your tail we'd be all over it.




Seen here is part of the vaunted Hyundai Genesis Coupe. And a hefty guy. This variant has a 3.8 liter V-6 good for 306 horsepower, rear wheel drive, and a very tasteful interior with good visibility. Note on the interior the blue screen at the top of the center console. Not only does it show your average fuel economy, but peak torque too. Flappy paddles round out the performance pedigree for this vaunted coupe. A note for taller passengers though: don't expect to fit in the back seat unless you are under the age of 14, are a little person, or have somehow cut off your head and legs.




One of the more unusual showings from the korean company is the new Hyundai Veloster. This odd little 3 door hatchback has something endearing about it. Whether it's the odd third door on the passenger's side, the available six-speed dual clutch transmission, the plethora of technology or the fuel economy, this baby's a compelling little vehicle. Sadly, most reports come in that it's a little underpowered, so keep your eyes peeled for a turbocharged variant later this year.



We had a celebrity here at the auto show. This Camaro SS dressed up in its movie-star persona (complete with Autobot symbols), this is another great muscle car. It does have its faults (little visibility, for one, and somewhat questionable ergonomics for another) but is still a great car.



We're pretty sure here that Bruce Wayne would have at least one of these to drive to work or through the hills above Gotham when he's not kicking various supervillians. This is not just the CTS coupe, it's the CTS-V. What does that mean? Well, how does a 556 horsepower supercharged v-8 sound to you? Note that there are no exterior door handles. This car is entirely keyless. What's that you say? You need more space than a coupe? Well, we have the answer to that below.

Who doesn't like a little swagger wagon? Same engine as the other CTS-V's, this one has an extra bit on the end, so after you're done running around with your hair on fire, you can make the run to Home Depot and finish the honey-do list.



Seen here is the all new Fisker Karma. What is there to be said about this car? Well, for starters, it produces a monstrous amount of horsepower. Granted, this is sort of a "feel good" car for the rich and famous (the wood they use is rescued from underwater, for instance). However, there's a good indicator for what's going to be available for the average consumer. And it is a very striking vehicle.


Rolls Royce Ghost. Not many details on this one. This is the sort of car you buy to be driven around in, not to drive.


The Lotus Evora. Marketed as the softer, more civilized Lotus sports car, it's not as hard edged and sharp as the Elise. It is, however, slightly more practical (rear seats anyone?).


At one time, the McLaren F1 was the fastest car in the world at 240 miles an hour. And if you want to, you can purchase it's proud and handsome grandson pictured here. Sure, it's not going to beat a Bugatti Veyron, but a) where are you going to take it where that will be an issue? and b) the only people who care are going to be your fellow snobs at the country club.


A Gallardo Spyder. The Gallardo is getting long in the tooth, but until the Aventador comes out, it's more or less our only choice. Then again, it's good looking, and it's fast enough to smoke just about anything else on the road.


The Jaguar XF. The replacement for the old S-type. This is probably one of the more distinctive luxury sport sedans on the market. And it has a real sense of occasion about it. I intend to cover this car in greater detail in another post because it truly deserves it.




Pictured above are the exterior, dashboard, and gadget tray of the Kia Forte Koup. This is arguably the sportiest guise for the Forte. I am pleased to report that for this new generation, the plastics in the cockpit, while still hard, certainly feel less cheap than the previous iteration. However, this isn't the only sporty offering from Kia.



This is one such offering. This is the Kia Optima. It's a handsome car, this. Sporting a turbo-charged 4 cylinder engine and striking styling evocative of Audi and Volkswagen, the car makes a compelling case for itself. Additionally, the materials inside have an upscale feel to them, offering good value for the average consumer.



This is another sporting offering from Kia. The Sportage Turbo with AWD offers similar performance for the Optima, but with an AWD crossover twist for those of you who don't like sedans. The upscale materials persist in this car as well, and the cockpit sports plenty of room for 4 adults.

That's all for now. I'll be posting more of these photos as the week goes on. I don't want to saturate you all too much.