2012 NAIAS Fails:

2012 NAIAS FAILS

When you bring a concept car or a production car to a big show like the North American International Auto Show, you really want to make a statement with that car and get as much good press as possible. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out and these are the cars we think fall into that category.

2013 Mopar 200 Super S was showed off at the Chrysler display in Detroit. Although I really do think the new 200 is a step above the Sebring, which isn’t that hard to do, I still feel that Chrysler needs to do more to improve its luxury status. Making a sportier Mopar variant isn’t what I had in mind.

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Buick came out and showed off its new compact SUV named the Encore. We reviewed the Enclave and liked the direction the style is going. It’s not so much the style that made this a fail though. This is a small SUV; as small as the Nissan Juke. Why does Buick need this car? Is there a big demand for this car in this segment? If GM was looking to bring the platform into the family, they should have probably started off with a Chevrolet instead of a Buick, but we could be wrong. They might just sell well. Only time will tell.

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Lincoln made a lot of hype about bringing the all-new MKZ concept to the Detroit Auto Show. We even saw a few teasers released by Lincoln that gave us hope. I’m just not digging the new design though; and it’s not just me. Lincoln needs to do something big to bring its name back and I’m afraid this just wasn’t it. It’s not just design, Lincoln needs to focus on who they want to compete with, and build competitive products, but they’ll never really be competitive with their front-wheel-drive platforms. They need to go all rear-wheel-drive or a true all-wheel-drive setup. They need to bring the enthusiasts in with a real halo car, whether that be a large luxurious RWD sedan, or a new sporty coupe based off the Mustang platform.

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