Events
State Fair of Texas 2024 – THE RISE AND FALL
State Fair of Texas 2024
THE RISE AND FALL
Media Day at the State Fair of Texas was less than impressive this year, as only Ram, Jeep, Dodge, Nissan and Toyota were touting their new vehicles. The morning’s standout was Dodge’s all-new electric Dodge Charger Daytona. The starting price is $59,595, while the Scat Pack starts at $73,190. This is an AWD, all-electric monster – and looks outstanding both inside and out. Boasting an exhaust sound machine to make it sound like a V-8, it’s hard to digest (and traditionalists will hate it – ed.) but it works with the accelerator just like a gas model. To keep all of it on the road it has Goodyear Eagle F1 Super 3 tires. (And with 0-60 time of just over 3 seconds you’ll be replacing those Goodyears weekly.) It’s a good thing it has a launch control for an outstanding start. The interior is well laid out, with no-nonsense controls and a lighting system to rock your drive. Later they will have gas models, but their timetable is TBD.
Ram is touting its all-new Ram electric truck, which is long overdue. With the Ford electric truck sales falling I wonder if it’s too late, but they say the Ram is as capable as the gas version, offering an estimated range of 350 to 500 miles with the larger 229-kilowatt pack. Maximum towing is 14,000 pounds, with a maximum payload of 2,600 pounds. Technology features include a 14.5-inch touchscreen and a passenger screen with a 10.25-inch touchscreen. The Interior model at the show is an all-out luxury theme. Hands-free active driving assist will make long drives more enjoyable. With a starting price of $58,000 (estimated) and jumping up to around $85,000 it is ‘competitively’ priced.
Nissan is showing its all-new Armada SUV. With its new styling and upgraded interior it should finally be a viable competitor in this segment. On the other end of the product spectrum, the Nissan Kicks has a bold new look and is available with 19-inch alloy wheels to give it a better stance.
Toyota has a whole new range of vehicles on display at the show. New models including the Sequoia 1796 (a great year for the Sequoia…ed.), the Tundra TRD Rally, a Highlander 25th Anniversary model, the GR Corolla with automatic trans for the first time, and the GR Hakone Edition to knock your socks off. But it’s the newest 4Runner that will get your paycheck.Ford – which didn’t hold a press conference – had the usual suspects at the show with the Bronco, Bronco Sport, Ranger, the F-Series in a range of models, and the impossible-to-get Maverick. As Maverick sales have outpaced capacity, they definitely got this one right, until – because of those capacity restraints – they didn’t. Ford’s F-Series is celebrating its 47th year as the number one truck in sales, which isn’t hard to believe.
