A Day at the Chicago Auto Show

The latest buzz in Chicago is surrounding the Auto Show.  What’s new?  What’s cool?  What’s really the BEST?  Really, all the companies are fighting tooth and nail to try and get our parents’ business.  With everything from bright, showy colors to unique designs, all dealers show off the best of their best.  But, they all seem focused now on one specific quality: green energy.

Walking into the Chicago Auto Show, I was shocked.  It was so big, wall to wall cars.  With bright, shiny lights on the polished cars, you wanted to go home behind the wheel of any one of the new models.  But, when you start to investigate, you see what’s really lying behind.

I started with Toyota.  I tried to talk to a representitive about the recent recalls, but they seemed very reluctant to answer questions.  (Maybe because I’m a kid?)  They sent me to another group of representives.  They said they were open to questions, but when I asked about how Toyota was planning to move forward after the recalls, they told me I should speak with regional.  At that point, it became too complicated.  I left but noted the display seemed pretty popular.  So maybe Toyota’s recalls haven’t affected their popularity.

The Ford exhibit caught my attention because it featured two robots from their factories.  They were picking things up and moving them.  I was drawn to Volkswagen by its virtual driving course.  To be honest, it was pretty hard.  I crashed in about 45 seconds!  But I think the most impressive display was by Jeep.  They had an entire, rugged course set up where you could take a ride and see what a Jeep could do (driven by professionals).  They even had mini Jeeps for the younger kids to drive around in an enclosed circle.

Althought Toyota wouldn’t even answer a few questions, I did talk to a few other representitives.  When speaking to a rep from Mini Cooper, he said that the cars you are able to sit in at the show are opened and closed roughly 200,000 times a day!  It all takes quite a toll on the vehicles (and there were A LOT of vehicles you could sit in, including a sports car and a concept car with seats like lawnchairs!).

Overall, the auto show was pretty impressive. The selection is very wide from a fancy $100,000 Lotus to a simple, green energy Chrysler.  But it also made me realize something I never thought of.  There is a car for every personality. With such a wide range of cars for a wide range of people, cars can reflect you and your perspective on life.  So, whether these car companies want to make you feel happy or  just want your money, it seems our cars will just keep getting better and better.

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