The Continental: The Good, the Bad, and the Ho-Hum from the 2013 New York Auto Show

Each week, our German correspondent slices and dices the latest rumblings, news, and quick-hit driving impressions from the other side of the pond. His byline may say Jens Meiners, but we simply call him . . . the Continental. Another New York auto show has come and gone, and this year's was a good one. Most manufacturers were present in the Big Apple last week, and there was a number of new vehicle launches. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the 2015 Volkswagen Golf won World Car of the Year honors, and the Porsche Boxster/Cayman duo was voted World Performance Car. The Tesla Model S earned the World Green Car nod, while the Jaguar F-Type roadster took the well-deserved World Car Design of the Year award. Consulting firm Prime Research surveyed the 66 World Car Awards jurors, a global group of motor journalists which includes this magazine's Eddie Alterman and Dan Pund, as well as myself, and came up with some interesting results. While connectivity and efficiency still rank among the most important topics worthy of coverage, E-mobility has most definitely fallen out of favor. It dropped to sixth—from third last year—out out of ten topics of focus. Asked only about alternative powertrains, journalists ranked the most conservative approach—the plug-in hybrid—above the range-extended electric vehicle, reversing the two options' rankings from last year. Only the plug-in hybrid was evaluated more positively than last fall, while ratings for the range-extended EV, fuel-cell-electric, and battery-electric dropped sharply. The media's love affair with the EV—which I was never quite able to follow—seems to be over. Just before the New York show, BMW let a few journalists sample a prototype three-cylinder engine in a European 1-series hatchback body. Contributing editor Csaba Csere has already levied a thorough assessment of the technology, but I too personally liked the little engine—it is a cheerful, lively motor with a sporty exhaust note. BMW readily admits that the three's 1.5-liter displacement is not ideal in terms of noise and vibration, but it is the best compromise for fuel economy. The three-banger is part of an engine family that will include four- and six-cylinder gasoline and diesel engines. It might sound odd, but I found the three-cylinder engine to have more character than most four-cylinder engines. Bring it on. A quick side note: The upcoming BMW M4 and its four-door sister model, the M3, will get an engine based on the current N55 straight-six, not a member of this new engine family. BMW rival Audi presented the A3 sedan, but not exactly at the show itself. Not wanting to spoil its own upcoming Shanghai show debut, Audi definitely wanted to spoil the Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG's big reveal. So it put the A3 and S3 sedans up in an off-site photo studio and provided journalists a shuttle service to and from the auto show. Audi executives were on hand to explain the A3 and S3 sedan's styling and technology. I attended as a skeptic, expecting a chubby and boxy compact sedan. But in the metal, I found the sedan looks great. Not a single body panel is carried over from the A3 Sportback, and this includes doors, fenders, and the front hood. (Only the grille and the headlights are shared with the regular A3, as is the interior.) There's more angularity in its details, which previews future Audis' design touches. The front fascia is unique for both the A3 and the S3 sedan, and even in standard trim, it resembles the treatment applied to the brand's aggressive RS models. On the power front, the 355-hp Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG is a clear winner against Audi's 300-hp S3. An RS3 sedan is in the works, and it could pack around 380 horsepower. But that car is a long time away. For now, Källenius' troops take the lead. The sedan will beget the upcoming A3 Cabriolet, with which it will share its wheelbase, track, hood and fenders. For some reason, the sedan's hood appears a bit longer than the Sportback's, even though it is actually the same length. This bodes well for the droptop, which I think it will be a really good-looking convertible. I liked the face-lifted 2014 Chevrolet Camaro—it is fantastic, and I think the refresh fixes everything that was slightly odd about the original. In an ideal world, Chevy might have paid some more attention to the interior, as well, but at least the body's better. The Jeep Cherokee is another debut I enjoyed (I am ducking as I write this). It's styling is bold, original, and futuristic. Pretty it isn't—after all, a lot of heritage Jeeps weren't pretty, either. After the flak this SUV has gotten from all sides, Jeep designers must be busy working on a facelift, which hopefully won't put us to sleep. Because the rest of the vehicle, including its interior, is fairly unremarkable. Instrumented Test: 2013 BMW 760Li First Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA250 / CLA250 4MATIC First Drive: 2015 Volkswagen Golf The third-generation 2014 Cadillac CTS was a major letdown, although it does nothing wrong. With this car, Cadillac has refined its Art and Science aesthetic to a point where it is hardly recognizable anymore. Instead of the sharp and clear lines of the current CTS, the next generation serves up a side view and window area that looks suspiciously like the current Mercedes-Benz E-class, topped off by Cadillac's interpretation of BMW's "Bangle butt" trunklid style. Gone are the sedan's cool and original fender vents, and the aluminum wheels look exactly like the ones on the E-class, which look exactly like the ones on the BMW X6 M. It seems we've stumbled across a rare consensus among the designer community! Though I was underwhelmed by the CTS's conservative exterior, I did like the interior. The center console features an interesting, asymmetrical theme, and I love the fact that Cadillac will offer a blue color scheme, which had seemingly disappeared nearly everywhere but the ultra-luxury segment.  from Car and Driver Blog http://blog.caranddriver.com

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