Last week, I ventured downtown to the North American International Auto Show (aka the Detroit Auto Show).  This annual event is held in Cobo, Detroit’s convention center, which sits next to Joe Loius Arena, the home of the Red Wings.  That detail isn’t important in relationship to this post, but GO WINGS!  For this excursion, I was joined by the nephew of my parents’ neighbor, a 20-something native of Brussels, Belgium.  It was his first time to the auto show, my Xth (where X equals the number of times the news has mentioned the potential a Red Wings move out of the city).  OK, enough Red Wings.  This post is about the technology behind the auto show.

Years ago, when my parents would take my siblings and I to the auto show, the draw was the car themselves.  Sure, for us, the attraction was the promotional material which we’d collect by the bagful and take home to later make a collage that may or may not be ticky-tacked to our bedroom walls.  For our parents, though, it was an opportunity to schmooze with the dealers, sit in an multitude of news cars on display, and maybe move closer to making a decision on a new car purchase.  Today, while the main attraction remains the cars, it is almost outweighed by the technology.  The vast exhibition hall is transformed by a technicolor array of LED video walls, flat-screen TV’s, and various interactive displays.  It’s a sensory overload, and also an overload of an overly-aged electrical system.  The technology overflow is the reported likely cause of a small electrical fire near the Audi display.

Apart from the electronic displays, each manufacturer displayed their latest electric vehicle in a bid to win consumer interest.  Two very unusual displays definitely impressed both of us.  The first was CT&T, a South Korean car manufacturer.  They build vehicles with a maximum speed of 35mph, intended for local, city use by public services such as police and fire.  They also produce toy-like (think Micro Machines) golf carts, food service vans, ice cream trucks, and an amphibious vehicle!  Apparently, the first widespread use of these vehicles was during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.  I’m doubtful we’ll see many of these vehicles in US cities anytime soon.

The other display was a small manufacture, Commuter Cars (website, blog), an entrant in the Progressive Automotive XPrize.  To illustrate the size of this manufacture (and its car), the booth was manned by the inventor/engineer himself!  Further, his son was in the Cobo basement in the ‘Electric Avenue’ providing free rides in one of his cars!  The web site speaks to the car’s ingenuity, most impressive of which is its size.  It’s a two-seater which can park between most of today’s cars.  This is it primary marketing appeal.  Just imagine – it’s the middle of extremely harsh winter, you drive into work and find the parking lot completely full.  The closest spot is at the farthest end of the lot.  No so if you drive a Tango!

My eyes still can’t believe what the future holds in the world of automotive technology.  Can’t wait for next year’s show!