Scenes from America’s largest auto show

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Scenes from America’s largest auto show
Chicago Auto Show

From its start in 1901, the Chicago Auto Show has grown to become the largest auto show in North America. Held every February at the massive McCormick Place Convention Center, the Chicago Auto Show opens for its 111th run today. Typically the scene of vehicle debuts, 2019 was no exception, with Land Rover unveiling the 2020 Range Rover Evoque, Subaru taking the wraps off the newly redesigned Legacy, and Kia introducing the brand-new Telluride SUV for the 2020 season. Not present this year are BMW and Mercedes, which are taking a breather from the auto show circuit for 2019, but just about every other mainstream and luxury automaker is on the scene.

A couple of days before the show opens to the public, the automotive press is invited to wander the vast (around a million square feet) exhibition space to get up close and personal with the vehicles on the display. If you can’t make it to the Chicago Auto Show, here’s some of what you’ll be missing.

The SUVs and crossovers

  • The 2020 Range Rover Evoque comes with a hybrid option.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Jaguar Land Rover is on an electrification kick, planning to offer EVs and hybrids across its entire lineup by 2021.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The all-electric Jaguar I-Pace. I drove one for a week in the dead of the Chicago winter. It’s an incredibly fun ride, but like all EVs, range suffers in the bitter cold.
    Eric Bangeman
  • I drove to the Auto Show in one of these, a 2019 Acura RDX.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Seeing the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio brought back good memories.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Q8 is Audi’s new luxury SUV. Although 8>7, the Q8 is a few inches shorter than the Q7.
    Eric Bangeman
  • That’s a massive grille on the Q8.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Audi E-Tron is aimed squarely at the Tesla Model X (and Jaguar I-Pace)
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Ford Expedition for civilians and law enforcement.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Dodge is getting in on the law enforcement action with the Durango
    Eric Bangeman
  • The 2019 Ford Edge is all new.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The 2020 Kia Telluride is a new SUV from Kia that will hit dealerships later this year.
    Eric Bangeman
  • I really liked the 2018 Maserati Levante. In case the V6 isn’t power enough for you, Maserati has added an eight-cylinder GTS.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Cayenne comes in a plug-in hybrid option.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The five-seat Porsche Cayenne is all new for 2019.
    Eric Bangeman
  • I’m not a fan of the “acid green” trim Porsche uses for its hybrids. It looks like what the head coach of the Oregon Ducks might drive to Autzen Stadium.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Toyota’s true off-roader, the Land Cruiser, turns 60 this year.

I primarily review SUVs and crossovers because our Automotive Editor Jonathan Gitlin hates anything with a center of gravity above ankle height. Luckily, there were some SUVs that caught my eye at the show.

Fun stuff

  • Acura celebrated the 30th anniversary of the NSX.
    Eric Bangeman
  • And right next to the new one is an original NSX
    Eric Bangeman
  • Alfa is discontinuing the 4C coupe, but the beautiful 4C Spider, which does things to my automotive lizard brain, is sticking around.
    Eric Bangeman
  • I drove the Arbarth on an autocross course last fall and it was a blast
    Eric Bangeman
  • I love the lines of the Maserati Gran Turismo convertible.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Mazda MX-5 hardtop is a beaut.
    Eric Bangeman
  • If there’s a hall of fame for timeless car designs, the 911 is surely a charter member.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Subaru BRZ is a sharp-looking coupe. 2019 sees a new limited-edition “Series.Gray” model.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Volkswagen showed off the new 2019 Jetta. Here’s the Jetta GLI.
    Eric Bangeman
  • You can tell it’s a GLI by the red stripe running across the grille.
    Eric Bangeman

SUVs account for around 70 percent of US car sales these days. But if the above vehicles don’t give it away, there’s far more to the Chicago Auto Show than SUVs and crossovers.

Stuff we can’t afford

  • There’s something sinister about the back side of the McLaren 720S
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Lotus Elise has exquisite lines.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Lamborghini got in on the SUV action with the $200,000 Urus
    Eric Bangeman
  • But if I was spending 200 large on a super-luxury SUV, I would pick a different color for the seats.
    Eric Bangeman
  • This is the first Karma Revero I’ve ever seen. The PHEV sedan starts at around $125,000.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Bentley Bentayga starts at $195,000.
    Eric Bangeman
  • An Aston Martin DB11 with a McLaren 570S Spider in the background.
    Eric Bangeman

Although the likes of Bentley, Rolls-Royce, and McLaren generally don’t bother with auto shows, a handful of supercars and other vehicles with six-figure price tags did make it to the Supercar Gallery at the Chicago Auto Show in 2019.

Other sights from the show floor

  • If you’re not hopping on the SUV bandwagon, the all-new 2020 Subaru Legacy is worth a look.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Subaru has drawn inspiration from Volvo for its revamped infotainment system.
    Eric Bangeman
  • For serious offroading, Jeep would like you to consider the Rubicon.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Jeep has the largest off-road course at the Chicago Auto Show. Here, a Rubicon drives up a stairway.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Kia had a small off-road course for the Telluride
    Eric Bangeman
  • Range Rovers all over JLR’s off-road course.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Toyota plays both sides of Chicago with these baseball-themed RAV4s.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Not to be outdone, Chevy reps the Blackhawks with this Camaro
    Eric Bangeman
  • A Chevy truck covered in Lego
    Eric Bangeman
  • This lovely display of Corvettes skipped from the C1 to the C3, which is unfortunate, as the C2 is the best-looking of the series.
    Eric Bangeman
  • I’m not a big muscle car guy, but the Dodge Challenger is a sharp-looking example that packs a punch.
    Eric Bangeman
  • That’s an eight-cylinder HEMI under the hood of the Challenger.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Again with the green. This time, it’s a Dodge Charger.
    Eric Bangeman
  • This tricked-out GMC Sierra perfect vehicle for when the polar vortex invades your town.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Jaguar Land Rover: A Germany-born president of the American division of a British automaker owned by an Indian company.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Lots of trucks at the auto show, including this Toyota Tundra.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Take this Nissan NV200 on your next camping trip.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Vanderhall Carmel three-wheeler. There is also an Edison 2 EV with a 180-mile range on display.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The Polaris Slingshot SL is another three-wheeler.
    Eric Bangeman
  • The cockpit of the Slingshot
    Eric Bangeman
  • Toyota’s TJ Cruiser looks like a van had a one-night stand with an SUV. It debuted at the 2017 Tokyo Motorshow.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Toyota showed off the Tundra, Tacoma, and 4Runner TRD Pro series with an wintry backdrop.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Toyota is the only manufacturer with a trophy case on the show floor.
    Eric Bangeman
  • There’s plenty of merch at the auto show, too.
    Eric Bangeman
  • Hey, I thought Mercedes-Benz was skipping auto shows in 2019…
    Eric Bangeman
  • …oh, it’s just a few commercial vans.
    Eric Bangeman

Finally, here’s some of the miscellaneous cars, signs, and other vehicles from the Chicago Auto Show that also caught out eye. Even with 50-plus good images, know that it’s just a fraction of what’ll be on the showroom floor for the next week-plus.

https://arstechnica.com/?p=1453795