It's day two of the North American International Auto Show pressstravaganza, and our man Montgomery is up with the angels, beating all those hung-over scribes to the showroom floor for a sneak peak of the new Corvette ZR1. Surprisingly, the vehicle code-named the Blue Devil– named after GM CEO Rick Wagoner's beloved alma mater's Blue Devils basketball team–  is now slate gray. With blue brake calipers. Enjoy Bill's shots as we prepare our assault on the suits who put this kind of stuff, and the less palatable fare, on your plate. Click through to hear our man express suitable podcasted reverence.

Click here for TTAC sneak peak at the Corvette ZR1

[Reported by William C. Montgomery]

If you got it, flaunt it. Or, in the case of Toyota, rub GM's nose in it. While Rick Wagoner and his minions have been talking about their sooner-or-later plug-in electric hybrid vehicle (aka "Volt") at the Detroit Auto Show, Toyota is putting their money where Rick's mouth is. They're providing several honest-to-God here-they-are-right-now Prius plug-ins for "executive shuttle service" during the show (you can guess which company's executives won't be shuttling in them). The cars are "are early-development prototypes" used for "evaluation of real-world customer use and acceptance, ride-and-drives by regulatory officials and NGOs, and technical research and development." Oh, and also for firing a preemptive shot across GM's bow.

Our [non Dodge] intrepid reporters at the North American International Auto Show– Mssrs. Montgomery and Mehta– are calling it a day. It's been a historic moment for The Truth About Cars; Frank and I are proud of our electronic collaboration. We didn't offer the breadth of coverage that other, better equipped and more experienced members of the media swarm have produced. And our technology could use a bit of an upgrade. But it's been a Hell of a start, well in keeping with TTAC's tone and no-holds-barred traditions. Tomorrow is the big day, when our warmed-up journalists mobilize their mojo, and TTAC's MIA big gun commentators return to their cubicles, loaded for bear. I certainly hope you'll join us for the festivities. Meanwhile, if you want to see today's scalps, click on the links below. Thanks for being there.

2009 Honda Pilot

BMW ActiveHybrid

BMW Advanced Diesel

BMW Hydrogen7

BMW M3

BMW M6

BMW X6

Ford

Ford Explorer America Concept

Ford F-150

Ford Flex

Ford Mustang

Ford Verve Concept

Honda Accord

Lexus

Lexus LF-A Roadster

Lexus LX570

Mazda

MINI Clubman

MINI Cooper

MINI Cooper S

Nissan GT-R

smart fortwo

Subaru Forester

Toyota Corolla XRS

With Chrysler and Ford letting the last of the great rear wheel-drive American sedans slowly sink into a cesspit of mediocrity, Hyundai has stepped once more into the breach, dear Kim. The Korean automaker has unveiled the Genesis, saying that the BMW 5-Series, Mercedes C-Class and Lexus IS are nice cars and all, but Hyundai's rear wheel-drive sedan will be a hit because people are SOL poor nowadays they can't afford that fancy foreign shit [paraphrasing]. The Genesis, you see, puts luxury in the grasp of people "who deserve more" (as opposed to all those guilt-ridden people who feel they deserve less– but still manage to eat a lot of fattening food). You want more? The Genesis' creators (God?) benchmarked the Mercedes S-Class for interior space. It's got a more rigid chassis and superior (complex) 5-link suspension than the 5-series and E-class. Which is all well and good, but the Genesis has an invisible touch. While "real" luxury cars grab hold of your heart, the Genesis is like that lover you can't remember because, well, you just can't. 

[Reported by Sajeev Mehta]

Subaru has a new motto: "The customer comes first." As proof of their dedication to this promise, they extolled the virtues of their new Forester. Apparently, it was the "first crossover"– even though the Japanese automaker's marketed the model for years as a SUV. The latest iteration of the slab-sided Subie is no longer so slab sided; it's longer, wider and taller. BUT a tighter turning radius makes it easier to park! Other changes include a larger rear seat (that reclines), more torque in both the regular and turbo engines and a new rear suspension. The only question left unanswered is this: if customers now come first, where the Hell did they fall in Subaru's previous hierarchy?

[Reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

If you want proof that brand perception is based on a single focused concept, consider the fact that Honda makes America's most fuel efficient fleet of vehicles, without a single V8 amongst them. Meanwhile Toyota builds the gas-friendly (in the sense of using a lot) Toyota Sequoia, Land Cruiser and Tundra and Lexus LS460– and gets all the green credit for the Prius. At Honda's Detroit Auto Show expense account ho'-down, the "other" Japanese automaker seemed to demonstrate a growing realization that they need a foot in each camp: mean and green. First, they re-introduced the California-bound hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity, and kicked the lightweight "sports hybrid concept" CRZ with "clean performance" and plenty o' gas-electric torque into the spotlight. And then Honda unveiled the new eight-passenger 2009 Pilot Prototype, complete with a beefy "ACE" crash management structure. The Prototype features the kind of ugly, prison wall front end styling that makes fuel economy-minded aerodynamicists unemployable. Although Honda equipped the beast with 6-4-3 cylinder deactivation, the fact that they're selling its "real offroad and towing" capability tells you something. Could we live to see a Honda V8 in an Acura RL or Honda Pilot? Stranger things have happened. 

[Reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

"I always feel safe in my Smart ForTwo." Famous last words? They were spoken by Smart's USA Prez as he exited the Mercedes-Benz stage at the North American International Auto Show. His copilot was none other than Daimler's Doktor Z. Ex-Chrysler exec Dieter Zetsche and ex-Mitsubishi suit David Schembri created quite an impression: two well-manicured businessmen sitting in a cartoonish red car that neither would be caught driving if they weren't running the company that builds said clown car. Then again, maybe the ForTwo isn't as foolish as it looks. Daimler– and by that I mean a suitable underling rather than a Gulfstream-riding exec– drove three of them from L.A. to Detroit. The company claims the diesel Smart clocked-in at 59.8 mpg while the gassers delivered 49 mpg. Whether or not they drafted a corporate 18-wheeler for the transcontinental trek is unknown. Oh, at the conference, someone said something about improved mileage Mercedes. 

[reported by William C. Montgomery]

At BMW's Detroit Auto Show PR bragfest and new vehicle unveiling, the truth was spinning as fast as the propeller that inspired the corporate roundel. In spite of their perpetual payments for EPA fines, BMW wants you to know all the good things they're doing for the environment. Did you know they've led the way in CO2 reduction in the U.S.? At least that's what all their signs said (just in case you missed them actually saying it). But let's face it– if BMW hadn't had such high emissions to start with, they couldn't have dropped them that much. The German automaker also didn't bother to address what impact the quart of oil their V-10 engines consume between oil changes has on the environment. But they did say their first hybrid, due in 2009, will use 20 percent less fuel than "other cars." Somehow I don't think Toyota or Honda will be losing any sleep over any of this.

[Reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

BMW has unveiled the production model of their neither-fish-nor-fowl X6 "sports activity coupe" (SAC) at the North American International Auto Show. The high-rider all-wheel-drive hatchback features less passenger space and less cargo room than a normal SUV, at a much higher price. Bimmer's planning a hybrid version, along with diesel variants. Meanwhile, BMW is still touting their SAC as a "first," but the model joins an illustrious group of jacked-up AWD passenger cars like the AMC Eagle, the Eagle SX4 and the Subaru Outback sedan. And we all know how successful those were, don't we?

Click here for more TTAC photos of the X6

Back in the day, VW decided to match Mercedes model-for-model. This strategy led to the ill-fated, brand-busting, $60k-and-up Phaeton. Judging from the new VW Passat CC unveiled at The Detroit Auto Show, VW CEO Martin Winterkorn is determined to get right back on that [dead] horse. The CC is a CLS clone, with the distinction of offering less visibility and more chance of rear passenger decapitation than the Mercedes version. At VeeDub's axles of white power stand (eye searingly white with blue lighting a la Apple), Winterkorn said the CC was part of the German automaker's "fireworks of great new cars" master plan to sell 800k cars in the U.S. Huh? That's a significant climb-down from VW's publicly stated goal of shifting one million units stateside by 2018. Ironically enough, VW gave us reason not to be optimistic re: it's not-so-great-anymore expectations. An introductory film revealed that Americans want three things from a car: reliability, durability and "fine design." Herr Winterkorn better hope that two out of three ain't bad. 

[reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

In an attempt to keep a blue oval on America's best selling vehicle, Ford rolled out a fancy new F-150, due to hit the market in 2009. The top-line Platinum Edition will feature real brushed aluminum trim with an interior who luxe-ness negates the need for a Mark LT clone. The interior of all F-150s will feature softer plastics with fewer panel gaps. Outside, the new model will boast a tailgate step à la Super Duty and a side step, so you can get things out of the bed from the side. (Suggestion to Ford: make the damn bed sides lower already, so customers don't need stilts to reach their stuff.) Each of the four models from el cheapo work truck to blinged-out Platinum Edition will have different grilles; big spenders' egos will be flattered appropriately. The only really discordant design feature: the girly-looking headlights copped from the Edge. What was wrong with the macho design used on the Super Duty? Now that everyone knows what improvements the 2009 model offers, Ford's biggest challenge will be keeping their market share from dropping even more precipitously during the lame-duck 2008 model year.

Click for more TTAC photos of the new F-150  

[Reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

I know: you want to know what these options are. Well so do we. 'Cause Ford's jeffe de las Américas Mark Fields faced down the journalistic corps at the Detroit Auto Show and provided our man with no details whatsoever on his employer's plans for the once prolific Special Vehicles Team. In fact, one of those options could be to abandon SVT altogether; it would only be a short hop from the Ford tuning division's current limbo dance. This is especially true now that Ford has re-labeled their twin-turbo "Turbo Force" V6 engine as an "Eco-Boost," and decided to shoehorn the new powerplant into everything they make. So, could those "options" include an Eco-Boost– er, Twin Force V8? Given Ford's current North American market share spiral, and the need to allocate money to building some better mainstream products, I reckon SVT will restrict itself to lucrative suspensions and style mods. As well it might.

[reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

At the unveiling of the Verve concept car, one of Ford CEO Alan Mulally's minions stepped up to the microphone at the Detroit Auto Show and [dare I say boldly] declared that "Europe is our future." When pressed on the which cars when part of this meta-point, Big Al stretched the boundaries of the word "vague" to near-breaking point. "We plan to import cars from Europe at some time in the future." Meanwhile, the Honda Civic-like (with European Blue Oval design cues) Verve looks ready for production– though shod with red wall tires straight from the Hot Wheels School of Design. Ford also hinted there could be a three-door version, if you know, there is. Let's hope the car's acceleration matches the speed at which the FoMoCo's flackmeister went over the Verve's salient features. 

Click here for TTAC's pictures of the Ford Verve Concept  

[reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

At a press conference at the Detroit Auto Show, Ford's presidente de las Américas Mark Fields has rechristened Ford's former cash cow a "Smart Utility Vehicle." In other words, the new Ford Explorer will be a unit-body vehicle with "best in class" towing. Yes, well, the D3 chassis upon which the Explorer will sit on is something of a loser, having failed to ignite sales for the Ford Taurus, Taurus X, Five Hundred; Mercury Sable and Volvo S80 (the Swede with the more expensive aluminum springy bits underneath). On the positive side, the Explorer will get the new Twin-Force– sorry, "Eco-Boost" twin-turbo, which looks like one Hell of a motor. The changes to the Explorer are designed to stem the model's rapid and stratospheric fall from grace; down 23.1 percent this year alone. But the introduction of a new cuter ute also represents a gamble that the Explorer's non-real-SUV fans (a.k.a. concrete cowboys) haven't already left for greener pastures. Not to mention all the "real" truck fans who won't touch the new model with a ten foot pole. Besides, how many crossovers does Ford actually need? 

 Click here for more TTAC pictures of the Explorer America

[Reported by Sajeev Mehta] 

While we await various concept and slatedforproductionmobiles at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show, Toyota has taken another giant leap away from "now you see it, now do you recognize it?" auto show hype. Ahead of tomorrow's official debut of the new Venza crossover, Kentucky's Herald-Leader reports that workers at ToMoCo's Georgetown factory have amassed experience screwing the beastie together. In fact, the Camry factory's been involved in the machine's genesis right from the git-go. "Since April 2006, two dozen workers at Toyota's sprawling Georgetown manufacturing plant have spent their days walled off from their colleagues. In key-carded rooms, they ran computer simulations, phoned Toyota's top designers and coordinated a project that will soon touch thousands of their brethren. They have built the Venza." This kind of pre-prod prep is nothing new. But the paper describes the computer-assisted anal retentive lengths (ew) to which ToMoCo will go to get a vehicle right before it hits the streets. "Haddix and his team members used computer software to track how each of the more than 2,000 parts would be shaped and installed. When the group simulated installation of a part under the hood, they found that the tool couldn't quite fit and struck the vehicle. The hood angle had to be raised. Another part's installation would have scratched the instrument panel." Who ARE these guys?