Images courtesy NAIAS
Day Two at the North American International Auto Show did not have as full a schedule as Day One, but it was filled with much ballyhooed introductions that for some (yours truly included) were the most exciting of the show.
In addition to foreign and domestic automakers bringing their wares to the Detroit Show, there are many third-party companies demonstrating their contributions to the automotive industry that are present as well such as DENSO, ZF Group, Johnson Controls, Panasonic Automotive, PPG, etc.
The day two lineup of automakers included Nissan, Ford, Lexus, Cadillac, Acura, Kia, Tesla, Shelby American, and Guangzhou Automobile Group. Despite being a huge Shelby fan, my favorite debut of the day (and the show for that matter) was the surprise unveiling of the Atlas Concept pickup by Ford.
The Atlas most likely signals the next-generation of the best-selling F-150 light duty pickup and it features a few goodies to enhance highway fuel economy including grille shutters, wheel shutters (powered by batteries charged by wheel motion), power front lower air dam, and power running boards. While these boost mpg numbers on the highway they do little for fuel economy around town. Ford did not offer any specifics in that arena (pun intended as the program was held in the Joe Louis Arena) but they do mention EcoBoost quite a bit and it would not surprise me one iota to see the next F-150 with an EcoBoost four as a powertrain option.
Here is the gallery for Day two at NAIAS:
2014 Nissan Versa Hatchback
Nissan Resonance Concept
Ford Transit Concept Wagon
Ford Atlas Concept
2014 Lexus IS
2014 Cadillac ELR
Acura NSX
Acura MDX Prototype
2014 Kia Cadenza
Tesla Prototype Model X
Guangzhou Automobile Group NEV E-Jet
Shelby American GT500 Super Snake Mustang
Shelby American Focus ST1
VLP Automotive Destino