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Car makers shun Detroit show NAIAS 2009

By Simon Stiel Motor Shows 27 November 2008 11:28 The number of car makers pulling out of Detroit's major auto show, the North American International Auto Show 2009, is growing. The very survival of Detroit is being questioned as Congress debates the $25 billion aid package to save GM, Ford and Chrysler – and now it looks as if the NAIAS is under threat too. In the past weeks, Ferrari, Land Rover, Rolls Royce, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Suzuki have announced their withdrawal from the show, which is scheduled to begin on 11 January 2009.

Pebble Beach: Tour Terrific

These ain't no trailer queens. While you might expect that a car that cost more than a million dollars to restore beyond its original glory would be something you'd keep in a sealed zip-lock freezer bag in the guarded basement of a museum, the vast majority of the entries in the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance are actually driven on the street. Or at least they are driven once before the big show.

Tesla Eye showcar by IED

The Istituto Europeo di Design (IED) was the only university to have a stand at the recent Geneva motor show. Occupying a booth in the center of the upper main hall, the school showcased the Eye concept, a recent project designed by students in the Master of Arts Transportation Design program in collaboration with Tesla Motors. According to IED, the Eye concept was born out of research into the identity promoted by Tesla to achieve a new objective: designing an everyday 2+2 sports car conceived to become a status-symbol; a car with engaging features and sports car performance ideally suited to a young, cosmopolitan target demographic.