2007 Chicago Auto Show Highlights

CHICAGO—Full-size trucks took the spotlight at Chicago's 2007 show, along with an enlarged Scion xB, which has lost its quirky boxiness while gaining plenty of power. Almost universally, automakers promised additional power for their 2008 models.


Mark Fields, executive vice-president of Ford of the Americas, spoke at the kickoff breakfast, hosted by the Midwest Automotive Media Association and Chicago Automobile Dealers Association. People are "getting tired of complexity for its own sake," Fields said. Ford is adopting "simplexity," in its quest to present information "to the consumer in a simple manner." Fields admitted, "We at Ford have failed the 'simplexity' test."

Brand Recognition
Recognition of mistakes helps, too, including abandonment of the Taurus badge after the 2006 model year. Only four in 10 potential buyers recognize that a Ford Five Hundred model exists, while twice as many recall the Taurus nameplate.


Attempting to rectify that lack of recognition, Fields announced that Ford is renaming its full-size models. Ford's 2007 Five Hundred will be transformed into the 2008 Taurus. The current Ford Freestyle crossover wagon becomes the Taurus X, and the Mercury Montego metamorphoses into the 2008 Mercury Sable. As announced earlier at Detroit's auto show, all three models get a 30-percent power boost for 2008.

Big Trucks
Sales might be down lately, but full-size trucks remain a vital core of Nissan's lineup. Two of the latest biggies debuted in Chicago. Nissan's Armada SUV gets a "more refined, more upscale appearance," said product planning vice-president Larry Dominique, including new one-piece roof rails. Two new versions of the Titan pickup appeared: a King Cab with an 8-foot cargo bed, and a Crew Cab with a 7-footer. Nissan claims the latter is the longest bed in its class. A new PRO-4X model joins the Titan lineup, and engines can now run on an ethanol/gasoline blend.