North American International Auto Show, Detroit 2008

My son Nick and I went to the NAIAS this year for the first time. My brother Tim, who loves cars, is a veteran of this show. This photo gives you a taste of what you'll encounter: in a relatively small space you will see domestic cars alongside some of the most expensive cars in the world. Here you can see the logos of Chrysler, Acura, Maserati and Ferrari.

Ever see a million dollar car? This Lamborghini reportedly sold at a private sale (held after hours) for $1,000,000.

This Rolls Royce starts at $540,000.

This Maserati will set you back about $160,000.

Here is a Bentley. Didn't catch the price on this one.

Sick of high gas prices? Most of the displays showed some sort of hybrid vehicle. Here are a couple of intriguing models that I found at the Honda display.

The FCX Clarity is car is fueled by hydrogen. Buy the car and Honda throws in a home fueling system complete with a pump (they grey device on the left actually creates the hydrogen). I loved the concept and the car! I wish that I had a better picture but people were blocking my view and kept walking in front of the camera.



This car is fueled by natural gas which is what most Americans use to heat their homes. Buy the car and Honda throws in a home fueling system that hooks up to your natural gas fixture outside the house. The pump is barely visible in the back of the car. Again, the crowds kept me from getting a better picture.

There was so much to see and after three and half hours we were beat and decided to go have lunch at the Coney Island on Lafayette Street (that's worth a separate post but I forgot to take a picture). Anyone who remembers the old Saturday Night Live skit about immigrants running a diner will instantly know what this place is like. I still laugh when I recall John Belushi shouting out, "Hamburger, Hamburger, Cheeseburger, Coke, Coke!"