2024 MIAMI AUTO SHOW

ELECTRIC VEHICLES HIGHLIGHT THE WEEK AS MIAMI INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW OPENS

Auto shows, even the giants of the genre like those in Detroit, Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles may be facing an uncertain future as many automakers, particularly those based in Europe, begin to look for other ways to promote their products in the post-COVID era, but the Miami International Auto Show soldiers on this week in Miami Beach.

The show opened Friday (Aug. 30) with at the Miami Beach Convention Center with press day activities in the morning and continues through Sunday, Sept. 8.

Nissan Z Heritage Edition

Nissan has brought a collection of new models that include several making their auto show debuts, including its all-new Kicks subcompact SUV that also serves as the event’s Official Show Car.

Newest versions of its best-selling Rogue SUV and iconic Z sports car bowed in with the Rogue Rock Creek edition and the Z Heritage Edition, which is celebrating its 55th anniversary. Nissan also has on display a refreshed Frontier pickup. 

Camp Jeep

In addition to giving show goers a taste of off-road experience with the Camp Jeep exhibit, Stellantis displayed the debuts of the new Jeep Wagoneer S, the Dodge Charger Daytona, the Fiat 500e production model, and RAM 1500 pickup truck.

The Southern Automotive Media Association (SAMA), a collection of journalists who cover the industry and report for newspapers and radio, television, and internet outlets, capped a busy week with the presentation of its annual awards recognizing top vehicles at the show.

Ford Mustang GTD

A select panel of judges selected four vehicles for recognition. Three of the four trophies went to all-electric products, but the top award, Star of the Show, was a gasoline-powered Ford Mustang GTD limited edition sports car.

Inspired by the Mustang GT3 race car that competes in endurance races such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the track-ready but street legal GTD sports a supercharged 5.8-literV8 engine that pumps out over 800 horsepower.

Lucid Air

Among the EVs (or more accurately BEVs for Battery Electric Vehicle) honored were the Lucid Air as Sedan of the Show, the Dodge Charger Daytona as Coupe of the Show, and the Chevrolet Silverado EV as Pickup Truck of the Show. Check it out here: https://tinyurl.com/5n7y379v.

Chevyrolet Silverado EV

The Charger reverts back to its original coupe configuration with its introduction as an EV. The new power train won’t upset performance enthusiasts much.

A Dodge spokesman emphasized that the Charger remains a Muscle Car first and an electric vehicle second. Engineers even gave it a fake exhaust tone it calls "Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust" to mimic sounds you get from the usual V8 engine.

Dodge Charter Daytona

SAMA has singled out the top vehicles at the Miami show annually since the organization’s founding in 2007 with the exception of 2017 and 2020 when the show itself was cancelled, first because of a hurricane and then three years later because of the COVID pandemic.

Earlier in the week, members rated the Lucid Air as the top EV in SAMA’s inaugural ChargedUP Miami competition bringing together traditional gas-electric hybrids (HEVs) and Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).

The Lucid is an all-electric sedan that offers over 500 miles of driving range between charges with as much as 1,234 horsepower depending on the trim, resulting in.a zero-to-60 mph clocking of 1.89 seconds.

South Korean products earned the other two awards from ChargedUp. Journalists rated the Hyundai Sonata as the top HEV and the Kia Sorento as the top PHEV.

In a class by itself was the Rolls Royce Spectre EV, the only one of the competing vehicle with an MSRP over $100,000. Actually, well over at a starting price of $420,000.

Rolls Royce Spectre