The New York Auto Show is known as a fashionable event with many of the debuts collecting points for style and exclusivity.
But Chevrolet decided to crash this party. It introduced three minicars that have healthy dose of fun and creativity. The Trax, Beat, and Groove are the result of a challenge from General Motors to its Korean Design Studio to imagine a future vehicle that would package individuality and expression with economy.
And the real fun starts for you today. Chevrolet has released www.vote4chevrolet.com to the world and asks for your help in deciding what it might build.
Now that is fun!
The subcompact segment heated up in a big way since the introduction of the Nissan Versa, Honda Fit, and Toyota Yaris. Those three were sent to do battle against the Chevy Aveo.
But the next frontier might be even smaller cars that provide all the comfort and security of today's modern vehicles with the style and presence of the upcoming Smart car from DaimlerChrysler in 2008. Especially when you factor in the real world threat of permanent $3.00 per gallon gas ... or higher.
That is not an exciting prospect, but helping Chevy build the right car for such a future is. And according to GM, as of 8:00 Wednesday night, almost 96,000 of you have logged in and cast your vote. And I hear the results are not showing a clear winner as of yet.
Me? I like the Beat. It best fulfills Bob Lutz's promise that "Style will lead this brand ... not the other way around."
