It's another busy week across the American automotive market with plenty of novelties and many events converging simultaneously - but I still found enough time to select a favorite and talk about it.
This is the Easter weekend, and I pray that everyone is fine, in good health, and surrounded by friends and family – all the loved ones. However, the automotive industry is not idling on account of the religious festival. Nope, not at all. In fact, two major events are converging this weekend – the Easter Jeep Safari taking place in Moab, Utah, and the 2024 New York International Auto Show. The former quickly hit the trails between March 23 and 31, while the latter annual event is extending into next month as it ranges from March 29 to April 7, with the press days occurring on March 27 and 28. With that being said, these two mean a couple of traditional things – Jeep and JPP-branded concepts and cool American-spec novelties.
While the introductions of the New York International Auto Show may seem few compared to previous years, let us remember that 2020 represented a turning point for the automotive industry as a whole and the way it handles vehicle reveals, especially for the classic automotive shows. So, I reckon that a total of eleven launches are not too shabby in this day and age.
Of course, not all of them were just as important as the others. For example, the 2025 MINI Cooper S arrived for its North American debut alongside the refreshed Hyundai Tucson compact crossover SUV and the 2025 Polestar 4 electric compact luxury crossover SUV produced in China. Of them, the latter is the most noteworthy as the five-door coupe SUV strives to represent yet another alternative to the best-selling Tesla Model Y – but this EV fighter costs more than its most important competitor. In return, it offers slightly larger dimensions and lots of standard equipment and features.
It also looks quite sporty, but the coupe SUV factor makes it less practical than a Model Y, nonetheless. Another major EV that arrived for its worldwide auto show debut was the all-electric Porsche Macan. It adopts the controversial split-headlight design style and also brings to market, finally, the company’s new Premium Platform Electric – and it already has a sibling, the Audi Q6 and SQ6 e-tron. Much has been said about these two, so let’s move on, shall we?
From here on, things get interesting, though. Nissan embraces a completely new state of mind with the fresh second-generation Kicks; the redesigned and enhanced 2025 Hyundai Santa Cruz fights to recapture the lost distance when chasing the popular Ford Maverick unibody compact pickup truck; the Nissan K4 wants to be Forte and show that passenger cars are not dead yet, and the big Infiniti QX80 has downsized its powertrain but features a brick-like aerodynamic profile to make sure it makes all gas guzzlers proud of their heritage. Oh, and let us not forget that Genesis Motors has revealed a trio of feisty concepts – the GV60 and GV80 Magma prototypes, which preview the new Magma performance sub-brand, dressed in flaming orange, and the stylish Neolun, which could hint at an upcoming GV90 three-row flagship crossover SUV.
All in all, I think that the 2024 New York Auto Show did a fine job showing that classic automotive events can still have an impact when all the planets align, and the automotive gods decide to lend a helping hand. But, for me, at least, the coolest introduction this past week came from Jeep, which is busy with the legendary Easter Jeep Safari reunion in Moab, Utah. As always, the brand and its Jeep Performance Parts (JPP) by Mopar division presented a handful of 4x4 concepts at the 58th annual Easter Jeep Safari. Some will say that it’s a smaller roster than last year – four instead of seven prototypes. Alas, the Jeep Low Down, Willys Dispatcher, and Gladiator Rubicon High Top concepts were greater than the sum of their OEM and aftermarket parts.
Also, the company presented the minty retro-modern Jeep Vacationeer concept. As the name suggests, this is a vividly-designed, adventurous Jeep Grand Wagoneer dressed in Spearmint with white touches and fitted with a pop-top tent for great overlanding memories. The JPP design team also honored the nameplate’s storied ancestry, and there are bespoke bodyside woodgrain graphics plus front Tupelo leather seats with custom fabric inserts and styling done by “renowned fashion designer and Wagoneer enthusiast/owner” Kiel James Patric. Back to the outside, the Moab trails are easy to conquer with 35-inch BFGoodrich mud-terrain tires shod on 18-by-9-inch bead grip 701 Method racing wheels – and bigger wheel openings and special bodyside flare extensions underline the 1.5-inch natural lift.
There are also front and rear skid plates, a front-mounted Warn winch, a Rhino-lined roof, plus three 11-inch TYRI LED lights. However, the biggest highlight comes on top of the roof – a unique carbon-fiber RedTail Overland Skyloft becomes a “climate-controlled oasis with sleeping space for two people and enough windows to soak in the panoramic views.” How is that possible? Well, the standard second-and third-row seats were ditched in favor of the Skyloft, and there’s a fore/aft sliding door and a small step doubling as a table to ease the access inside. So, which was your favorite novelty from the vast and imaginative automotive realm this week?
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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