For better and for worse, NYC offers a breath of fresh air to gearheads every April or so. The New York Auto Show is what I’m on about, and it’s high time for us to talk about what this year’s edition has to offer. As ever, NYIAS lags behind NAIAS in terms of numbers. But numerical advantage has nothing to do with the caliber of NY-bound debuts.
And yes, this year’s New York Auto Show is full of goodies. Three of the eight premieres our editorial team decided you should look forward to are from North American auto companies, four originate from the Land of the Rising Sun, and the final exhibit is a German ruffian. Here's the lowdown:
2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon
The king of the muscle cars. The daddy. The baddest Challenger of them all. Its name is Demon and, as the label suggests, it’s a devilish machine for daredevil-minded people. What Dodge built here is, in layman’s terms, a brawnier SRT Hellcat that runs on either 91 gas or 100-octane race fuel.
Lighter than the Hellcat, the Demon boasts four 315/40-section R18 Nitto NT05R drag radials and launches off the line like a bat out of hell. Based on a series of teasers, it appears that the 6.2-liter blown V8 develops 757 horsepower at the very least. The said ponies are joined by 700-plus lb-ft.
Probably the most telling detail about the Demon is its much wider stance. The Air Grabber cold air intake hood measures more than 45 sq.in., and it furthers the Demon’s no-nonsense presence. Oh, and one more thing: the front fascia features two Air Catcher headlamps. Because why the hell not?
2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk
The Trackhawk has been long in the making, but Jeep’s head honcho is adamant the wait has been worth it. The ultimate iteration of the Grand Cherokee, as you might have heard, features the supercharged HEMI blunderbuss from the Challenger SRT Hellcat. It’s clear, then, that this baby churns out more testosterone than the 6.4-liter atmospheric V8 in the SRT.
There’s no telling just how many horsepower and pound-feet the blown HEMI produces, with rumors suggest that the all-wheel-drive system will take it toll in this regard. More to the point, the safest bet is for us to expect less than 707 hp and 650 lb-ft, with the blown V8 detuned to ease the burden on the mid-size SUV’s drivetrain.
It’ll be a hoot to drive on a backroad nonetheless, and a stiff middle finger salute to what other automakers are doing with their go-faster SUVs. Not only is the Grand Cherokee Trackhawk’s engine massive, even when compared to the Bentayga’s 6.0-liter W12, but it also boasts an IHI-developed 2.4L twin-screw blower instead of your average twin-turbo setup.
2018 Honda Clarity EV & Clarity PHEV
The Clarity Fuel Cell isn’t just Honda trying to prove that hydrogen is great. The zero-emission vehicle also happens to pride itself on the longest range in the business at 366 miles from full to empty. Not even the Tesla Model S 100D can top that, but Honda knows hydrogen plays second fiddle to BEVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
And so, the 2018 model year will see the Japanese automaker bring forth two more takes on the Clarity. For the battery-powered model, word has it Honda will play it safe in terms of pricing at $35,000 or thereabout before government incentives and tax credits. But this pricing strategy has a drawback: range. Supposedly, the Clarity Electric won’t be capable of more than 80 miles from full to empty.
However, there’s an alternative to range anxiety in the form of the Clarity PHEV. On electricity alone, the PHEV is capable of traveling more than 40 miles before the gasoline engine kicks in. The obvious problem is, plug-in hybrid powertrains are more expensive to produce than all-electric ones, so don’t expect this mid-sized sedan to be cheap by mid-size sedan standards.
2017 Honda Civic Si Coupe & Civic Si Sedan
Until the first-ever Type R-branded Honda for North America gets here, the Civic Si will have to m
ake do. Compared to the old generation, the Si for 2018 adopts a 1.5-liter turbo four-cylinder in the detriment of a 2.4-liter freely aspirated VTEC engine. Curiously enough, there’s no news on the output front because both of the mills develop 205 horsepower.
Torque is a different story. Thanks to the turbocharging system, what the Si loses in displacement it gains in get-up-and-go. At 192 pound-feet, the newcomer betters its predecessor by 18 lb-ft, and that’s not bad considering this thing is not about out-and-out grunt. The Honda Civic Si has always been about driving fun and great handling.
Some of the ingredients that help in this regard are the short-throw manual transmission, adaptive damping, an adaptive electric power steering system, and a limited-slip differential. And certainly not least, the Si gets 12.3-inch brakes up front and 235/40 R18 tires all around.
2018 Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 & GLC 63 Coupe
Crossovers are hot stuff, but hot crossovers are dynamite! The latter is the perfect word for the latest brawlers from Mercedes-AMG: the GLC 63 and GLC 63 Coupe. Based on the C-Class’ platform it may be, but this duo comes exclusively with all-wheel-drive. The 4Matic+ system, however, doesn’t have a drift mode like the E 63 S' 4Matic+.
The super SUVs come in two guises: 63 and 63 S, with the letter S standing for “stupendous.” In a similar fashion to the C63 family, the GLC 63s are gifted with a handcrafted 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8. In the lesser application, you’re looking at 476 PS (469 hp) and 650 Nm or 479 pound-feet of torque. As for the “stupendous” iteration, that’ll be 510 PS (503 hp) and 700 Nm or 516 pound-feet of rotational force.
An area where the all-new GLC 63 and GLC 63 Coupe strike a discordant note from the C63 and C63 Coupe is the tranny. A 9-speeder going by the name of AMG Speedshift MCT 9 comes standard, integrating a start-off wet clutch instead of a torque converter, all in the name of performance. Speaking of which, the Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 S hits 100 km/h (62 mph) in just 3.8 clicks.
2018 Buick Regal Sportback & Regal TourX
At long last, Buick replaced the Regal with an all-new generation. As expected, the 2018 model is also based on the Opel Insignia, but for once, the General Motors-owned brand did the right thing by bringing to the U.S. the station wagon body style as well. It’s not just any other longroof, though, but a premium utility wagon augmented with AWD.
Dubbed TourX, the North American equivalent to the Insignia Country Tourer and Commodore Tourer is animated by a 2.0-liter four-banger. Sure it may seem underwhelming considering this is a mid-sized vehicle, but the numbers tell otherwise: 250 hp and 295 lb-ft (GM estimates).
Then there’s the Regal Sportback, a.k.a. the sedan. This body style is available with AWD, with front-wheel-drive shipping as standard. And in the bone stock configuration, torque from the 2.0-liter turbocharged engine slips to 260 pound-feet for some reason or other. The upside is, the Regal Sportback FWD has a 9-speed automatic transmission, not the 8-speed box that’s exclusive to the all-wheel-driven alternative.
Infiniti QX80 Monograph
A “huge unveil.” That’s all Infiniti is willing to share about its surprise for the 2017 New York Auto Show. A full-sized one of those, that is. Christened QX80 Monograph and teased by a single photo showing half of the car from the front, it’s impossible to tell what this thing is.
Views on the QX80 Monograph are divided. While some may say, “This is a concept, a one-off, nothing else,” others claim that the luxurious behemoth is a glimpse into the next-gen QX80’s design language. The elaborate headlights, however, don’t appear to be production-spec. Nor is the illuminated emblem. In other words, it might be just a concept. Whatever Infiniti wants to prove here, there’s no shadow of a doubt the current-gen QX80 is rather old.
In fact, this is the seventh year since production started at Nissan Shatai Kyushu, a contract manufacturer that’s also responsible for making the Nissan Patrol, which is known in the U.S. as Armada. Bearing in mind the first-generation QX80 was built from 2004 to 2010, maybe an all-new model is indeed looming on the horizon.
Toyota FT-4X Concept
The FJ Cruiser is no longer in production. But as Jeep prepares to launch the JL Wrangler and Ford is working on bringing back the Bronco on a mid-size pickup truck platform, Toyota has a reason to take a deep breath, look in the mirror, and think about a competitor.
And this brings us to the FT-4X Concept. “Four wheeling. Scene stealing,” is how Toyota describes its mysterious show car, and based on the tread and size (255/55 R18) of that tire, it’s highly possible that this thing is a snippet of the FJ Cruiser’s successor.
Another reason why many 4×4 enthusiasts think that Toyota is developing an off-roader is a trademark filed with the USPTO in October 2016. It remains to be seen, however, what exactly the FT-4X stands for, and if the purported FJ Cruiser replacement will be made available with a good old stick shift.
