Show far, show good.

Sorry for the silliness, but after the catastrophic tailspin of 2008, just reaching the midpoint of January 2009 without another major shock to the Detroit automotive scene feels like a giddy victory.

As the black-tie crowd shivers its way into Cobo Center tonight for the Detroit auto show’s Charity Preview, it’s clear that the 2009 show looks like a two-thumbs-up hit for Ford and General Motors, with even a few kind words from the critics for a concept shown by much-maligned Chrysler.

Yes, yes, there were low expectations for the Detroit Three and the Detroit show — with Nissan, Mitsubishi and others AWOL — and there’s a lot of treacherous terrain ahead. But let’s take a day or two to appreciate what went well this week.

Continue reading: Freep.com (there is video too)

Detroit’s Big Three are all pulling out of the Tokyo Motor Show to save money.

Their decision is not surprising, given the U.S. automakers’ cash constraints and their negligible presence in the Japanese market. But it puts enormous pressure on the organizers of the Tokyo show, which was once the world’s premiere automotive technology showcase but has lost some of its relevance.

Even Nissan Motor Co. is questioning whether to take part in the Tokyo show. An official said Nissan was reconsidering its participation at all the major auto shows in light of the worsening economic situation. This year, it skipped the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

General Motors Corp. has scaled down its presence in Tokyo in recent years and focused more on the shows in China, where the biggest U.S. automaker does far more business.

This year, GM will not be in Tokyo at all, said Rick Brown, president of GM Asia Pacific Japan. “Based on our current economic climate, we feel that this is a right decision,” he told The Detroit News.

Continue reading: The Detroit News

Auto shows always yield a wealth of new models, technology, and ideas, and the 2009 Detroit Auto Show was no exception. Here are the top ten photo galleries from the show.

The mood at the 2009 Detroit show may have been more subdued than in years past (you know, Carpocalypse and all that), but you’d never know it from the photos. The cars are still impossibly shiny, the booth professionals are still, um, doing whatever it is booth professionals do, and automotive enthusiasts are still looking at new cars on the internet.

Check out the pics: Jalopnik

Gov. Jennifer Granholm has signed a bill offering up to $335 million in tax credits to encourage the development of advanced battery technology in Michigan.

The Democrat signed the bill today at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Granholm says the legislation will help make Michigan “the battery capital of the world.”

The governor pulled up to the curb outside the Cobo Center convention hall in a demonstration battery-powered vehicle built on a Ford Focus platform. She then toured domestic and foreign automakers’ exhibits before signing the legislation.

Source: LSJ.com

The all-electric automobile is not a new idea: in 1900, a quarter of the cars produced in the United States ran on batteries alone. But when Henry Ford debuted his cheap, gas-powered Model T in 1908, oil quickly became the industry standard. Shai Agassi, 40, a former president at software giant SAP, thinks the electric car deserves to be salvaged from history’s dustbin. With his new venture, Better Place, he plans to jump-start the fledgling electric-auto industry by building an entire infrastructure—cars, recharge stations and more—from scratch. Governments in Israel, Denmark, northern California and elsewhere have signed on. NEWSWEEK’S Fareed Zakaria spoke to him about the company.

Continue reading: Newsweek.com

Check out the video and photo gallery: Motor Trend

Sen. Bob Corker, one of the most vocal critics of Detroit’s auto industry, got the celebrity treatment today at the Detroit auto show.
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A swarm of some 40 reporters, videographers and photographers followed him to each display. They shuffled along the show floor pushing against each other to get their shot or get their recorder close enough to catch what Corker was saying.

In journalism, it’s called a scrum.

In rugby, that’s when both teams restart play as players from both teams mass together, with their heads down and fight for possession of the ball.

Some reporters were tall enough to get an ear and arm on the action, and get their shot. But those who are short – or were in heels – jostled for the best spot, ducking under cameras, or standing on tiptoes to hear.

“I’m glad to be here. Never been to the Detroit show,” he said this afternoon.

Continue reading: Freep.com

– General Motors Corp.’s decision to tap a South Korean company for the Chevrolet Volt’s lithium-ion batteries comes with a jolt of good news for Michigan.

That’s because LG Chem Ltd.’s U.S. operation, Compact Power Inc. is based in Troy. With 100 workers now, it is expected to hire more as a result of the deal. And other plans call for a new lab in Warren and work for a GM factory in Michigan.

LG Chem will make the battery cells in South Korea and ship them to the U.S., where they will be assembled into packs at an unspecified GM site in Michigan, both companies said at the North American International Auto Show.

GM CEO Rick Wagoner said the battery assembly facility will be the first in the U.S. operated by a major automaker.

Continue reading: LSJ.com