Awards Aplenty

     This year the auto show is separated into different sections of auto manufacturers. Many of them have displays showing off the awards that their vehicles have received recently.

     Mitsubishi is proudly displaying their awards(as well as the souped-up Model A), ranging from a cars.com honor to a trophy honoring their vehicle as a top safety pick.

     GMC is displaying its array of awards, ranging from honors accorded by the Kelley Blue Book, to a pickup truck of the year award, to honors from cars.com

     Hyundai's selection of safety awards speak to its reputation as a great safety-focused brand, but the other awards on display mean that the company isn't just a one-trick pony.

    Toyota's commitment to excellence is plainly obvious when you look at the size of their trophy case and the numbers of repeat awards they have won over the years. Clearly, this brand is here to stay.

     Jeep is one of America's best known brands and the bevy of awards shows it. Both multiple repeats of the same award and a great diversity of awards indicate that this is a well respected brand.

This Car is Insane!

     Dodge has always been known for their muscle cars, but this time they've outdone themselves. This year Dodge is unveiling the Challenger SRT Demon. Here are just some of the stats:

• It has 840 horsepower under the hood
• It goes from 0-60 in 2.3 seconds
• Not only that, but it's the fastest production vehicle to go from 0-100, outperforming a vehicle that costs $1.6 Million
• It set the 1/4 Mile speed record for a production vehicle
• It gives the highest G-Force of any production vehicle
• It's got a supercharged 6.2 Liter HEMI V8
• It features a 45 square inch hood scoop to constantly supply the engine with air
• The front wheels lift up off of the ground when taking off
• Not only is the acceleration groundbreaking, but so are the breaks, featuring four-piston Brembo brakes with slotted two-piece rotors
• It has drag racing tires
• It has special racing accessories on the inside to make it feel all the more authentic

     And the whole thing is street legal! That's a whole hell of a lot of car! And it starts at just under $85,000. Make sure to save your pennies!

Remodeling the Past

     In 1917, the Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Company released the Model A, the first production series automobile to be built in Japan. The car itself was not very successful, as all the vehicles were assembled by hand, which caused it to lose ground to mass-produced cars. But this year, Mitsubishi is at the 2018 Chicago Auto Show with an updated model of the car. On the outside, it looks like any other classic car, but inside it has all the modern amenities one expects from a 2018 vehicle, such as:

• An all-wheel control system
• Plug-in chargers
• Forward Collision Mitigation
• Smartphone display audio
• And much more

     Kudos to Mitsubishi for bringing the past into the future.

My Dream Car

I'm not the type who typically has dream cars that I want to run out and buy. But even I make an exception every now and then. One of those exceptions is the Polaris Slingshot. It's basically a 3-wheeled motorcycle with an actual body, but no doors to speak of. It gives you the freedom and open air feel of a motorcycle with some of the protection of a car. Polaris is here at the Auto Show with some vehicles. They even have a kids area where the little tykes can wheel around in mini Slingshots.

You Can Catch it All on WGN(again)

     In a somewhat surprising development in the arena of local sports, the Chicago White Sox announced yesterday their new radio affiliate for the 2018 season and beyond: WGN, and your eyes are not deceiving you here. Some background: for the past few years, the White Sox have been broadcasting their games on WLS, but recently the parent company of that station realized that the contract was unprofitable. They filed suit in court, won the case, and received the right to terminate their broadcast contracts with the White Sox and the Bulls. The Bulls moved over the 670 The Score, but there was some doubt about where the Sox would be until yesterday, when they reached a new deal with WGN. This is fascinating for a couple of reasons. First off, WGN has had a decades-long relationship with the Cubs, making them returning to the broadcast game with the White Sox interesting. Plus, for about 10 years, the Cubs were on WGN and the White Sox were on The Score. Now starting in 2018, the Cubs will be on The Score and the White Sox will be on WGN. This all just goes to show that the local sports scene is constantly changing and constantly evolving.

State Farm at the Show.

     Once again, State Farm is making its presence known at the 2018 Chicago Auto Show, with its State Farm Garage. Like always, they are here giving out their ubiquitous bags:

     But they also have some other cool things this year. They have a booth where you can custom-engrave your very own State Farm luggage tag, as well as a photo wall where you can take a picture and put it up on the wall to make a photomosaic. I took a picture of myself, and you can see what it looks like:

The Time Is Now: The Year of Immersive Tech

     One of the big waves of the future is immersive technology. Whether it's virtual reality, 4D Experiences, driving simulators, or augmented reality, people are always excited about the new things we can make people see with technology. Ultimately, the goal is to get somewhere right around here:

     While we're not there yet, we're getting better every year. And the 2018 Chicago Auto Show is latching on to that trend in a big way. There are more immersive experiences this year at the show than I ever remember seeing before. Chevy gives us a good look at things with their 4D Test Track Experience:

     You get to accompany a Chevy test driver on various Chevy proving grounds and test tracks throughout the world. This is an extremely immersive experience, and is easily the most immersive experience I've had. Between the VR goggles and the seat that vibrates and moves depending on the terrain you're crossing, this is a great experience that does what it sets out to do and passes with flying colors. The next one up is Honda, with their augmented reality experience. The best way I can describe augmented reality is like this:

     Honda's layout worked like this: the display took you through a course where you stopped at various locations and looked at different features about their vehicles. It was a very cool experience as well, as you were able to see the directions and presentations projected in front of your while still being able to see everything going on in front of you in the real world as well. That's what I find coolest about augmented reality, and why I still think it has a place in our technological toolbox.

     The other big innovation at the show are simulated driving experiences. Ford leads off the pack with its driving simulator, which is back for another year of fun. It works like this: you go up into a small space with racing seats surrounded by 3 screens giving you an almost 180 degree view. After that, you drive a course and get the feel of what it's like to be in a Ford Performance Vehicle. This is what it looks like:

     Then you have the Hyundai Racing Challenge. As part of the Hyundai exhibit, you can get the chance to race in a Hyundai vehicle, much like the Ford experience described above. But here's the fun part. In this experience, you can compete against your fellow auto show attendees. Several times each day, they have open qualifying rounds, where anyone can come up and drive the course. The top 8 times from the qualifying can then go on to a tournament, where players race head to head for the top price given out, which is a new Xbox.