This year’s L.A. Auto Show, open to the public until Nov. 29, features a number of interesting, gorgeous, and just plain weird vehicles rolling out for public scrutiny. We were there to check out the talent first-hand. Here’s a quick round-up of what caught our eye.
2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrafoglio
Tired of German sport sedans getting all the love, but not sure if you want to park a Cadillac ATS-V or CTS-V in your driveway? The 2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrafoglio promises 505 Ferrari-derived horsepower form a twin-turbo 2.9-liter V-6, along with sultry looks and handling that promises to shred the Nurburgring. There’s only one problem: Alfa Romeo also announced significant delays for the production and delivery of this super sedan, which means it might be another 12 months before you can claim one as your own.
2017 Jaguar XE
The 2017 Jaguar XE is poised to give the British brand the one thing it’s never had: volume. Intended as a BMW 3-Series fighter, the Jaguar XE offers a fun-to-drive chassis along with the choice between turbodiesel or supercharged V6 power, with the latter offering 340 horses sent through an eight-speed automatic transmission to either the rear or all four wheels (when ordered with AWD). Priced in the mid-$30,000 range, the Jaguar XE is a breath of fresh air for luxury fans tired of the Teutonic status quo.
2017 Lincoln MKZ
The 2017 Lincoln MKZ is another sport sedan debut in L.A., only this one isn’t specifically targeted at the Germans. In fact, the Lincoln MKZ’s greatest enemy is its own obscurity, a handicap that could be erased by the car’s new styling cues and startlingly powerful turbocharged V-6. With 400 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque on tap from 3.0-liters (coupled with all-wheel drive), the top of the line MKZ is going to turn a lot of heads. It will also some people questioning whether its new design was the result of stuffing an Audi, a Volvo, and a Jaguar in a blender.
2017 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Convertible
The world needs more convertible SUVs—just not necessarily more Murano CrossCabriolets. The 2017 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Convertible fortunately has more in common with the original Ford Bronco, from a styling perspective, than its modern Nissan counterpart, which means square proportions that work well with the top down. A solid 240 horsepower from a turbocharged four-cylinder engine and a respectable amount of off-road capability make the Evoque oddball just original enough to warrant more than novelty status.
2016 Lamborghini Huracan LP 580-2
The original Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4 was all-wheel drive only, which made it hard to do donuts in the parking lot at work on Friday nights. The new 2016 Lamborghini Huracan LP 580-2 solves that problem by switching the car to a rear-wheel drive layout while preserving almost all of the might locked up in its 5.2-liter V10. With 580 ponies on tap, and a “bargain” price of just under $200,000, the Huracan LP 580-2 makes luxury hooliganism slightly more affordable.
