Philadelphia Auto Show begins

Philadelphia shifts into high gear this weekend with the kick-off of the 108th annual International Auto Show. The event – which starts tomorrow and runs through February 7th – is hosted by the Automobile Dealers Association of Greater Philadelphia.

Caption: Chevrolet Stingray Concept
Philadelphia shifts into high gear this weekend with the kick-off of the 108th annual International Auto Show. The event – which starts tomorrow and runs through February 7th – is hosted by the Automobile Dealers Association of Greater Philadelphia.

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[audio: 100129MPCARS.mp3]

An estimated 250,000 people are expected to check out the 700 buffed and shined vehicles lining the three floors of the Pennsylvania Convention Center this week.

Some of the cars making the most buzz include the Lincoln MKX with an intuitive touchscreen dashboard and the Chevy Volt, a plug-in electric car.

Kevin Mazzucola is the director of the Auto Dealers Association of Greater Philadelphia. He says while there is a growing trend toward electric cars — the future car market will probably feature cars with smaller fuel efficient engines.

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Mazzucola: Whether that’s the Chevrolet Cruze, the Mazda 2, many vehicles like that get around 40 miles per gallon which quite frankly is about what you’re getting with a hybrid so the technology is not just in the electrification but in making the gasoline engine more fuel efficient than we’ve ever seen in the marketplace.

This year’s auto show comes as the car industry remains in upheaval, Toyota is in the midst of a massive recall, both GM and Chrysler were restructured in bankruptcies, while Ford posted it’s first full year of profits.