2012 New York Auto Show
Infiniti is looking to tap into parent automaker Nissan’s experience with the all-electric Leaf for an EV product of its own in the near future. Which brings us to this smooth operator. Creatively dubbed the LE Concept, this car foretells a production version that Infiniti insists will be in showrooms within two years. (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
That motor gets its power from a 24-kWh lithium-ion battery, and Infiniti says the car will have a range of about 100 miles. There may be a wireless charging option, the base of which you can see sticking out from the back of the car, but this has yet to be confirmed for production. (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
Acura used the New York Auto Show to debut its soon-to-be-released-but-we’re-still-calling-it-a-concept-because-of-these-unsightly-wheels RLX Concept. The car you see here strongly foreshadows the company’s flagship that probably will go on sale in early 2013, and is a much-needed update to the current RL full-size sedan. Two versions will be available: The first is a front-wheel-drive model with 310 horsepower from a 3.5-liter, direct-injected V-6. (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
An all-wheel-drive model uses the same engine but kicks things up a notch with the addition of three electric motors (one in the seven-speed dual clutch transmission that comes with only this model and two at the rear axle) for a combined output of more than 370 horsepower (the total figure wasn’t released). Acura says it expects the hybrid model to hit 30 miles per gallon both in the city and on the highway. (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
The 2013 iteration will put a heretofore unseen priority on driving dynamics, which means it might well be discovering them for the first time. The car will have three driving modes (Normal, Eco, and Sport) as well as steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters when it finds its way to Toyota dealerships at the end of this year. (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
Lincoln’s new MKZ sedan just wants you to look at it. Ford’s luxury division is a brand that very much needs some attention from the car-buying masses in order for Lincoln’s future to remain secure. To reel in shoppers lost to rivals such as Lexus and Cadillac, the company says it will bring seven new or heavily redesigned models to market by 2015. It starts this trek with the MKZ. Full story (Mark Lennihan / Associated Press)
The car will have one of three engines: a 2.0-liter turbocharged EcoBoost four cylinder making 240 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque; a 3.7-liter V-6 with 300 horsepower and 277 pound-feet of torque; and a hybrid powerplant that gets 188 combined horsepower from a 2.0-liter engine and an electric motor. Full story (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
The gasoline engines will have a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters, and the hybrid will have a continuously variable transmission. AWD is an option on the non-hybrids. To keep things safe and hip, the MKZ will have numerous tech and safety features such as blind-spot monitoring; adaptive cruise control; lane-keeping assist; collision monitoring with brake support; and the much-maligned Sync with MyLincoln Touch. Full story (David Undercoffler / Los Angeles Times)
When the MKZ does go on sale, it probably will be targeting another car unveiled at this year’s New York Auto Show: the 2013 Lexus ES 350 and ES 300h Hybrid. The ES 350 gets a complete redesign and brings the model into sync with other recent Lexus products such as the GS sedan we reviewed earlier this year. It’s powered by a 3.5-liter V-6 that will almost certainly have more than the outgoing model’s 268 horsepower. (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
Lest you worry that auto shows were only focusing on the latest lean and green offerings,
The car probably will draw heavily from the C-X16 concept, seen here, that debuted last September. No word yet on what will move the car, though at least the initial version probably will have some sort of V-6 turning the rear wheels, considering the C-X16 concept had a 3.0-liter supercharged V-6 that made 375 horsepower. Full story (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Sales of Nissan’s Altima are up nearly 39% this year, making the family sedan the third-bestselling vehicle in America. So what will Nissan do with the car that accounted for about 30% of its sales last month? Scrap it. That’s right: Nissan unveiled the next-generation Altima at the New York International Auto Show on Wednesday. It goes on sale this summer. Full story (Justin Lane / EPA)
Hyundai will offer the Santa Fe with a choice of two four-cylinder engines or one six-cylinder engine, depending on the model. The automaker is pitching its Santa Fe Sport with 2.0-liter, turbocharged, direct-injection engine as a competitor to Ford’s four-cylinder turbocharged Edge crossover. Full story (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)
The engine produces 264 horsepower, about 24 more than the engine on the Ford Edge, and provides up to 3,500 pounds of towing capacity, compared with 2,000 for the Ford, according to Hyundai. The turbocharged Hyundai is rated at 25 miles per gallon in combined driving. Full story (Stan Honda / AFP/Getty Images)