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L.A. Auto Show Highlighted by Worldwide and North American Debuts

18 January 1999

L.A. Auto Show Highlighted by Worldwide and North American Debuts; Record Nine-Day Public Attendance

    LOS ANGELES, Jan. 15 -- Automakers seized the 1999 Greater
Los Angeles Auto Show's early dates to roll out nearly two dozen Worldwide and
North American debuts of production and concept vehicles, ranking it among the
most debuts in the show's history.
    The buzz of news started immediately on the first of the two Media Days as
Lincoln held the Worldwide introduction of its Lincoln Blackwood concept
vehicle.  The news conference, which was elaborately-staged in the lobby of
South hall, featured Major League Baseball home run slugger Mark McGwire who
drove the Blackwood on stage where he was warmly greeted by Ford's chief
designer J Mays, journalists and a horde of industry executives.  Based on
feedback received at the show, Lincoln announced it will put the Blackwood
into production.
    Adding to the Media Days excitement was DaimlerChrysler, which used a
touch of Hollywood theatrics for the Worldwide debuts of the
2000 Dodge/Plymouth Neon and the world's first alternative-fueled SUV, the
Jeep Commander.  DaimlerChrysler President Tom Stallkamp assumed a variety of
roles as he lead the introduction announcements at Paramount Studios.
    The following vehicles received either their Worldwide or North American
debut at this year's L.A. Auto Show:

    2000 BMW M5
    1999 Buick Regal LSe
    1999 Buick Regal GSe
    999 Chevrolet S-10 Trailblazer
    2000 Dodge Neon
    Ford Cosworth Focus concept

    2000 Honda S2000 Roadster
    1999 Isuzu Ironman VehiCROSS
    2000 Jaguar S-type
    Jeep Commander concept
    Lincoln Blackwood concept
    2000 Nissan Frontier Four-door
    1999.5 Nissan Pathfinder
    Nissan Hypermini concept
    1999 Mazda Troy Lee Edition B-series pickup
    Mazda Protege All-Sport concept
    Mercury Cougar S concept
    Mercury Cougar Eliminator concept
    Mercury Marauder concept
    1999 Porsche 911 Carrera 4

    The successful Media Days proved the ideal lead-in for the auto show's
nine public days, January 2 - 10, 1999.  A record 860,229 people forgoed the
warm sunshine for the Los Angeles Convention Center to see the automakers'
newest models and the extensive collection of aftermarket products and
accessories.  The total represents an eight percent increase over the previous
nine-day public record.  For comparison, last year's L.A. Auto Show attracted
902,882 consumers during a ten-day period.
    "Exhibitors were pleased with both the media and public response this
year," commented Andy Fuzesi, general manager of the L.A. Auto Show.  "This
year's success provides the show with an ideal transition into our plans for
the 2000 L.A. Auto Show."
    The Meguiar's Media Center was the nucleus of activity as journalists
filed their stories, scanned PR Newswire's computer monitors for breaking news
from AP, Reuters and Dow Jones, retrieved news kits or met up with colleagues.
Dedicated ISDN lines also facilitated internet news organizations such as
http://www.latimes.com and http://www.theautochannel.com which provided feeds from each news
conference to their worldwide audiences.