Visitor's Guide to the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show

The 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show takes place December 4-13 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, right in downtown L.A. This is the first large-scale domestic auto show of the season and you can expect to see the full range of 2010 production cars (not to mention more than a few 2011 models), many of which are appearing in public for the first time.

The show hasn't begun very auspiciously, what with the recent dismissal of General Motors' CEO Fritz Henderson with the abrupt, graceless execution usually reserved for the firing of college football coaches. You also can't help but notice that the display area has shrunk by about 10 percent this year as companies like Ferrari and Nissan declined to purchase display space and the other show stands are notably short on the usual theatre.

Fortunately the show itself proves interesting, as car manufacturers turn to face the future. You'll find the traditional green theme that the L.A. show has adopted, but this time the display of hybrids and electric cars has a dimension of reality that has been missing before, as some of these vehicles are poised for production. And all the vehicles themselves are changing, featuring a renewed emphasis on fuel-efficiency and practical packaging.

Wear Comfortable Shoes
During public days, we expect you'll be entertained by hundreds of cars filling some 760,000 square feet of exhibition space, as if the convention center had been turned into the world's largest car lot. You'll also find the unique displays from the automotive aftermarket in Kentia Hall, the largest display of car stuff outside of SEMA.

During the course of the show, there will be autograph sessions by assorted athletes, notably the Force NHRA drivers, including John Force, his daughter Ashley Force-Hood and Mike Neff. (Are the Laker Girls athletes, too?)

More important, you can even drive some cars. On both weekends of the show, Toyota will make available its hybrids and the new 4Runner on a special course near the West Hall ticketing tents. If you'd rather just watch, Ford will conduct a demonstration of its new Park Assist every day of the show near the West Hall, and also offer test-drives of Ford models.

If you have an aptitude for design, you might want to participate in a daily design contest in Kentia Hall organized by the Art Center College of Design. At the conclusion of each day, Art Center will award a night-school scholarship and a weekend scholarship to the two entrants with the most creativity and skill.

If you want a guide to the displays, the Web site for the Los Angeles auto show will answer your questions, but since this is L.A., you'll be more interested in parking, which fortunately is underground beneath the convention center itself. Tickets are $12 ($2 coupons are available online from the show's Web site), and e-tickets are $10. Parking is $12.

Best of Show
After tramping around the L.A. Convention Center over the course of the two days devoted to the preview for the media, we've selected our list of the most important must-see vehicles of the show. Get out your guide to the exhibition floor and circle the stands where these vehicles are displayed.

Audi R8 E-tron Concept: First displayed at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, the E-tron glamorizes the electric car by applying a battery-powered powertrain to the exquisite Audi R8 sports car. This is real all-wheel drive, as there's an electric motor for each wheel.

BMW Vision EfficientDynamics: BMW has never presented a concept as futuristic as this one. The two-door, all-wheel-drive compact is powered by an advanced diesel-electric plug-in hybrid powertrain that delivers a combined 356 horsepower and returns an impressive 63 mpg.

2011 Cadillac CTS Coupe: Though it's powered by the same 306-hp 3.6-liter V6 found in the other CTS variants, the CTS coupe is different. It comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission, so it's serious about driving.

2011 Hyundai Sonata: The Sonata has received a makeover before we expected it, and the dramatically restyled sedan will be in showrooms this winter. Given the times, this affordable sedan could become more popular than ever.

2011 Jaguar XJ: With the long-awaited U.S. introduction of the all-new XJ, Jaguar hopes to rehabilitate its brand at last. This is truly modern style, and it's got a serious V8 engine under the hood so it can run with the German competition.

2011 Lexus LFA: With this $420,000 supercar, Lexus hopes to step forward from its comfortable luxury niche and become a real prestige brand. A 552-hp 4.8-liter V10 should do it.

2011 Mazda 2: Mazda tells us that the future will look a lot more like this subcompact in the future. Widely hailed in Asia and Europe alike as one of the best efforts in its category, the Mazda 2 shares much of its components and engineering with the Ford Fiesta.

Mini Coupe Concept: First displayed at the Frankfurt auto show, the Mini Coupe Concept illustrates yet another direction that this brand might take. The cunning coupe-style roof is impractical, yet a two-passenger Mini is kind of intriguing.

2011 Porsche Boxster Spyder: Times being what they are, even sports cars are getting more efficient. Evidence can be found in this new, lightweight Boxster, which combines 320 hp with just 2,811 pounds.

Volkswagen Up! Lite: The Up! is Volkswagen's blueprint for the future, and the microcar promises to cause a stir when it's introduced in late 2011. In the meantime, VW is building the anticipation with concepts like this interesting 70-mpg diesel-electric hybrid.