Friday, January 14, 2005

cK & Jazmine at LA Auto Show

Cars, cute girls and more cars!

My cousin, Jazmine and I ventured to the LA Auto Show at the Los Angeles Convention Center just so she could look at all the "pretty cars".

Right at the entrance, I observed a guy trying to sell a ticket for $5 to people going in. I called him over and purchased a ticket from him for $5. The tickets were selling for $10. He only had one or else I would have purchased one for my cousin too. It was a bit shady to buy them -- as far as I know, they could be fake.
We walk into the place and one of the first things I realize is that the convention center entrance is the same place they filmed the scene in RUSH HOUR with Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker -- where Jackie is climbing up chasing after JUNE TAO. If you know the movie, then you know the scene. So my cousin buys a "real" ticket. It looks exactly like mine, but it has a different colour. We walk to the gate and I'm hoping my ticket works. Jazmine gets through and then I hand my ticket ---- I get through too! It was a real one! Anyways, we go into the the first part, and armed with my Palm Zire 71, we tour the car displays. The car manufacturer we saw first was Cadillac. Their display was full of people checking out all the current models that were on the floor. The CTS, SRX, STS, and the XLR. They were some real nice rides. My cousin, Jazmine and I took a quick sit in an STS. Man, that car was smooth as butter. Jazmine really liked how nice the seats were. I was impressed by the design of it, and how there was no key to start it -- just a push button. It really felt like a 'ballers' car.

Cadillac CTS-V	Cadillac CTS-V again	Cadillac XLR Roadster

Next up we went to the Chevrolet section. I was really eager to go and see the 2006 Impala because it was redesigned this year. But first, I saw some other gems on the way.

Chevy Cobalt SS

This car is the replacement for the popular Cavalier that ended production this year. More sporty and more standard options than its predecessor, its sure to be a hit with the college groups looking for inexpensive cars to soop up. Then, as I walked more into the Chevy area, there was a huge crowd. I found people drooling over a particular car in the middle. When I walked in for a closer peek, I found out it was the Chevy Corvette Z06. One of the baddest production Corvette's ever boasting a whopping 500 horsepower. A real sports car -- this is the symbol of American muscle power.

Corvette ZO6	500 Horsepower	Fear in your rearview mirror

After seeing the Corvette... I searched for the Impala. and I found it. My current 2002 Impala is a really nice car, and I like it the way it is. It has very agressive styling and lots of power for the road -- also the best fuel economy in its class. But, that car's design is 5 years old -- the same design has been around for 2000 - 2005 models.

2006 Chevy Impala SS

This is the only picture I took of the new Impala. The new 2006 version has an available 303 horsepower 5.3L V8 engine. That's 103 horses more than my car. I'm still not too fond of the new look --- but it is slowly growing on me. It takes some time I guess. The next few cars included a Pontiac Solstice, Hummer trucks and the Chrysler Four-Twelve prototype.

Pontiac Solstice	Jazmine in a H2	Chrysler Four Twelve

As we walked more - we entered the Saturn exhibit area. It was alright until I stumbled across the Saturn Sky. Saturn is finally making a convertible. I was taken away by this car. The compact size and the idea that its even a SATURN made it more appealing. Here are some pics:

Saturn Sky	Saturn Sky side	Saturn Sky rear

Okay... so that was mad cool. As I left the Saturn area, right next to it was the Suzuki display. Honestly, I would have not gone in there if I didn't see this girl sitting there signing autographs and taking pics. The girl was none other than Jelynn Rodriguez (tv host of "The Drop" on SiTV). I went up to her and had a little chat. She recognized me and told me how much she loved my tv show. (just kidding) She was a treat to meet and was real nice.

Jelynn	Jelynn meets 'fruity' cK!	Jelynn Poses with cK

First of all, I don't know WHAT happened in that pic with me and Jelynn. That has got to be the 'fruitiest' picture I have ever been in. What had happened was that I was trying to keep my backpack from sliding down my shoulders, and I --- does it matter? The pic just looks fruity!!! Anyways, Jelynn was also in front of her car that Suzuki tricked out. You can also see the video of the creation of her ride getting tricked out here. Here are some pics of her tricked out Suzuki Forenza that I took. Click here to view the signed Jelynn autograph.

Front of Jelynn's Forenza	Side of Jelynn's Forenza	Trunk of Jelynn's Forenza
Jewelry Case, Bubble Gum Dispenser	Shoe Rack and Mirrors	Side of Jelynn's Forenza

My cousin, Jazmine and I then ventured around some more. We took the following pics:

Acura NSX	Side of 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse	Back of Mitsubishi Eclipse
Jazmine in Lexus SC400	Brabus Mercedes	Spyker
Spyker	Bentley Continental GT	Bentley Arnage
Bentley Arnage	Saleen S7	Back of Saleen S7
Saleen S7	Ferraris	More Ferraris
Red Ferrari	Blue Ferrari	XM Radio Live Concert
2005 Ford Mustang GT	Ford Shelby	Ford Shelby
Lincoln Zepher	Maybach	Front side of Maybach
Rear side of Maybach	Mercedes SLR McLaren	Mercedes SLR McLaren
Mercedes SLR McLaren	Price Tag: $452,500	Jazmine in a Mercedes SL500
cK in Mercedes SL500	Jazmine in some hot ride	Jazmine posing by Infiniti G35
Lamborghini Murcielago	Saleen Mustang	$452,500 Mercedes

As we walked around, we met some nice people. I got hungry and I wanted to try out the Convention Center's food. So we went the cafeteria and sat down to eat. I just got some fries and a soda. While we were sitting down, this girl approached the guy sitting beside us and asked him if he would like to do a survey. He said that he didn't have time or something --- I then called out to the girl and said, "I'll do it!" She came over and then I participated in a survey about the auto show. It took about 15 minutes and was general questions about what car brands did I like and which booths/exhibits were better, etc. Once the survey was done, she gave me $5 cash! So now in fact, I came to the LA Auto Show for free!

The Auto Show was closing at 10:30pm, Jazmine and I had seen all that we could see at 9:30pm. So we went back outside and walked towards the bus stop that would take us home. When we got there, I read the schedule and saw that the bus stopped running at 9:14pm. Can you believe that?!?! What kind of city is this? So now I had to take a different route. It wasn't too bad, just took about an hour and a half to get home. Overall, it was a great car show!