Automakers talk green, let big engines hum in the background

When it comes to big cars and trucks, no one is talking about them.

Oh, they're at the North American International Auto Show. They can be seen in displays, spinning in endless circles as spotlights shine on them. They're just not being mentioned during automaker press conferences.

Ford Motor Co., for example, touted its 2012 Focus in a big blue production that involved two little compacts buzzing onto the stage at Cobo Center. But their combined horsepower is nothing near the roar of the new Mustang GT engine -- the legendary 5.0.

The Mustang was there, but its engine announcement was made two weeks ago. You'll hear about it again sometime when you're stopped at a traffic light and a 2011 Mustang GT pulls next to you. Your coffee will be rippling like a "Jurassic Park" movie.

"We wanted the press conference to focus on the Focus," said Derrick Kuzak, Ford's vice president, global product development, talking about the 5.0 taking a back seat Monday.

Cadillac will hold its press conference today and it's likely no one will hear much about the CTS-V Coupe, with a 556-horsepower supercharged V-8 under its hood. Hearing that engine rev is a mechanical aria, but the coupe will spin quietly on the platform, drowned out by other news.

I get it. Small is the new big, and if one more person at the Detroit auto show says that, I'll be ill.

Yes, the small market is growing -- and one out of every four cars sold is small -- but have Americans really changed their ways, looking to ride a green wave into the future? Not really.

Wanted: Big gas-sipper

As I walked the show floor with David Champion, senior director of Consumer Reports auto test division, he talked about the big need for carmakers to go small. But Champion thinks they might be overdoing it. (Consumer Reports has earned a reputation for analysis and is considered by many as the first stop before buying a car.)

And he doesn't think consumers are going to embrace little green machines, at least not yet.

"People are still going to buy minivans and SUVs," he said, as we admired the 2012 Honda CR-Z hybrid, a sharply dressed vehicle. "Maybe when gas prices go up, there will be more small-car sales, but what people really want is a big car that is super efficient."

The plethora of tiny cars and high-mileage hype seems to suggest carmakers are betting that gas prices are going to continue to rise, Champion said. He doesn't see that as a bad thing.

"America was not made for small cars because there is no disadvantage to owning a large vehicle," he said. "Bigger vehicles provide more room, they fit in most garages and they're easy to park in most places here. In other countries, small cars just make more sense because they get good mileage and fit in tighter spaces."

Champion, who favors a graduated tax system on gasoline to push people into smaller cars, said higher gas prices are the only way to make all of these little cars more popular.

"When gas prices go up, small-car sales go up," he said. "But politicians are never going to vote for that."

Small plays outsized role

So why aren't the carmakers talking about their big cars? Have SUVs and pickup trucks suddenly become politically incorrect?

Not in Detroit, Champion said, pointing to a Ram Heavy Duty truck.

"People here, people in lots of places around the country are going to love that vehicle," he said.

That they will. And they'll love the Ferrari parked right in the middle of the Chrysler display. How can you not like a Ferrari?

But the new hybrids and fuel-sipping vehicles -- the Volkswagen NNC compact hybrid, the Toyota FT-CH hybrid, the Hyundai Blue Will and the Honda CR-Z hybrid -- all played big roles Monday. The Ford Fusion hybrid probably grabbed the first big headline of the day, nabbing the North American Car of the Year honors.

Compact cars, new habits

But as we walked through Electric Avenue, a strip filled with little electric vehicles, Champion still doubted how much of an impact these cars will have over the next few years.

"The cars require people to really change their habits," he said. "When the world was moving from the horse and carriage to the car, they did so because it was easier. Moving into the electric car is not easier."

Additionally, their mileage numbers are not nearly as strong as carmakers suggest. Electric cars lose distance when the heat or air conditioning is on or drivers are not cruising at recommended speeds.

"You can get in a car in Detroit, drive all the way to Alaska, where it's 40 degrees, fill up and know you can get another 300 miles. Electric cars still have a long way to go."