If you’re one of those folks who
likes to walk (or drive) to the beat
of a different drum, particularly
when it comes to what’s parked
in your garage, the Chicago Auto
Show has you covered. There are
a few vehicles out there that sim-
ply refuse to be categorized, and these automotive
oddballs are on display at the Chicago Auto Show.
From boxy compacts to four-door coupes to a
two-seater that’s almost short enough to be parked
perpendicularly in a parallel space, there’s a hand-
ful of strange sheet metal out there, and here’s a
sampling of the weirdest new cars you’ll see on the
show foor, in no particular order.
Acura ZDX:
Acura calls it a “luxury crossover,”
but most observers will be confused on how to
label the ZDX. Is it a four-door coupe? An SUV? A
hatchback? What’s certain is that the four-door, fve-
seat ZDX will be making its curtain call this year, so
check it out now.
BMW X6:
BMW’s four-seat, four-door hatch-
back crossover likely served as the inspiration for
the ZDX from rival Acura. BMW calls it a “Sports
Activity Coupe,” but that bit of marketing doesn’t
really clear up anything. Like the ZDX, the X6 is
a tall four-door crossover SUV with coupe-like
proportions. Unlike the ZDX, it only seats four. De-
pending on which engine you choose, you can have
300, 400, or 555 horsepower – odd-looking doesn’t
have to equate to slow.
Smart ForTwo:
This tiny urban runabout seats
only two and looks like a glorifed golf cart, but city
dwellers likely will appreciate the ease with which
one can ft the ForTwo into a tight parking space.
There are plenty of subcompacts on the market, but
nothing like the ForTwo. Available in electric or
convertible form, perhaps it
is best classifed as
a sub-sub-sub-
compact.
Scion xB:
This is the frst
of the boxy com-
pact crossovers – the xB may not have inspired the
Soul and the Cube, but it paved the way for both to
exist. Like all Scions, it’s available with all sorts of
dealer-installed accessories. It may also be the most
“mainstream” vehicle on this list.
Toyota FJ Cruiser:
The FJ is hard to place.
Toyota already offers two midsize SUVs (the High-
lander and 4Runner), so the FJs mainly focused on
pure off-road vehicles like the Jeep Wrangler. Still,
it’s practical enough to be driven every day.
Hyundai Veloster:
Hyundai’s got the market
cornered with its three-door hatchback coupe. The
Veloster is fairly conventional in most other senses
(although some of the interior design choices -- such
as the angular door-pull handles -- are unique) but it
makes this list by virtue of Hyundai’s choice to add
that extra door.
As you wander the show foor, keep an eye out for
these odd ducks. Not all cars are neatly categorized
into one class or another, and there’s a lot more
out there than just minivans, crossovers, and fam-
ily sedans. Perhaps one of
these oddballs might
even end
up in your
driveway.
By Tim Healey
Web2Carz.com
Oddballs for Everyone
More Than100,000 Veh i c l es Jus t A Cl i ck Away…Dr i veCh i cago. com
CHICAGO AUTO SHOW 2013
22