Written by Robertino Altieri, Co-founder at The Car Buyer
Malibu Autobahn and thecarbuyer.com partnered up over the weekend to bring you an exclusive look at LA Auto Show’s finest inventory. The content below may serve as an extremely helpful guide for anyone that may have missed the event, or desires to see the hottest rides going into 2020. Jake and Robertino Altieri sat down to discuss some of the show’s key concepts and newest debuts including top predictions for 2020 and some of the coolest rides you wouldn’t want to miss.
WHEN: November 22, 2019 - December 1, 2019
URL: laautoshow.com
History of the LA Auto Show
The LA Auto Show was originally founded and launched in 1907 at Morley’s Skating Rink with only 99 vehicles on display. Fast forward to 2019, LA’s Auto Show is able to occupy Los Angeles’s Convention Center’s entire 1,000,000 square feet with automobiles.
This year was special for the host, as they were able to increase their online ticket sales by 37% (via eventbrite.com).
Listen to the Highlights from LA’s 2019 Autoshow
Here’s What You Missed - Inside the Booth at Malibu Autobahn
Listen along!
The below is a paraphrased translation:
Robertino Altieri: What’s up guys, this is Robertino Altieri, co-founder of thecarbuyer.com, also known as TCB The Car Buyer. I’m joined here today by Jake of Malibu Autobahn. Jake, thanks for having me!
Today we’re going to go through a helpful guide or set of questions we put together for those of us that weren’t able to make the event. We will be pointing out some of the must-sees, helpful hints, sneak peeks, industry news and anything that you may have missed. So, without further ado, let’s get into it!
Robertino Altieri: Jake, in your opinion, what’s the hottest car of LA Auto Show’s 2019 Event?
Jake:
Man, I have to say our Bugatti right here, the Bugatti EB110.
Top 5 Picks from Jake:
1994 Bugatti EB110 Supersport
2020 BMW M8
2020 BMW M2 CS
2020 BMW B7 Alpina
2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E SUV
But, as far as new cars coming from the manufacturers, I really think the new BMW M8 is really crazy. If not, the M2 CS, or, in my opinion, the BMW B7 Alpina. This is one of the more underrated cars that doesn’t get as many people talking about it, but definitely (in my opinion) the coolest car that you can buy (new) from the manufacturer.
Other than that, I think the hottest car here as far as hype, would probably be the new Ford Mustang electric SUV. It definitely may seem a bit controversial, but definitely is high on the lists of popularity. There are lots of hot cars here, but those are my picks!
Robertino Altieri:
Awesome, Jake! If you can, tell us more about your Bugatti.
Jake:
Ya, so this is the Bugatti EB110.
It is particularly special considering the more popular models like the Veyron, Chiron, and the other largely known vehicles of Bugatti. Bugatti’s started back in 1909, as a family of artisans in France, who were known for making the most powerful and beautiful cars out there. They went out of business right around the time of World War 2 and remained out of business for 49 years. They sort of re-founded the brand with the launch of this car, The Bugatti EB110. The brand was bought out, but the ethos remained the same and this car went on to break many world records. It was a true hypercar back in 1994, at its time of launch. As time has passed, there was a time where these cars didn’t appreciate, but now, these cars have gone up so much in value just because of the collectibility of Bugatti.
There are only a couple hundred Bugatti EB110’s in the world. Even more interesting, however, is that there are only about 30 EB110 Supersports, which is the one we have here. This particular model is the only Bugatti EB110 in the world to have exposed carbon fiber. Most of them have a carbon fiber that is painted over, however, this is the only one in the world that you can see that exposes carbon fiber. You see exposed carbon fiber on the newer, more trendy current Bugatti model, however, this was not common back in 1994. So, this is the only one in the world that you’ll see of the Bugatti EB110’s that has exposed carbon fiber.
Robertino Altieri:
What is the current market value of the vehicle today?
Jake:
It’s worth about $10,000,000 at market rate today in 2019.
Robertino Altieri:
What was it sold for at its face value?
Jake:
In 1994, I believe it went for up to $1,000,000. It may have been $700,000 when it was sold new. They actually depreciated for awhile as someone told me they sold for under $100,000 at one point. It’s just crazy how the collectibility of these vehicles have appreciated today.
Robertino Altieri:
Who is this vehicle owned by today?
Jake:
So, this is owned by Alpha Luxe, a luxury lifestyle / automotive magazine. They talk about luxury watches, cars and really anything to do with luxury fine craftsmanship. They are always talking about very unique things like this car for example. All the cars in their collection are very interesting, one of a kind and definitely top of the line.
Robertino Altieri:
Very nice! So, I think one of the most popular trends in 2019 and moving forward in 2020 is electric vehicles.
I wanted to get your opinion on what you think is the best bang for your buck when choosing electric and your personal favorite EC vehicle?
Jake:
That’s a good question! Tesla makes such a compelling argument for anything electric at the moment. They have really popularized the whole ideology of electric and I really believe their model 3 really is killing it. I don’t think there’s a better electric car out there like that, but there are some comparable alternatives/competitors.
Mini Cooper just came out with an EV, which is pretty cool. But, again, Tesla is very dominant in this space.
So, to really sum this up, I’d say Tesla’s model 3 or anything Tesla at the moment takes the reign on anything electric.
Robertino Altieri:
I like it, I like it.
I just took a look at Infiniti’s new QS Inspiration. It’s supposed to be released in a couple of years. It is absolutely amazing!
Jake:
Oh really? The EV? I haven’t seen it. Is it here?
Robertino Altieri:
Yes, I believe it’s their new EV concept. It’s here on the second level. It was pretty interesting. The interior had shaggy carpets and a fine white leather seating material. The side mirrors were almost non-existent as they replaced the normal side mirror space with back up camera sensors. Instead, I believe you are to view a side approaching vehicle form the interior of the vehicle on the actual dash.
Robertino Altieri:
What’s your favorite truck or top couple of trucks that caught your eye here at the event?
Jake:
That’s a great question. Honestly, I’ve always been a Ford guy. I don’t think you can ever go wrong with Ford.
Galpin Motors! They are a huge dealership and have a ton of trucks here at the event. They have an F-150 here with an old Bronco paint style. It’s really, really cool. I’d say the coolest trucks here are the custom ones at Galpin Auto Sports.
Do you consider SUV’s trucks, or are we just talking pickup trucks?
Robertino Altieri:
I’m talking just pickup trucks right now, but let’s segway into SUV’s in a moment here. SUV’s are definitely my personal favorite choice as far as vehicle types.
Jake:
Gotcha, okay. Yeah, those are the coolest ones. Down in the customs area, there are some really cool lifted trucks. But, as far as new ones coming out, I’d say Ford is definitely the way to go, I mean, you name it, The Ford Raptor, etc.
Robertino Altieri:
Ya. My younger brother is looking at the new Ford rangers, which I totally love. It looks just like the Raptor.
Jake:
That’s going to do well.
Robertino Altieri:
What about SUVs?
Top 4 Picks from Jake:
Lincoln
Land Rover
Toyota
Mercedes G-Wagon
Jake:
Lincoln SUVs
Man, I’d say Lincoln! Lincoln is absolutely killing it. Lincoln has some really nice SUV’s. They’re obviously not the cheapest out there, but they are at a really good price point.
Robertino Altieri:
Yeah, they’re pushing it out an all forms of media right now. Seeing many commercials of the new Lincoln Aviator and tons of stuff on social media!
Jake:
Yeah, they’re really nice. For a long time, Lincoln was just a re-badged Ford. Everything was very similar. But now, I feel that the vehicles themselves are all very unique, which is important.
I think Lincoln is really killing it.
Toyota SUVs
Toyota has a really cool set up here. They’ve got some great SUVs as well.
Robertino Altieri:
Land Rover SUVs
The new Land Rover Defender really caught my eyes. They had a new one on display here with Gold Paint that was very very nice!
Jake:
Yeah! That’s what I was just going to say. Land Rover may be the hottest SUV’s here at LA Auto Show 2019.
Robertino Altieri:
Yeah. I’d definitely say a large or general trend in today’s era and particularly our generation is an increased liking of Range Rover. Particularly the Range Rover Sport among the younger generation.
Jake:
Yeah. I also love the Mercedes G-Wagon, which I’m a big fan of.
Robertino Altieri:
Alright cool. What were the coolest Supersports to look out for?
Jake:
Man, definitely Aston Martin. So, Aston Martin themselves aren’t here. They have a few Aston Martins at the Galpin Aston Martin of the Galpin Dealership.
Robertino Altieri:
What floor is that on?
Jake:
It’s in the hallway connecting the West and South Atrium. It’s in the middle of that hallway, called the Galpin Customs. They have their Aston Martin dealership out here and they have their entire lineup of cars right now.
They also have an $800,000 Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato, which is very cool.
They also just got the only Aston Martin DBX that’s in America right now. It’s the brand new Aston Martin SUV. It’s the only one and they just got it in this weekend. They literally just got it in yesterday on Saturday, November 30th.
Other than that Pagani has a really cool Pagan Huayra. That is very, very cool. That’s gotta be one of the coolest Supersports out there.
Robertino Altieri:
Awesome! The last thing I want to make sure we get covered here is; were there any areas that should demand attention from our guests next time around?
Jake:
I’d say the garage downstairs is something you wouldn’t want to miss for sure. They have a lot of interesting concepts down there.
I would definitely not miss any of the main exhibit halls. You really just have to walk through and try and see everything. Sit and cars you’re interested in and devote some time!
Robertino Altieri:
Perfect. Alright, well my name is Robertino Altieri from TCB The Car Buyer, joined here by Jake from Malibu Autobahn. Thank you guys for having me and we look forward to our next event!
About the Author:
Robertino Altieri is the co-founder of thecarbuyer.com, one of Los Angeles’s newest groups of car buying professionals. Their main focus in the automotive industry is to bring transparency to the market, while educating the consumer with car reports, prices, write-ups and an overall understanding on the exchange of pre-owned automobiles. The website’s domain and platform will be used to innovate car buying in Los Angeles to bring a more transparent value to the minds of the public.
Let us know about your experience of this year's LA Autoshow below!