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Trucks and Cars are Everywhere(Without a Drop of Gas to Spare) at the 2008 State Fair of Texasby Jo Ann HoltWhen fall rolls around, people from all over the great state of Texas—plus other states and countries from around the world— congregate in Dallas, Texas for the biggest State Fair of them all (after all, it’s in Texas!). The fair is set on 277 acres of land just south of downtown Dallas, and every square inch is filled with new delights for the senses. This year’s fair runs September 26-October 19, and attendance figures are said to be soaring, thanks to unusually beautiful weather and outstanding attractions like the Texas Skyway, performers like the Nerveless Nocks, the Domino Man, and the U. S. Marine Band, and every kind of fried food imaginable. Along with the annual football spectacles provided by Texas/OU and Grambling/Prairie View, the biggest draws are the children’s barnyard and livestock arenas (where you can watch pig races and dancing dogs), the Midway with its many games and rides, and the State Fair Auto Show. The vehicles fill two exhibit halls and outdoor displays, making this the biggest new car and truck show in the Southwest featuring 2009 models plus concept vehicles and weekend rallies for custom and classic car collectors. A luxury showroom features premium names such as Lexus, Infiniti, Lincoln-Mercury, Chrysler, Cadillac and Saab, while the classic corral has vintage cars like Mustangs, Model “A”s and T-birds.
Helping to promote the new Toyota Venza launch was a specially designed Partner Robot, (pictured) who played the trumpet among numerous other skills. Toyota is developing Partner Robots to contribute in the following four target fields: nursing and medical care assistance, housekeeping assistance, manufacturing assistance and short-range personal mobility assistance.
While this was hard to top, other crowd-pleasers included the 2009 Dodge Challenger SRT-8, the Journey, and Durango Hybrid; the Chevy Aveo-5, the gorgeous Camaro, and the Malibu Hybrid; the GMC Acadia and Sierra Hybrid; and the Hyundai Genesis and Sonata. The 2009 Lincoln Mercury MKS was also drawing second and third looks from car buyers. The State Fair of Texas ends Sunday, Oct. 19; for more information about the fair visit www.bigtex.com. PHOTO CAPTIONS: Jo Ann Holt is a car columnist and journalist based in Dallas, Texas, and a member of the Texas Auto Writers Association; joannholt@gmail.com. |
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Even the hardest-to-please auto fans are guaranteed to find
something to fuel their dreams, from futuristic concept cars like the 2009 Jeep
Wrangler and Suzuki Equator Quad to the exciting new styles of the 2009 Ford
Flex Limited, (pictured), the Chevrolet Traverse (pictured) and the Corvette
ZR-1. The Traverse is currently under production at GM’s Spring Hill
Manufacturing site in Tennessee and has been one of the most anticipated new
crossovers to be introduced in the market. 
"The all-new Chevy Traverse is the right product for the
market today and we've got the right manufacturing team building it here in
Spring Hill," said Troy Clarke, GM executive vice president and president of GM
North America. "The Chevy Traverse is fast becoming one of our most important
volume products as buyers increasingly turn to more fuel efficient crossovers
with today's rising cost of fuel. Traverse is a leader in its segment in highway
fuel economy thanks to its new 3.6-liter V-6 engine with direct injection
technology." 
Toyota touted their new Crossover utility vehicle, the
Venza (pictured), which opened a new niche for Toyota—the manufacturer who’s
usually ahead of the pack— with its southwestern launch at the State Fair Auto
Show. 
The concept behind the Partner Robot project is the
creation of robots that can use tools, assist people, and live in harmony with
us. The robot was produced by combining industrial robot technologies with the
latest control technologies used in automobiles. The Toyota Partner Robot in the
United States plays the trumpet. It has artificial lips and lungs that work
together to replicate the vibration of a human mouth. The robot operates the
valves on the trumpet with fingers that have human-like dexterity. It currently
plays 13 tunes, a few of which include Love of the Heart (I Just Called To Say I
Love You), What a Wonderful World, and a Disney medley. It is the only
trumpet-playing robot in the world.