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After weeks of non-stop car shopping late last year, I really didn’t think that I’d be as excited as I was for the Houston Auto Show this weekend.  I grew up going to car (and air, of course) shows with my dad, but usually for classic cars – which I have a soft spot for.

We got invited to a #ChevyHouston brunch at Backstreet Cafe with a great assortment of car enthusiasts, followed by a tour on the showroom floor by a smart GM gal named Eve.  I love chick gear heads.  They really made the experience fun.

Probably my biggest ‘oh cool’ moments were learning that the Volt costs about $1.20/day to charge (10 hours when charging with a regular outlet in your garage, 4 hours when using a specially installed 240 Volt charger station):

And then there was the breathtakingly attractive Corvette Stingray concept car (as seen on Transformers 2 as ‘Sideswipe’).  Cue angelic music and sunbeams now:

Yay for test driving!  Adam tried out a GMC Sierra (he’s always looking for a future work truck), he liked the ride and suspension – but couldn’t pass final judgement until he knew what it was like with a load on it.

Here he is taking a breathalyzer before he could test drive (routine practice and yes, he passed), I probably found this part more amusing than most of my fellow test drivers.  Hah.  It’s still funny.

I went a truck-ish route too and drove a GMC Acadia – partially because I forgot they didn’t have any Volts to drive, sadness, and partially because the line to test drive a Camaro was a tad overwhelming (and we’ve borrowed one before, so I knew about its awesomeness already).

The Acadia was very truck-y feeling to drive and had freakishly loud turn signals (yes, I have weird car driving feedback), next time I’ll test out the new Chevy Sonic instead – a bit more in my daily size range.

Here are some other highlights from the Houston Auto Show:

• Favorite car:  Those Camaros just get hotter and hotter, I swear.  They all just sparkled on the showroom floor – a definite show stopper.  Another interesting vehicle was the Range Rover Evoque – I hate that we couldn’t get a good look inside, but it gives the high end looking Range Rover a sportier and more ‘jaguar-y’ feel if that makes any sense.  RAWR!
• Best music:  Scion‘s bumping drum and bass, awww yeah.  Apparently they were handing out CDs too, but I was too busy looking at their bizarre show paint jobs to catch the schwag.
• Best auto show girl outfits:  A tie between Scion’s urban military chic + Chevy’s swell metallic leather jackets.  What?  Does this not usually lead the list of auto show wrap ups?
• Nicest floor display:  Volkswagen had loads of interactive stuff to do – a ‘wish you were here’ photo booth, iPads to learn more about vehicle specs, mini car production line and car finish memory game.  I’m really not digging their new design direction, so all the goodies to play with were definitely what kept me there talking to their folks.
• Biggest disappointment:  The Dodge Challenger – I was looking forward to seeing the new Mustangs, Camaros and Challengers in one room, but the solitary fingerprint covered Challenger I saw was stuck in a far corner near the entrance to the kiddie play area… and was, quite frankly, depressing.  I didn’t even walk over.  Poor thing.
• Weirdest paint job:  The new convertible Nissan Murano was out in its now-distinctive looking glory (thanks to the rag top – such a weird combo) rocking out a bizarre metallic seafoam with camel colored leather – earning the distinction of being the first car I would ever base a guest room bathroom off of.
• Best car rep moment:  My test driver GM dude and I discussing the etiquette of what are good types of establishments to check in to on Foursquare and where is not (aka: any place that there is body glitter involved not belonging to your girlfriend).  Good times.
• Most fun car to check out:  The Fiat 500c was a hilarious and fun part of the show.  It’s a cute looking car (especially for any Cars fans – Luigi, anyone?), but what’s even cuter is how people react to it.  Not sure what this says about mob mentality, but every time we looked over a bunch of strangers were trying to wedge themselves in the car all at once with goofy grins on their faces – clown car style.

Did you ogle any vehicles this weekend?  Pray tell!  Thanks to the #ChevyHouston team for a super fun time this weekend!  I love large companies that take practical innovation to heart.