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2024 CES Mega Photo Gallery: Honda concepts, a VinFast truck and flying cars galore

The 2024 rendition of CES is coming to a close, and per usual, it was full of all the funky, futuristic tech the show is long known for. It’s also full of cars and legitimately forward-thinking tech related to cars, and we were on the ground to see it all and bring photos to you in this Mega Gallery.  A boatload of manufacturers attended and made big reveals, from the Star Wars-like Honda concept cars to a pickup truck from VinFast, the sort of debuts we got to see ran the gamut. Of course, there were plenty of reveals and vehicles on the floor that were even more outlandish than concepts from traditional OEMs like Honda and Mercedes. Check out this flying Xpeng car as an example. Or perhaps the flying Mansory car. Apparently, flying cars were a theme. Anyway, make sure you scroll down to check out the various reveals and photos of the cars and technologies revealed at the 2024 CES in our barrage of galleries. Honda 0 Series Honda 0 Series saloon 1 View 26 Photos VinFast Wild pickup VinFast Wild 10 View 10 Photos VinFast VF3 VinFast VF3 1 View 4 Photos VW GTI Prototype with AI-enhanced infotainment CES 2024: New Volkswagen GTI with AI-Enhanced Infotainment View 17 Photos Kia PBV Concept Kia PBV Concept platform View 28 Photos Sony Honda Mobility Afeela concept Afeela by Sony Honda Mobility View 5 Photos Hyundai Mobion Concept Hyundai Mobion Concept CES 2024 View 6 Photos Mullen Five RS Mullen 2 View 14 Photos Mansory Empower concept Mansory Empower concept View 14 Photos Hyundai Supernal S-A2 eVTOL Hyundai Supernal S-A2 View 13 Photos XPeng Aeroht eVTOL Flying Car XPeng Aeroht eVTOL?Flying Car View 6 Photos Verge TS Ultra verge-ts-ultra-ces-2024-electric-motorcycle-01 View 17 Photos Horwin Senmenti Maxi Scooter Range Horwin Senmenti 0 View 12 Photos BMW Teleoperated Valet BMW iX controlled with Remote Valet View 15 Photos Mercedes-Benz MB.OS infotainment Mercedes-Benz MB.OS infotainment system View 9 Photos Lamborghini Telemetry X Lamborghini Telemetry X View 5 Photos Related video: Green Motorsports CES BMW Ford Honda Hyundai Kia Lamborghini Mercedes-Benz Volkswagen Volvo Green Automakers Green Culture Technology Infotainment Smartphone Autonomous Vehicles Commercial Vehicles Concept Cars Polestar Infrastructure

Hyundai Kona joins compact-crossover fray

This week in Seoul, South Korea, Hyundai finally pulled back the covers on the all-new Kona, the automaker's first compact crossover. The Kona enters one of the hottest segments on the market and will compete straight against Honda HR-V, Toyota C-HR, and Fiat 500X. The stylish Kona slots below the larger Santa Fe and Tucson, filling out the Hyundai's crossover offerings. The new model goes on sale in Korea later this month, hitting showrooms in Europe and the US later this year. Like others in this segment, the Kona sells itself on style as well as substance. The design is more aggressive than Hyundai's other crossover offerings, though the automaker says it hints at a new direction for other products. After a few years of conservative design throughout its lineup, Hyundai has returned to the bold direction that kicked off with the sleek 2010 Sonata. The Kona's large, shield-like grille is similar to that on the new Elantra GT and refreshed Sonata. There's a wide air scoop just above the new grille. There's a lot of outside influence on the design. The rest of the body has a taut, masculine look. Big fenders and sharp creases carry on the rugged look. Hyundai is calling the black cladding "armor," though we're not sure exactly how much it protects. It's going to be a divisive design choice for sure. Like the Toyota C-HR, the Kona can be had with a contrasting roof color. The Kona makes use of LED lighting both front and rear, though the low placed headlights remind us of the controversial ones on the Jeep Cherokee. The taillights are wide, slim units that aren't like anything else in Hyundai's lineup. Like so many compact crossovers, it looks more like a high-riding hatchback than a shrunken SUV. It's a handsome design though that's more tough than cute. The interior has been designed with efficiency first. Hyundai boasts that the Kona has the best-in-class interior space. The simple layout is far more conservative than the exterior, but it appears well designed and well arranged. Like the Elantra GT, the infotainment screen sits above the dash like a tablet. It's a common design feature, though not always a popular one. The Kona can be had with a 5, 7, or 8-inch infotainment display, though availability depends on the market. Higher-spec models come with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, HD and satellite radio, a rearview camera, and in the US, 4G telematics. The Kona will have wireless smartphone charging.

Did Lexus make a BMW? Or did BMW make a Lexus? This and other 2017 surprises

It's that time of year again. The calendar is about to reach its end, Star Trek Cats 2018 is about to take its place, and I'm reflecting about all the cars that graced my driveway this year or summoned me to exotic places. You know, like Stuttgart or Phoenix. In 2017, I drove at least 57, and as I perused the list of them, I started to notice a common refrain: "This car surprised me." Most were pleasant surprises, but there were a few head scratchers and facepalms for good measure. In both cases, it was generally the result of car companies seemingly trying to break out of an existing mold. Nowhere was that more apparent than the pair of Lexuses slathered in Infrared paint: The LS 500 that left me this week and the LC 500 that was my favorite car of 2017. Though Lexus has been trying to shake its crusty, gold-packaged reputation for some time now, its efforts always seemed like an old man choosing Hollister to redo his wardrobe after realizing it hasn't been updated since 1987. I fell in love with the LC, genuinely floored by its near-perfect take on the GT. It's characterful in sound, appearance and tactility. It was at home in the city, in the mountain and on the open road. It was both comfortable and thrilling, and after driving the mechanically related LS 500, I can report that the LC's talents aren't an outlier. The LS 500's turbo V6 may make different noises than the LC's naturally aspirated V8, but it nevertheless invigorates the cabin when the car is placed in Sport+ mode. The steering is truly communicative, body motions are kept in miraculous check, and I absolutely forgot I was in an enormous luxury limo ... and a Lexus one at that. It was everything that the BMW 530e was not. I drove that on the exact same roads and was utterly bored the entire time. Generally doughy, lifeless steering, more distant than Planet 9. And no, the plug-in hybrid powertrain had nothing to do with that. At least it shouldn't. The Porsche Panamera S e-Hybrid I also drove this year proves that, as do the Hyundai Ioniqs, which are surprisingly adept and fun little cars regardless of what powers their wheels (Hyundai + hybrid = fun really blew me away). I would drive that Lexus LS F Sport over the BMW 5 Series any day of the week, which seems like a shocking thing to say in relation to either car. While Lexus is seemingly breaking out of its old crusty mold, BMW seems to be climbing into one.