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Day 3 of the LA Auto Show was the last of the Media Days. The public show opened its 10-day run today (Nov. 30) and will continue through Dec. 9.
A handful of vehicles attracted a vast amount of attention, and representatives of two of those companies are our guests on Episode #63 of The Weekly Driver Podcast.
Bruce Aldrich produced the show remotely from interviews I had from the show. Our guests are Kevin Smith, a Senior Group Manager of Public Relations and Corporate Social Responsibility for Genesis, and Sethu Gopal, Senior Director of Connected Car and Digital Experience for Rivian.
A third guest, a communications director for Polaris, did not make his scheduled interview.
A huge sign on the front of Los Angeles Convention announced the 2019 Genesis G70 as the MotorTrend Car of the Year. The entry-level luxury sedan has received several honors and it’s likely to receive several more.
Smith and I discuss the reasons for the debut vehicle’s success. He provides details of the two additional sedans in the Genesis lineup and plans for the now three-year-old brand’s future vehicles.
Rivian, the concept all-electric pick-up truck and sport utility vehicle, has often been touted as a pending competitor to Tesla.
The company was founded nearly 10 years ago by Mainstream Motors in Florida. Its name was changed to Avera and now Rivian. It has two concepts at the LA Auto Show, the R1T pickup truck and R1S SUV.
Gopal discusses the company’s plans for the production of the vehicle. He also details some of the specs for the uniquely designed machines — a 400-plus mile range, 0-60 miles per hour times in 3.0 seconds and 11,000-pound towing capacities.
Revisit our earlier podcasts from this year’s LA Auto Show via the links below:
Day 1: Byton Concept, Airstream
Day 2: Cadillac, Baja 1000, Prestone
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Article Last Updated: November 30, 2018.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.
