The lighter side—notes and quotes: Automotive Industries takes a look at some of the more memorable happenings during the press days for the North American International Auto Show.

    One disadvantage of Detroit's NAIAS since it hit the Big Time: its three media days begin early Sunday morning. Bad enough for local scribes to give up half their weekends, but thousands of media types winging in from all over the rest of the planet have to travel Friday and Saturday. To Detroit. In January! Whose idea was that?

Sequel on the Loose

    GM's Sunday morning press conference featured the company's latest hybrid and furl cell concepts. The latter, appropriately dubbed Sequel, rides on a third generation "skateboard" chassis containing all its powertrain and brains. To make the point, the driverless, bodyless foot-high chassis glided onstage, like some overgrown remote*control toy, to a turntable midway between presenters GM CEO Rick Wagoner and R&D VP Larry Burns. How nervous was everyone involved that it would work as programmed? How nervous were Rick and Larry, who eyed it warily as it approached, and found its spot, without incident.