Yesterday, the media previews began for the 2006 North American International Auto Show (aka the Detroit Auto Show). All the car makers are doing a series of splashy intros for their new production models and concepts. Traditionally Chrysler has always had some biggest shows for the media, such as in 1993 when Bob Lutz drove the then new Jeep Grand Cherokee through the glass front doors of Cobo Hall, and a couple years ago when Wolfgang Bernhardt roared onto the stage on a motorcycle powered by an 8L Dodge Viper V-10. This show used to be just a local dealer show until the carmakers got involved and renamed it the North American International Auto Show in an attempt to get it onto the world stage along with the likes of the Geneva, Frankfurt, Paris and Tokyo shows. The only problem is that Cobo Hall was and is a dump. For a show of this size it is small, dark and hard to move around in. But it is all we have for now, and every January the world’s car media come to Detroit for the big show. Unfortunately, this year for the first time in several years I won’t be going to the industry preview days, due to personal budget constraints. $75 is just too much to spend. My company used to buy a bunch of passes every year, but the last couple of years they have stopped. I like going to the preview to avoid the crowds. You can actually get into most of the cars and get a close look at what is new. During the public days it is just too crowded and no fun. So this year I will just do the virtual visit through sites like autoblog and the car connection