[January
6-9 2005]
Here at SportCompact.ca, we pride ourselves in
providing a Canadian perspective on important
automotive related events whether held here on
Canadian soil or abroad. Even if it means traveling
to the other side of the continent to get the
coverage you, our readers are so eager to see.
For the first coverage of 2005, we traveled all
the way back to snowy, that’s right, snowy
Las Vegas for the one and only, International
Consumer Electronics Show, otherwise known as
the CES.
2004 marked the emergence of new technological
trends including Blackerry’s, digital radio
and of course, the Apple iPod. The car audio
industry followed suit by unveiling new products
that adapt to and expand the usage of these
high tech gizmos to our tuning lifestyle. Let’s
take a tour through the most important car audio
and electronics expo of the year.
iPod or bust
With almost 4.5 million iPods sold in 2004
alone, car radio manufacturers were under pressure
to accommodate this new music source. Every
major label including Pioneer, Clarion, Alpine,
and Kenwood to name a few, unveiled iPod adapters
to add to their existing lineup of head units.
It was just a few years ago when the mp3 format
was made a standard in car audio head units.
Today, any name brand head unit is fully capable
of playing cd’s with mp3, wma and even
iPod encoded data, not to mention the abundance
of video playback options as well. The new units
are fully capable of not only playback of iPod
format, but will also feature full control of
the iPod via the faceplate of the head unit.
This includes the display of music tracks on
the radio display as well.
Satellite Radio in Canada?
I’m sure that by now, you’ve probably
heard of satellite radio service that has been
available in the US for almost 2 years now.
Well, thanks to the CRTC, Canadians have been
missing out on this awesome service due to a
content dispute. That is, until this year. According
to sources, both satellite radio service providers,
namely XM and Sirius, are in the final negotiation
stages with the CRTC to provide their services
to Canadians no later than the second quarter
of 2005. This means that all those “XM
Ready” or “Sirius ready” head
units may actually be put to good use in the
near future. New gadgets displayed at this year’s
CES included portable, car adaptable units that
playback both XM and Sirius signals. The real
question here is whether or not Canada is a
market where both services can thrive? Most
radio companies have already chosen their partner
in the satellite radio battle but there are
some, such as Pioneer, who have cleverly prepared
their head units for playback of both signals.
Celebrating 25 Years
For 2005, two of the industries’ most established
companies will be celebrating their 25th anniversary.
Both Kenwood Electronics of Japan and Rockford
Fosgate of the US have released commemorative
products in celebration of this occasion. Look
out for 25th Anniversary Kenwood
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Excelon source unit, in dash screen source
unit, 6.5” component set and subs
that feature special badging, beefed up
performance and esthetics. Canada is set
to receive this line up in very limited
production and I must say, it looks quite
impressive. Rockford has come up with
a different twist to their celebration
of their 25th anniversary. rather than
debut something new, they’ve gone
the vintage route and are rereleasing
updated versions of their classics the
Punch and the Power series. Also scheduled
for a very limited production, ask your
local Rockford Fosgate dealer for more
details.
The Rides of the Show
Every year at CES, demo vehicles are unveiled
and my jaws drop. This year was definitely
no exception. For the last 3 years, Alpine
Electronics has overwhelmed us with cars
that have defied convention. The Acura
RSX, Honda Civic and Cooper Mini have
all set new standards in demo vehicle
building. For 2005, Alpine presented a
whole new different beast. A BMW X5 boasting
2 centre positioned custom seats connected
to one-piece, welded side doors that slide
out to allow entrance to the vehicle.
A custom molded, pure Plexiglas rear section
was fitted to allow onlookers to peer
into the workings of the X5’s trunk.
SportCompact.ca is proud to announce that
this vehicle was partially built with
the help of Alpine Canada’s own,
Reno Odorico, who spent the last few months
in California building away. Another show
highlight was also the reworked Blaupunkt
Acurabot of Toronto’s own, Tajai
Das. Some of you may recognize Tajai’s
ride from the cover of a recent PASMAG
issue but the overhaul that he has done
to the Acura is simply amazing. In order
to change up his previous setup for his
presentation at CES, many major alterations
were done. These include a front and rear
Acura TL light conversion, replacing the
entire sound system with newly sponsored
Blaupunkt equipment, completely repainting
and airbrushing the entire exterior and
interior of the vehicle. An incredible
amount of work in such a short period
of time. We can’t wait to see this
feature car back on Canadian soil sometime
in ‘05. Other vehicles that deserve
honourable mention would be the West Coast
Custom’s chopped and couped 300c,
Monster Cables’ Porsche GT and Lamborghini
Gallardo, Sony’s prototype Shelby
Cobra and Rockford’s vintage silver
Hemi Cuda. Be sure to check our exclusive
coverage of this annual event. We’ll
see you in a few weeks as SportCompact.ca
gives you the first glimpse of the 2005
new car lineup as we explore the Montreal
International Show.
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