2024 Los Angeles Auto Show: Winners and Losers
While auto shows may not be the bombastic news breaks, big displays and expensive booths they used to be, the 2024 Los Angeles Auto Show featured more than enough in the way of fresh models and intriguing trims for our team of intrepid reporters to keep busy with. Below is a compendium of the winners and losers from this year’s show.
Related: More 2024 L.A. Auto Show Coverage
2025 Acura ADX
AB: Winner
Taking the formula for the Acura Integra (spiff up a Honda Civic with sportier styling and more power) and turning it to Honda’s HR-V seems like a winning proposition to me, especially since the Acura lineup seems to be without a proper entry-level crossover. The ADX fills that gap nicely and is different enough from the more mundane Honda to really feel like a different property. It looks good inside and out, and with a (hopefully) 200-horsepower turbo engine, I’m hoping the new ADX drives as good as it looks.
BN: Winner
I’ve always loved the HR-V’s driving dynamics and lamented its lack of power. The ADX hopefully doesn’t mess with the former while fixing the latter, and that alone should make it a winner. Acura has a stylish entry-level model that is likely a better value proposition than the departed ILX, and it’s far more useful.
CG: Winner
I’m always a fan of an entry-level product — in any segment — that doesn’t phone it in. Some might claim there’s still a bit too much HR-V in the ADX, but let’s play Find-the-Civic in the Integra first. And I dig the implementation of the Integra suspension and turbo engine, though not so much the continuously variable automatic transmission as the only choice. Ultimately, the target audience likely won’t care all that much, and this should be quite the sales success for the brand.
2026 Honda Passport
AB: Loser
Everyone has to look like they’re going off-road, eh? I’m still skeptical that there are as many people driving off into the wilderness as automakers claim there are, necessitating all of these off-road-oriented trims, like the new Honda Passport TrailSport. The new Passport itself is acceptable, a solid, trucky-looking, ruggedized update to the two-row Pilot, now even more nicely differentiated from the bigger three-row family SUV. Honda maintains it has serious off-road chops, but I’ll wait until I can try one before I believe that. Until then, I see it as a way to charge even more money for something consumers just really don’t need.
BN: Winner
I’ve taken some of those Hondas off-road and have always been impressed even when they don’t look like they can go off-road, so maybe I have a bit more confidence that Honda is writing checks they can cash. But even if the Passport never gets taken off-road, it still looks and feels fantastic. I love the Passport’s throwback styling and upgraded interior, and I like that buyers can choose both capability and luxury with the TrailSport Elite.
CG: Winner
Man, how cool is that TrailSport? Though we’re well past the most recent golden era of sports and muscle cars, it’s comforting to know we’re right in the midst of the golden era for factory off-roaders. Some bandwagoner soft-roading trims added to mild crossovers are little more than appearance packages — I’m looking at you, Kia XRT — but the new Passport TrailSport is as real-deal as a unibody all-wheel-drive crossover can be when it comes time to get dusty. Major bonus points for the body-by-brick aesthetics and bright orange paint.
2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9
AB: Winner
Okay, so it doesn’t look exactly like the truly stunning concept SUV we’ve been previously shown, but it’s as near as matters, I’d say. It’s still a stunning-looking, distinctive electric SUV that builds upon Hyundai’s increasing achievements in the electric vehicle segment. A posh, comfortable interior, super-quick charging ability and more range than the competing EV9 give shoppers looking for a family three-row electric SUV another welcome addition to the consideration set.
BN: Winner
I’m calling this a winner even if I’m not sure if I like the looks. The Ioniq 9 certainly looks like a Hyundai, but I wasn’t prepared to think the Kia EV9 is the normal-looking one. Moving past the looks, the interior is minivan-spacious, and while the third row isn’t necessarily up to my legroom standards, I can still fit back there and be relatively comfortable. Tons of interior amenities, Hyundai’s established charging capabilities and a believable lineup-wide targeted range of at least 300 miles should make this an excellent electric family hauler.
CG: Winner
It was high time the lovely Kia EV9 was Hyundaized. It’s not the best-looking SUV in the segment — heck, it’s not even the best-looking SUV in Hyundai’s lineup — but the Ioniq 9 puts far more emphasis on family and utility than style, which is almost universally a good thing. Based on our early look and the specs, it all looks very promising; good range, good power and great feature set. Nice one, Hyundai.
2026 Kia Sportage
AB: Winner
Wasn’t broke, didn’t need fixing, didn’t get fixed. It’s just as nice as the last one, just as versatile with its three different powertrains and just as varied in terms of its sticker price. The interior is still one of the best in the business, with good visibility, comfort and room. The styling isn’t really everyone’s taste, but it’s definitely distinctive, and standing out in this very crowded field is required for success.
BN: Winner
This is a compact SUV? But it’s so roomy! Comfortable seats, easy-to-use tech and your choice of gas, hybrid or plug-in hybrid powertrains means there’s practically a Sportage for everyone. I doubt the Sportage will ever dethrone the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V from the compact SUV podium, but Kia keeps making versions that absolutely should.
CG: Winner
Sometimes, just leave stuff that’s well enough alone. Kia did that with the 2026 Sportage, and I bet the market responds in turn, especially with the compact crossover’s new curved display and smartly redesigned interior packaging. It’s distinctive, kinda rugged and is a welcome alternative to the rest of the rather mundane class.
2025 Nissan Murano
AB: Loser
This was a disappointment because there’s so much to like about the new Murano — it’s extremely stylish, has a beautifully crafted interior, and the front seats are soft, supportive and a really nice place to spend some time. But then you get in the backseat and wonder what happened: The legroom is cramped, more than in many of its competitors, and the seat bottom cushion is low, so your knees are high, and it’s apparently carved from a solid block of wood given the absolutely brutal firmness of the backseat. No bueno.
BN: Winner
While I agree with Aaron on the backseat cushioning issue, I think the styling update takes the Murano from dated amorphous blob to sleek and stylish. More importantly to me, Nissan is ditching the terrible CVT for a traditional nine-speed automatic transmission. It was a winning decision in the Pathfinder, and it should be here, too. Whether the turbocharged four-cylinder is the right engine, however, remains to be seen.
CG: Loser
Compliment sandwich time. I think Nissan did a tremendous job redesigning the Murano when compared with the positively ancient predecessor. The interior, materials and tech is a moonshot away from where it was, but I find the Murano a bit of a dated concept to begin with. This two-row mid-size class is a sparse one, and likely for good reason — they don’t make a whole lot of sense when they don’t hold or haul a whole lot more than one segment down and are handily outclassed from a utility perspective when you go one class up. Also, though the VC-Turbo is an impressive engineering exercise, power and fuel economy are a wash over the reliable and familiar V-6.
2025 Volkswagen Taos
AB: Winner
Other people on our team have hated on the Taos in the past, but I’ve always liked the thing. It’s comfortable, it’s spacious in front and back, and it’s surprisingly peppy when driving it around town at normal speeds. Sure, highway on-ramps require a little planning, but hopefully, now with that slight power bump, that’ll improve. And the new interior improvements turn it into a genuinely nice place to spend some time — all for a still-reasonable price.
BN: Loser
Hi, I’m other people. Cheap but not that cheerful inside, the Taos is a bummer to get into given how nicely updated the Tiguan is. Optional AWD differentiates the Taos from some competitors and the power bump is nice, but while the eight-speed automatic transmission is the best transmission the previous Taos offers, we don’t like it all that much. The Taos needed a more substantial update, and it didn’t get one.
CG: Loser
It’s not bad, but Brian’s point on how this is juxtaposed against the new Tiguan is a solid one. The Taos on the show floor was, predictably, loaded to the gills and gave us an inaccurate peek into what most folks experience in VW’s subcompact crossover. Even decked out, it feels a bit cheap inside, so I don’t have high expectations for mid-range trims or lower. The move to the eight-speed traditional automatic for the AWD over the prior seven-speed dual-clutch is inspired, however. That alone could be the game changer — but we’ll have to wait and see.
2025 Volkswagen Tiguan
AB: Winner
Take everything I said about the Taos, turn it up to 11, and you have my take on the larger Tiguan. It’s an even bigger bump in interior quality than the Taos saw (seems like VW is putting some money back into its interiors), it’s even more spacious, and while I’m reserving final judgment on how well that big new multimedia system works, it seems pretty promising versus the systems VW had been coming up with (like the awful ones in the Atlas and Golf GTI). And there’s a volume knob (sort of), and the capacitive steering wheel is gone! It almost feels like VW is learning …
BN: Winner
This is the more substantial update I wanted for the Taos. The Tiguan looks and feels nicer and, as Aaron pointed out, is much smarter inside by returning to physical controls on the steering wheel. What I’m most excited about, though, is the increase in power and decrease in weight compared to the last Tiguan. Fun-to-drive compact SUVs are in short supply — correctly, to be fair — and I’d welcome another one.
CG: Winner
I subscribe to the trickle-down theory of trims: The more crazy kit the top-level trim has, the better the standard feature list is on the base trim. Enter the 2025 Tiguan’s massage seats in the top SEL spec. Massage seats in something the size and (near) price to a Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V? Wild. Other than the general premium presentation and sharp styling, the trick knob in the center of the console with embedded touchscreen is a neat bit of kit and serves to further return VW toward the throne of ergonomic emperor it used to occupy. I’m looking forward to this one.
More From Cars.com:
- 2024 Los Angeles Auto Show: Best in Show
- 2025 Nissan Murano Up Close: Modernized Murano
- 2025 Volkswagen Taos Up Close: Atlas Shrunked
- 2026 Genesis GV70, Electrified GV70 Up Close: Squint a Little Harder, Maybe
- 2025 Kia EV6 Up Close: Meaningful Updates
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