Top 10 Auto Show Losers

CARS.COM — Auto shows are supposed to be celebrations of new models: “We’re great! We’re cool! We’re hip! And we’ll make you, the buyer, those things too!” Sadly, not all debuts sparkle under the lights. Some just wilt. This is their story.

Related: More Top 10s

Using our Winners and Losers series from the 2015-2016 auto show season, our editors highlighted these stinkers from our list of losers. Who’s the king of pain? Read on.

10. 2017 Audi A4

The A4 competes in the cutthroat compact luxury-car segment, and the redesigned 2017 model came across as ill-equipped to take on its segment leaders. “For a redesign in such a battleground segment where all the luxury marquees are duking it out, the A4 falls flat,” said L.A. Bureau Chief Brian Wong. “I question if Audi went far enough with the A4 when I don’t see an easy win for it in any particular area,” added Senior Road Test Editor Joe Bruzek.

9. 2017 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class

When an auto show is chock-full of significant debuts such as the 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show was, it’s easy for a mild update like the 2017 SL-Class roadster to get lost. “I tried to get excited about the exterior tweaks, but in the end it was forgettable,” said Executive Editor Joe Wiesenfelder. Those updates didn’t address some of the car’s shortcomings, either. “There’s still much of the ‘old’ Mercedes interior in how you interact with the climate, media and car functions,” Bruzek said.

8. Kia Telluride Concept

Concept cars can succeed or fail on their styling, and the Telluride’s design drew comparisons with the homely MV-1 wheelchair-accessible van. “Were the Telluride and MV-1 taxi separated at birth?” asked Bruzek. “I think so. Kia’s concept is awkwardly shaped and seems like a big departure from the rest of its lineup. Let’s hope this concept stays one.”

7. 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe

Luxury brands are obsessed with turning perfectly good sedans into “coupes.” First there were four-door coupes with cars such as the Mercedes CLS-Class. Now there’s a growing breed of SUV coupes, and the 2017 GLC Coupe is one of the newest. It looks better than some of its competitors, but the concept baffles us. Without the utility of an SUV or the performance of a true coupe, the GLC Coupe and models like it compromise on many things and excel at few.

6. 2017 Hyundai Ioniq

The debut of an all-new car with a trio of drivetrains (hybrid, plug-in hybrid and full electric) is the kind of thing that ought to own an auto show, but the 2017 Ioniq didn’t own anything at the 2016 New York International Auto Show, and the lineup’s understated styling was a big reason. “The wisdom behind containing your latest, greatest technology in a plain-brown wrapper eludes me,” said Detroit Bureau Chief Aaron Bragman. Wong said the Ioniq “seems to have been hatched in a lab that specializes in the inoffensive.”

5. 2017 Kia Cadenza

Kia redesigned its Cadenza full-size sedan for the 2017 model year, but you’d be hard-pressed to tell it apart from its predecessor. The Cadenza’s overall design hews close to the look established by its predecessor. And that commonality prevented it from standing out on the show floor.

4. 2017 Acura MDX

The 2017 MDX debuts the luxury brand’s new front-end styling theme, which features a pentagon grille that replaces Acura’s oft-criticized shield design. That new look, however, didn’t play well. “The new face is a little less ugly, but what’s the compelling reason for choosing this over a Lexus RX?” Bragman asked. Wong called the design “uninspired,” while Bruzek said the new face seemed “tacked-on.”

3. 2017 Lincoln Continental

Continental is a storied name from Lincoln’s past, but the new version doesn’t seem ready to comfortably slip on those big shoes. “I just can’t get excited about this thing,” Bragman said. “Its looks are derivative; there’s nothing distinctively ‘Lincoln’ about any of it.” Editors also walked away disappointed in the car’s cabin. “There isn’t one square inch of surface in the Volvo S90 that looks cheap or fake, which cannot be said for the Continental with its center console and door trim that looks crudely printed and textured,” Bruzek said.

2. Audi H-Tron Quattro Concept

The H-Tron Quattro Concept pairs a hydrogen fuel-cell drivetrain with a forward-looking take on Audi’s exterior design theme, but the car’s styling similarities with previous Audi concepts prevented it from making a positive impact at the 2016 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. “Concept cars should stir something in you, making you feel excitement about the future, or at least curiosity,” Wong said. “The H-Tron did not.”

1. 2017 Lincoln MKZ

It’s hard to think of a luxury brand that’s been more adrift than Lincoln. The brand has rolled out styling theme after styling theme with little success. The 2017 MKZ midsize luxury sedan adopts the brand’s latest front-end look, which is shared with the new Continental, but editors saw it as a step in the wrong direction. “Making it look like the Continental doesn’t strike me as a good idea,” Bragman said, “considering the Continental was completely derivative and uninspired.” Not to put too fine a point on it.