Video highlights from the 2015 New York Auto Show

“Talking Cars with Consumer Reports” hit the road this week, covering the 2015 New York Auto Show right from the show floor. The New York show has often been considered a weak-kneed stepsister, being the last event in the new-car show season, but this year’s show was chock full of important debuts.

Honda surprised everyone with a 10^th-generation Civic concept, but details are sparse, especially for a car that comes out this fall. Hopefully Honda makes up for the sins of the previous Civic redesign that sent the car close to the bottom of our small car ratings.

Old-school rivals Cadillac and Lincoln face-off, with the soon-to-production CT6 and the Continental concept, respectively.  As we discuss, each heads in a different direction, with Cadillac emphasizing sporty driving and Lincoln pushing decadent luxury. Meanwhile, Lexus heads in a new direction with the sportier RX, which makes us wonder if this threatens the legions of previous owners who bought the RX for its isolating comfort.

Practical sedans also get their day in the spotlight. The new Chevrolet Malibu sheds hundreds of pounds, yet grows four more inches. It looks completely different, while the redesigned Kia Optima is more of the same. Nissan makes their own segment with the Maxima, trading on the model’s brand equity as a sportier, more luxurious front-drive sedan.

In sports car news, Subaru teases us with a BRZ STI, and we get our first look at the Ford Focus RS. Following Toyota’s trend of outsourcing all of their fun-to-drive products, the Scion iA is essentially a Mazda2 with botched rhinoplasty. Finally, the Volkswagen Golf Sportswagen Alltrack sets off a discussion about mainstream vs. enthusiast wagons.

Catch the discussion in the video above, or via iTunes. And see our complete New York auto show coverage of these models and many more.

As with the other shows, this episode is also available free through the iTunes store. Subscribe to the video or audio. You'll also find the video on YouTube.

Also view:
Tesla and the self-driving car - Talking Cars, episode 64
Ford Edge, Lexus NX - Talking Cars, episode 63
Behind the scenes of 2015 Top Picks - Talking Cars, episode 62
Chevrolet Trax, Kia Sorento - Talking Cars, episode 61
Cadillac Escalade, Lincoln Navigator - Talking Cars, episode 60

—Tom Mutchler