Love it or hate it, the Range Rover Evoque Convertible was one of the "must sees" of the LA show. After looking at it from every angle short of "under the chassis," we're still not entirely sure that we love it or hate it, but we can say that it's much better than the Murano CrossCabriolet from several years ago. The straighter, simpler lines of the Evoque translate better into convertible form than the rounder, pudgier body of the Murano. You can see it from various angles, top up and top down, in our gallery and decide if you share our ambivalence or fall into the "love" or "hate" category.
Another polarizing design, the Fiat 124 Spider shows the world what happens when you revive a popular vintage roadster and base it on the platform of a highly popular spiritual successor from another brand decades later. The design leans a little more "modern-day/ Miata" and less "retro-inspired 124 revival" than we'd like to see, but it's hard not to love the idea of an alternative-design Miata with sleeker, more stylish interior.
The first time we covered the three-wheeled Elio back in 2013, Elio Motors was planning to begin production the following year. As you know if you've followed the company even casually, that never happened. In fact, Elio is still out showing prototypes. It revealed its latest, the P5, in LA.
The projected numbers still look every bit as bright as they did in 2013, though they may draw a bit more deserved skepticism after multiple production delays – 84 mpg, US$6,800 and 100 mph (161 km/h). The big news with the new P5 is that it's the first Elio prototype to feature Elio's custom-designed 60-hp, 0.9-liter three-cylinder engine. That, along with the new, custom-designed dashboard suggests that Elio is making some progress toward actually getting a car to market. Whether or not it meets its latest goal of "4th quarter 2016" remains to be seen.
There are plenty of other brand, spanking new cars, fantasy concepts and customized limited editions to check out in our full 2015 LA Auto Show photo gallery.