It's not just about totaling up the money you owe in student loans and realizing you're really going to have to buckle down and win the lottery to afford that car.
It's not just about discretely shoving aside that kid in front of you to take a decent shot of that special car with your camera phone.
It's about abandoning your undying love for that oh, so special car as soon as you get a glimpse of the concept cars on display throughout Cobo Center.
Visit new versions of your old favorites and fall in love with the future when you head to the 2006 North American International Auto Show.
TOYOTA FINE-T
The most interesting part of the bird-like Fine-T is usually the most undecorated part of a car — the wheels.
Each wheel of the car contains an independent motor for maneuverability, so the car was on display with each wheel pointing in a different direction.
The car also had mesh seating, gull-wing doors and a steering wheel that looked like something out of a video game. Muncie, Ind. resident Grant Harris summed up his impression of the car in two words.
"It's badass," he said.
As favorable as the audience response might have been, Toyota Product Specialist Matt Troyer said there are no plans so far for production of the Fine-T, which would run on a fuel cell.
The idea is to let the public see what engineers are thinking, Troyer said.
"It's a sneak preview — a look inside an engineer's mind and see what cars will look like in five to 10 years," he said. "That's always fun."
FORD REFLEX
What's being billed as the sports car with a family in mind was influenced by something many teens and 20-somethings have in their accessory arsenal — the Apple iPod.
The interior of the silver vehicle was a creamy white with mesh seating and a sleek design. The car contains a hybrid engine that uses diesel, electric and solar power, to deliver 65 miles per gallon.
Eric Simon, a 16-year-old Fowler resident, came to the show with his father and took time to admire the Reflex.
"I really like the design — both the interior and the exterior," Simon said. "It's a really good car."
Simon wasn't the only person taken with the car, Ford Product Specialist Antonija Marinl said.
"So far, people absolutely love it," she said as she walked along the rotating, lighted platform the car rested on. "They love the look, they love the fact it's a hybrid and love that it's a sports car you can put the kids in."
TOYOTA F3R
Throw a limo, a bus and a futuristic giant egg together and you might end up with something close to the F3R.
The idea was to "take a minivan and stand it on its head," Toyota Product Specialist Matt Troyer said.
The F3R, with its leg room, red leather seats and lounge-like interior, caught Rhea Lewis' eye.
"When I think 'concept car,' I think it has to be really different," Lewis said, who traveled from Indiana to go to the show on Saturday. "This is really unique."
It's really something different."
Detroit resident Mandy Burke was impressed with the F3R's design and size.
"It looks like a car from a movie — a space movie," Burke said. "It's a lot bigger than any of the others."
Burke said she's a fan of concept cars because she likes to check out "what the future holds."
