This weekend gear heads, car fanatics, wanna be fiesta agents (read: me) and people with generally nothing better to do (read: me again) all gathered together to stare in wonderment as all of the major car manufacturers and car modification specialists gathered together at the LA Convention Center to display the goods. As the homies Danny (@mexicandude), Anthony (@anythinganthony) and I wandered around the convention center for 6 hours staring at cars well beyond my tax bracket, except for the ford fiesta which is competitively priced and loaded w/ features, I realized one important fact: the trip would have been way more awesome if Anthony and I were selected to be Fiesta agents for 2010.

Hit the jump for the full recap of the LA Auto Show!

We arrived at the Convention Center around 2:30 p.m. and for a Sunday afternoon, the center was jumping. People of all ages had shown up just to get a glimpse of their favorite cars, a sneak peek at the future of cars, and the chance to get free swag. Divided up into both halls, the South Hall, our first stop showcased most of the top car manufacturers such as Audi, Honda, Toyota, Volkswagon and more. This being my first time at this event, I was blown away at the level of detail that went into each of the manufacturers display area. The cars were pristine, the displays were filled with large flat screens, huge graphics, and spotlights galore. In addition to the massive displays, there were tons of interactive displays, manufacturer reps, brochures, and tons of information.

As we continued our meandering through the endless rows of displays, LCD’s and 6 figure cars, I couldn’t believe some of the fantastic concept cars that we’re being shown, in addition to some ridiculously decked out production models. Some of the concept cars looked like cars straight outta the future. I was especially pleased with some of the Audi models. I really loved their clean lines, and their soft round edges. The hoods all taper gracefully into the fenders making for a really pleasing look. Mercedes really killed it with some of their higher-end convertables, although most of the ones we sat in seemed to be for short people of a certain height.

Side Note: Throughout our LA Auto Show experience, Anthony and I had our eyes set on one very important goal: to find the coveted Ford Fiestas. You see, we want to represent the Fiesta as agents for the next installment of the Fiesta Movement. Aside from the great pics we shot of the LA Auto Show, we also got some great footage of us being us, in our search for the Fiestas. Keep an eye out for the videos by following us on Twitter, or subscribing to this blog.

After the South Hall, we made our way downstairs to the custom cars portion of the show. Gone are the fancy displays and the huge floor spaces, and instead, this hall was packed with custom painted, chromed out, modded beyond recognition cars that made you wonder why anybody would even drive these out of their garage. The cars screamed excess and imagination, highlighted by some amazing work such as the USAF custom chargers that very much resembled jet planes even down to the interior dashboard and steering column, custom celebrity work like Snoop Dogg’s cadillac (pictured above), and million dollar lamborghini’s that didn’t really have much done to them, because they were million dollar lamborghini’s. There was even a tricked out RV/Truck/Behemoth created by Dunkel Industries called the Upper Deck, which aside from being able to carry 2 ATVs and a full-size jeep in it’s bed, housed 3 beds, 2 fridges, a bathroom, kitchen, and storage space up the wazoo. All of that of course paled in comparison to our excitement when we found…..

The Ford Fiestas. And just like their name implies, Ford and their Fiestas sure knew how to throw a party. Walking into the West Hall, was like walking into a Ford convention. Their workspace took up about 3/4 of the showroom and featured interactive displays, an encyclopedia’s worth of information about the Ford Fiesta and it’s features (such as it’s fuel-efficient dual-clutch transmission, it’s 40 mpg (highway), USB connectivity, and more) colorful banners; the Ford reps even performed skits to show the features of their cars (video of @anythinganthony . After the tears and the hyperventilating subsided, we managed to check out all of the displays, took a ride and experienced the automatic self-parking feature of the Ford Flex (which was ridiculous; video to come). The Ford Fiesta experience was a great way to end a fantastic day of design meeting function, rubber meeting road, concept meeting reality………Justin meeting the Fiesta. Until next year LA Auto Show.

I’d love to hear your comments or stories of your LA Auto Show experience. Leave a comment below and share your experience and highlights!