Down the road

Most Americans will continue to travel daily by auto or truck. Much of America's freight will continue to be moved around on trucks. And so the vehicle market in the U.S. will remain robust for the foreseeable future even if car-maker brands are changing. One brand that will be new to most Americans: Tata. This Indian car-maker says it will be here in the new decade. Their Nano would sell in the U.S. for about $8,000, making it the cheapest new car in America. Still this Nano would be bigger and more expensive than any Nano marketed by Apple.

Here's a look at how important three numbers can be. The numbers: 35.5. The interest and attendance at the Detroit Auto Show this year is up. The MLK Holiday yesterday also boosted attendance. Despite all the early press coverage, the auto show was not opened to the public until this past weekend.

I blogged earlier that Ford won best of show for both car and truck. Electric vehicles got their own section of the show floors this year...for the first time. The electric Nissan Leaf goes on sale in the U.S. late this year. CNET reports a major defense contractor will build the home re-charging units.