YOUTH, SUV LOVERS, PATRONS OF LUXURY TARGETED AT AUTO SHOW

NADA: Automakers showing new products at the New York International Auto Show seem to be aiming at untapped markets, particularly young buyers and luxury buyers. Toyota, for instance, displayed the bbX and ccX concepts, on which the first two vehicles of its recently announced youth-oriented Scion line will be based. Those two models, starting under $18,000, will be in showrooms by June 2003. Mitsubishi, which already has a strong grip on the under-35 market, showed its all-new 2003 Outlander, an entry-level sport-ute that will sell for less than $19,000. Coming out in November as a 2003 SUV is the Nissan Murano, which at $26,000-plus to $34,000-plus is not an entry-level vehicle. Nissan claims it will "fill a void" in the crossover SUV segment, because it will have either all-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive and spacious cargo room, yet will drive like a sedan. For the pricier end of the new-vehicle market, the new Maybach from DaimlerChrysler is being shown. For $255,000 or more, buyers will get to customize the car to their taste. And much less costly than the Maybach, Ford is showing its new premium Five Hundred sedan, due in 2004. The sedan—meant to compete with the Altima, Passat, and V-6 versions of the Camry and Accord—will probably cost about $25,000. It will offer more room inside as well as the fuel economy of a midsize.