If you're looking to buy a new car, thinking of replacing the gas guzzler for a greener vehicle as gasoline prices soar or simply want to fantasize about the car you can't afford to buy, the 2007 First Hawaiian International Auto Show — opening Thursday at the Hawai'i Convention Center — is for you.

After all, who doesn't dream about cool wheels?

You can't drive off with a car on exhibit — you still need to work through a dealership — but the four-day show is like a one-stop shopping mall where prospective buyers can see, touch and analyze a potential car for buying later. Car show statistics indicate that more than 80 percent of folks taking in the show eventually put a down payment on a new car within one to three years.

Who doesn't want to glide their hands over luxurious leather seats that emanate an intoxicating scent that shouts "Buy this!"

Who doesn't succumb to knobs and buttons that ease the driving experience?

Or yearn for a coach that offers more space than the rust bucket destined for the great scrap metal heap in the sky?

"Cars are part of the great American dream," said Dave Rolf, executive director of the Hawai'i Automotive Dealers Association since 1999. "It's such a joy to work with this industry, and our show is one of the largest parties of its kind in the state. You get to see next year's models, fascinating technology with the ultimate mobility.

"Whether you need to take the soccer team to a game or drive the in-laws to dinner, everybody's caught in the spider web of a love affair with the automobile," Rolf said.

GOOD YEAR TO BUY

According to Rolf, there's some good news for the pocketbook: "It's less expensive to buy a new car this year than last year because many domestic manufacturers are holding the line on prices. But gas prices have been high, so gas mileage is a factor to consider. So the auto show is a chance to shop for the best-made vehicles from around the world."

Sometimes best means very expensive.

Joe Nicolai, the JN of automotive dealerships in town, said he'll have from $3 million to $4 million of high-end exotic cars on view. He deals with pricey prospects such as Lamborghini, Ferrari, Maserati and Lotus — and labels these as collectibles.

"I would say that the most expensive vehicle on view might be a Ferrari, and then a Lamborghini," Nicolai said.

But don't expect to get into the chambers of either high-ender; they will be locked and secured, but ogling from afar is not prohibited. These beauts are owned by citizens who bought them with the understanding that they make these cars available for sharing and exhibiting at the auto show.

"We have a 3 1/2-year backlog on the Ferrari," Nicolai said of the lack of supply for a mounting demand. Only a few models are shipped here.

"One of the cars has a price tag of $600,000, and $400,000 for another," Nicolai said. It's not uncommon for the buyer of such marvels of the road to question gas mileage, he said. "They're paying (big bucks), and they're wondering about gas mileage."

His advice? "I recommend to Ferrari owners to put the car in your living room or on the wall, build a frame around it and hang and display the car like art," he joked. "Maybe use it once a year — but exhibit it as if it were a $50 million Van Gogh or Michelangelo."

HUMBLE RIDE

Surprisingly, for a dealer of expensive cars, Nicolai — who also sells Chevrolets — drives a humble vehicle.

"You'll laugh. I drive a 3-year-old Chevy Equinox, with dents in the front and back, as well as the roof; I once drove under a tree and a coconut fell on it. If it was a convertible, it would have hit me."

The Chevy price brand new? "About $21,000," he said.

His reasoning? "No one steals your vehicle — and you can go anywhere." It is a trifle embarrassing, he admitted, if folks know he deals in Lamborghinis and Ferraris and other majestic vehicles that end in "i."

The exotics — which will include a Lotus (yes, you can sit in it) — can be overwhelming, said Nicolai. So why are folks so enamored of them?

"It's like art," Nicolai said. "We're talking about the most beautifully designed vehicles in the world. For the most part, these cars are handmade; when you buy, you own not only a racing tradition, but exotic art."

LIKE A FOOTBALL GAME

Rolf likened the auto show to a football game, which draws family crowds for fellowship and fun together.

"On a sea of carpet with highway signage, the car show as produced by Motor Trend attracts families coming and staying for hours," he said. "I think it's sometimes like going to a football game and seeing your friends in the parking lot."

The cars are the stars of the show, he said, but the environment makes the vehicles shine.

"And the convention center is like a great hotel — with halogen lighting, wide, open spaces — so our show is presented in one of the most beautiful sites compared to some other places." About 250 vehicles will be on view.

HYBRIDS ON DISPLAY

Those concerned with mileage should examine a cluster of hybrid/flex-fuel vehicles such as the Chevrolet Silverado, Ford Escape, Honda Civic, Lexus GS450h and RX400h, Mercury Mariner and the Toyota Camry, Highlander and Prius.

Vehicles from A (Acura, Audi) to V (Volkswagen) will also be exhibited — with everything in between, including BMWs, Saturns, Dodges, Infinitis, Jaguars, Nissans, Mazdas and Mini Coopers.

"In Hawai'i, there's been a longtime love affair with the automobile," said Rolf, who said it was Henry T. Baldwin (of Alexander & Baldwin) who had the first car in Honolulu in 1899, consummating a deal after test-driving it over the Pali. "One of his great-great-great-grandsons, Charles King, now is in the car business (Windward Nissan) — more than 100 years later."

The electric car was before its time, too, Rolf said about the early models tooling around town. "Now the electric hybrids are becoming so popular."

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com.