LOS ANGELES - THE crowds at the Los Angeles Auto Show are a reluctant bunch this year. Anxious about the economy, the future of the Detroit Three automakers and the unpredictability of gas prices, few people said they had any intention of buying a new car anytime soon.

Those who did express interest in buying said they were either downsizing or looking for something with top-notch gas mileage.

Nearly all had major reservations about a bailout of the US auto industry.

Small-business owner Greg Mohr, 50, said that under normal circumstances, he would be looking for a new car. He recently dumped his Lexus sport utility vehicle, leaving his four-person family with just a Volkswagen Beetle.

But, as he peered at a Jeep Wrangler at the Los Angeles Convention Center, he said the economic downturn has taken a toll on his dentistry business. He's holding back on any new car purchase for at least another six months.

'We would like another car,' he said. 'It's a little inconvenient only having one ... but it's just not the right time.'

US auto sales have fallen about 14 per cent in the first 10 months of the year. In October, they plunged 32 per cent to the lowest rate in more than 25 years and show no signs of significant improvement anytime soon.

'People are worried in general about their job security. Anytime you start talking about recession, people will scale back their purchasing, which they have,' said Mr Lincoln Merrihew, auto analyst with the market research firm TNS.

'A car is something that's fairly easy to postpone.'

The crowds at the auto show, which opened to the public on Friday after two days of media previews, reflected those worries.

Mr Art Sorensen, a 32-year-old landscape designer, said he was in the market for a vehicle, but business is slow now that California's construction boom has quieted. If he buys anything, it won't be at least until next summer, and whatever it is will have to be super fuel-efficient, he said.

'This is the car I came to see,' Mr Sorensen said, pointing to Honda Motor Co's Insight hybrid, which the Japanese automaker expects to challenge the Toyota Prius when it goes on sale next year.

'I'm kind of like, do I go the diesel route, or do I go the hybrid route? Obviously both are a big step in the right direction from where I'm at right now.'

Although fuel prices are now less than half what they were when the national average surpassed $4 a gallon in July, many still said their next car purchase would be a vehicle that gets good gas mileage.

'People seem to be looking more at the fuel-economy cars more than they used to,' said Mr Devon James, 43, who already owns a Camry hybrid from Toyota Motor Corp.

The woes of General Motors Corp, Ford Motor Co and Chrysler LLC have overshadowed much of the glitz in LA, the first stop in the annual circuit of major US shows that will hit Detroit, Chicago and New York over the next five months.

The companies' CEOs spent the last week making their case to Congress for $25 billion (S$38.2 billion) in federal loans, claiming the nation's financial crisis has put their very existence in peril.

Congressional leaders have demanded a detailed plan for how the companies will achieve long-term viability, and the future of any bailout won't be resolved until after the show here ends Nov 30.

But the US automakers' presence seemed to reflect their dire state.

Ford has the most impressive spread - indeed, it is the only one with enough cash and credit to survive through next year.

The Dearborn, Michigan, company showed off redesigned Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan sedans unveiled Wednesday, including hybrid models that can go up to 700 miles (1,125 kilometres) on one tank of gas.

It also sported a giant Mustang display and a miniature Fusion race car track.

The mood was more subdued at GM. Two weeks ago, the automaker canceled the unveilings it had planned for the show, but its Chevrolet Volt - the extended-range electric vehicle that holds many of the company's hopes for a turnaround - attracted a modest crowd.

Chrysler's area, however, was almost funereal. Chrysler also abstained from any vehicle debuts, though it did showcase the three electric prototypes - a Dodge, a Jeep and a Town & Country minivan - that it unveiled in September.

But the crowds were thin. In contrast to the concert-like lighting and sound at Nissan Motor Co.'s adjacent space, the convention center's dim fluorescent lights were all that lit Chrysler's vehicles.

On Friday afternoon, retirees Greg and Pinkie Stanley were the only ones paying attention to a Chrysler rep's sales pitch for the Town & Country EV.

'I was just being polite,' said Mr Gene Stanley, 71, as the couple walked to the next exhibit. -- AP