The 2011 Dubai Motor Show, held from the 10th to the 14th of November, remains the biggest auto show in the region, with multiple GCC launches and large stands showcasing cars that will hit the market soon as 2012 models. Among the notable debuts were the new Toyota Camry, Nissan Sunny, Kia Rio, Hyundai Veloster, Mazda CX-5, Volkswagen Scirocco R, Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, Ford Focus, BMW M5 and many more. Photos by Faisal Khatib.
The Nissan GT-R is one sports car that never ceases to evolve. As much as it is loved by the masses, Nissan ensures that the GT-R is constantly being fine-tuned to constantly keep up with the constantly-changing supercar competition, thereby preserving the rich racing heritage created by its legendary predecessors. For 2012, the all-new GT-R resembles its first iteration only in the looks department. Under the shell however, things have changed.
One of the world’s largest carmakers Volkswagen, has just revealed a rejuvenated-for-2013 Volkswagen Passat CC, or just VW CC rather, ahead of its official debut at the forthcoming 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show.
The 4th DriveArabia Meet was held on October 1st at the Dubai Outlet Mall. The “chief guest” of our small gathering was the 2012 Volkswagen Golf GTI. It was great again, as some of our regulars showed up, as well as some new faces. We had some fun doing repeated runs with the VW’s awesome automatic parallel-parking system, checking out how tight of a spot it could fit into. Some of the attendees shown up later in the night, during the free DriveArabia-sponsored dinner, so they are unfortunately not in these pictures.
If you were wondering what that rusted old car in the picture is doing in our news column, you may be surprised to hear that this is going to be one of the show-stealers at the SEMA show in Las Vegas. Dubbed as the Icon Derelict, this beauty from history is a resurrected 1952 Chevrolet Business Coupe Deluxe, enclosing a plethora of mechanics and electronics from the modern era, thanks to Jonathan Ward at Icon, a US-based company better known for rebuilding 4x4s. What we are uncertain of is, whether the discolouration on the body is custom too!
Toyota’s luxury division Lexus is all keen to steal the show at the SEMA 2011 exhibition in Las Vegas, with the debut of the 2013 GS 350 F Sport featuring a unique performance and visual upgrade package. Though no visual extravaganza, the racing-inspired F Sport package does give the GS 350 some aggressive mien.
Infiniti sponsored the Red Bull Renault F1 team this year, and as luck would have it, Sebastian Vettel went ahead and won the 2011 championship already on points alone. Now Infiniti is celebrating in the UAE with a “pit stop” competition.
In a surprise move, Chevrolet will introduce the all-new 2013 TrailBlazer midsize SUV at the 2011 Dubai Motor Show this November. Built on a new global body-on-frame midsize platform, the TrailBlazer will “combine the hauling and towing capability of an SUV with the ride comfort and efficiency of a crossover.” In reality, it is based on the Chevrolet Colorado pickup and will likely be built in Thailand and Brazil for sale in countries outside North America.
Honda chose to debut the near-production 2012 Honda CR-V concept at the 2011 Orange County International Auto Show in the United States.
The Middle East Motor Tuning Show (MEMTS) representing the Middle East automotive aftermarket sector, is set to be showcased in an impressive way at one of the world’s leading events, the Specialty Equipment Market Association Show (SEMA Show) at the Las Vegas Convention Centre. SEMA show is a premier automotive specialty products event that brings together the industry’s brightest minds and hottest products under one roof, while MEMTS, who recently became a SEMA member, is the region’s premier auto-aftermarket specialty products event held annually at the Expo Centre, Sharjah.