The Geneva Auto Show is one of Europe’s major motor shows, if not the world. This year, even with the recession, there are an obscene number of supercar launches, although a few others have concentrated on greener cars as well. The 2009 show also plays host to some important new launches, such as the Mazda 3 MPS, the Chevrolet Spark, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe and the Opel Ampera.
I am tired of Lamborghini rehashing their same old cars and tacking on ever-longer random words to the badge. If you are interested in their latest re-creation for the 2009 Geneva Auto Show, read their press release.
Volkswagen is unveiling the 2010 version of their Polo sub-compact hatchback at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show. It is a complete makeover, although the exterior and interior will be very familiar to any VW owner. The most prominent feature is the undistinguished new corporate face.
The American Chevrolet Volt has already been revealed, not quite ready, but confirming its final form when it does hit production in 2010. Now Opel, GM’s European arm, has revealed its own version of the Volt, calling it the Opel Ampera. While the play on the name is amusing, what is more interesting is the Ampera, just like the Volt, claims an electric-only range of 60 km, with a total range of 500 km aided by a small petrol engine.
Set to debut at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show, the Bentley Continental Supersports is being touted as the fastest and most powerful Bentley ever created. Based on the Continental GT, this extreme Bentley gets more power, loses some weight and seats only two. Set to go on sale by late 2009, the Supersports can also run on the E85 petrol-ethanol fuel available in America, thereby touting some dubious green credentials.
The 2010 Toyota Camry will be out in the GCC by summer. The Camry models that come here are built in Australia, and now, that factory will add a hybrid model to their line-up. To celebrate the hybrid version of the Camry, Toyota Australia created this one-off concept for the 2009 Melbourne Auto Show, called the HC-CV.
Rolls-Royce has released brief details and photos of its smaller new ‘RR4’ model. Dubbed the 200EX for now, the baby Rolls-Royce seen here is still in concept form, but the final production version should be almost the same as this one, with a traditional name. And it is still a very large full-size car.
After the less-than-satisfying reveal of the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan, debuting at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show will be the 2010 E-Class Coupe, replacing and effectively killing off the CLK model line.
BMW seems to be hell-bent on creating cars that no one asked for. After the X6 and the X1, the latest example is the 2010 BMW 5-Series Gran Touring, to be shown at the 2009 Geneva Auto Show in near-production concept form. As with many previous BMW concepts, the confused car-crossover is a done deal for production.
Back in the late 80s and up till the late 90s, Ford offered a tasty hyper-tuned version of their best-selling sedan in America, calling it the Taurus SHO, and powering it with Yamaha-tuned “Super High Output” engines that came from Japan. It died out later, but with the proper revival of the Taurus comes the rebirth of the Taurus SHO, this time powered by an in-house 3.5-litre turbocharged EcoBoost V6.