Picking the most important cars from the lengthy list of new model world premieres at this week’s Geneva show isn’t easy. If we’re talking about the world’s largest brands by volume then perhaps the five-door hatchback version of the Chevrolet Cruze matters a great deal. Yet it can be argued that what makes this car interesting is that it arrives so long after the launch of the original sedan – even before the bankruptcy of General Motors, many models at all global GM divisions were put on hold in a desperate attempt to save cash.
The upside of GM’s former travails is that the company now has a lot of new metal coming to market. The Opel and Vauxhall Zafira (it should only become a Chevrolet in parts of the Americas) is a case in point. The concept being shown at Geneva gives us a preview of the production model, due, it’s said, for a release at the Frankfurt show in September. The third generation Zafira is bigger, and will presumably be pricier than the current car, which will remain in production for a time. This is an increasing trend: witness the Peugeot 206, Renault Clio Campus and soon, the Ford Focus, which too will adopt this strategy.
One of the surprising things about this year’s Geneva is the relative lack of new EVs and extended range EVs.
One of the surprising things about this year’s Geneva is the relative lack of new EVs and extended range EVs. Volvo, at least, is an exception to this rule. The new V60 plug-in hybrid should find a lot of favour once production begins in 2012 and the company’s partnering with renewable energy companies for recharging is to be congratulated.
And what of the purely styling-led concepts at Geneva? BMW‘s Vision ConnectedDrive would seem to be the perfect example. The Tron-style coloured lighting effects will draw the photographers to it but this showcar matters more than it might appear to. Advanced navigation and infotainment systems as well as traffic-monitoring sensors in the headlights and tail-lamps single this out as a serious concept. In fact, the Vision ConnectedDrive shows that BMW is looking to find new ways to deal with the congestion that presently grips and exhausts drivers in so many of the world’s (mega) cities.
…any or all of these possible debuts might yet be overshadowed by a certain new Porsche, the details of which have not yet been revealed.
Of the major brands, Volkswagen has been suspiciously quiet in recent weeks, a facelifted Tiguan and the new Golf cabrio supposedly its only new cars. ItalDesign is understood to have several VW concepts ready for the show, while we may at last see the production version of the many Up! concepts that have been previewed in recent years. VW is a past master at grabbing the headlines at Geneva with unexpected new models so some surprises (the New Beetle replacement is a distinct possibility) could be in store.
Other models that might yet be headline-creators could be PSA Peugeot Citroen‘s rivals for the Renault Logan, both due some time this year it’s thought, or perhaps not until 2012; the replacements for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and B-Class; the Audi Q3 and/or the Ford B-MAX. Yet any or all of these possible debuts might yet be overshadowed by a certain new Porsche, the details of which have not yet been revealed. The covers come off the car in question at 07:30 on Tuesday as the world’s automotive media assembles, somewhat bleary-eyed, for the show’s first scheduled unveiling and press conference. AutomotiveWorld.com will be reporting the new model highlights soon after, with a series of in-depth executive interviews to follow over the coming weeks.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of Automotive World Ltd.
Glenn Brooks is a regular contributor to AutomotiveWorld.com. A former editor and news editor for various specialist automotive titles and newswires, he now specialises in future vehicle programme research as well as OEM, production and product analysis. editorial@automotiveworld.com
