| Out of Paris Motor Show (1)
By UKOHA KALU
Wednesday,
October 25, 2006
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Photo: Sun News Publishing |
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Daihatsu Concept car: D-Compact X-Over Developed with Italdesign
Giugiaro, the D-Compact X-Over concept shows Daihatsu's ideas
for a small SUV/minicar crossover similar to the Suzuki SX4
and Fiat Sedici. The 3800mm-long, five door concept features
a large panoramic glass roof which stretches from the top
of the windshield back to the rear seat. Daihatsu sources
say a production version of the concept is likely.
Production car: Materia
Daihatsu adds the Materia, a quirky looking small minivan,
to its European lineup. The boxy Materia is a version of parent
Toyota's US-market Scion xB and Japan-only Toyota bB with
a new front grille and different bumpers. It was shown as
the D-Compact Wagon concept at the Geneva auto show in March.
Sales start next spring. The Materia's rear seats move backward
or forward on rails to give what Daihatsu executives say is
the most flexible interior ever seen from the brand. A 1.5-litre,
105hp gasoline engine, which also is in the brand's new Terios
small SUV, powers the minivan. No diesel-powered Materia is
planned.
Dacia
Production car: Logan station wagon
Dacia, Renault's Romanian subsidiary, will show a seven-seat
station wagon variant of its Logan low-cost car. The station
wagon launches in Romania next month and in other European
markets starting next spring.
Dodge
Concept car: Avenger
Dodge unveiled a prototype for its new Avenger, a sporty upper-medium
sedan targeted at buyers of the Alfa Romeo 159 and Mazda6.
The Avenger continues the bold, muscular design theme seven
on the Dodge Calibre lower-medium hatchback, which went on
sale in Europe last summer and already has a six-month waiting
period in some markets.
European sales of Avenger likely will start next summer. The
Sedan will be offered with 2.0-2.4- and 2.7-litre gasoline
engines. A 2.0-litre turbodiesel will come from Volkswagen.
The diesel already is offered in the Calibre.
Citroen C-Metisse shows off PSA's diesel-electric powertrain
Concept car: C-Metisse
It's sleek, sporty and red. But the high-performance C-Metisse
also is green Ð in the environmentally friendly sense.
The coupe-styled, low-slung four-door concept shows off parent
PSA/Peugeot-Citroen's hybrid diesel-electric powertrain technology.
The C-Metisse is powered by a 208hp, 3.0-litre, V-6 diesel
supported by electric motors in the rear wheels that offer
20hp and 400Nm of extra torque. The car's top speed is 250kph
but at 50kph its fuel consumption is 6.5 litres per 100km
and its CO2 emissions are 174 grammes per kilometre, says
Citroen.
At low speeds, the car's electric motors can move the car,
resulting in zero emissions. The 4740mm-long car's aerodynamic
styling and carbon fibre body, which keeps its weight down
to 1,400kg, also help reduce fuel consumption.
In French, Metisse means hybrid. PSA plans to sell hybrid
diesel-electric vehicles starting in 2010.
Production car: C4 Picasso
Citroen expands its minivan range with the C4 Picasso, a larger,
more upscale alternative to its Xsara Picasso medium minivan.
Based on a stretched C4 platform, the C4 Picasso's big selling
point will be its airy cabin. The minivan has 6.4 square metres
of glass including a large, panoramic windshield and a big
sunroof.
A seven-seat C4 Picasso was launched October 4, followed later
by a five-seat model, Citroen needs a seven-seat medium minivan
to compete with rivals such as the Renault Grand Scenic and
Opel/Vauxhall Zafira.
The C4 Picasso will be built in Vigo, Spain, alongside the
Xsara Picasso on PSA's architecture for medium-sized vehicles,
which also underpins the similarly sized Peugeot 307 station
wagon.
The C4 Picasso's prices will range from 21,000 to 30,350 Euros.
The Xsara Picasso becomes Citroen's entry-level medium minivan,
price between 16,000 and 22,000 Euros.
Fiat
Production car: Panda 100HP
Fans of high-performance little cars will be disappointed.
The Panda Albarth, a version of the minicar with a 150hp,
1.4-litre turbocharged gasoline engine did not make its debut
in Paris as some media reports said. But Fiat offers the Panda
100HP, which has a 100hp, 1.4-litre gasoline engine, up from
95hp in the standard model. The Bravo, which replaces the
lower-medium Stilo next year, also wonÕt be in Paris.
It will make its debut in January.
Honda
Production car: CR-V
Honda hopes a sleeker look, upgraded engines and car-like
handling will give the third-generation CR-V medium SUV a
sales boost in Europe.
The CR-V is sold in more countries than any other Honda vehicle.
In Europe, it is the brandÕs No. 3 seller after the
Civic and Jazz, with a volume of 22,983 units in the first
six months, according to JATO
Dynamics.
The European CR-V has improved versions of its 150hp, 2.0-litre
gasoline and its 140hp, 2.2-litre diesel engines. They have
the same horsepower as the current models, but initial acceleration
is quicker and fuel economy is slightly improved.
Both engines are mated to a new six-speed manual transmission
instead of the current five-speed manual.
A coupe-like side window profile gives the CR-V a sleeker
appearance than the current boxy-looking model. To achieve
Sedan-like handling and styling, Honda lowered the CR-V's
centre of gravity by 35mm, the spare tyre was moved from the
rear taligate to beneath the floor, and the stance was widened
by 30mm.
On the inside, the seats are wider and taller, and the interior
trim is more upscale than the current CR-V with metallic elements
on the dashboard and doors and a soft black trim.
Europe will be the last major Western market to get the new
CR-V. It went on sale in North America this month.
Japanese sales begin in mid-October. The European CR-V, which
is built in HondaÕs Swindon, England plant, goes on
sale January.
Technology: Some of the new options available on the CR-V
include adaptive cruise control, which maintains a set distance
from the vehicle in front, and collision mitigation braking,
which predicts collisions and warns the driver.
Mondeo gets bigger and bolder
Concept cars: Focus CUV, Mondeo
Ford of Europe plans to launch an SUV/Hatchback crossover
starting in 2008. The CUV (short for compact utility vehicle)
concept will hint at the design for a Focus-based car that
will be built at its Saarlouis, Germany, factory.
The Mondeo concept will be a near production prototype. The
third-generation upper-medium Mondeo will grow significantly
to give more passenger space as well as improved crash protection.
Although, it will continue to resemble the current Mondeo,
the new car will take many styling cues from the Losis concept
such as its sporty profile, bold upper and lower grilles and
large headlights. The Losis was the first concept car to showcase
Ford's kinetic design language when it appeared at last yearÕs
IAA in Frankfurt. The carmaker's new S-Max and second-generation
Galaxy were the first production cars to show kinetic design
styling cues.
When it reaches dealers next spring, the Mondeo will enter
a tough market Ð sales of upper-medium cars are declining
as customers migrate to SUVs, minivans and crossovers. But
Ford hopes to maintain Mondeo sales by offering features normally
seen on premium cars. Some Press reports suggested the car
may offer optional adaptive cruise control. Ford will disclose
details at the Paris show.
Ford plans to build 200,000 Mondeos a year at its Genk, Belgium
factory. Last year it built 175,946 Mondeos, compared with
349,625 in 2001, the car's first full year on the market following
its 2000 launch.
The new Mondeo will share its architecture with the Galaxy
large minivan and the S-Max minivan/station wagon crossover.
The Mondeo's current platform was originally developed just
for the Mondeo but now also underpins the Jaguar X-Type.
The rest of Genk's 300,000 annual capacity will be taken by
60,000 units a year of for S-Max and 40,000 units annually
of the Galaxy.
Landwind, Great Wall launch SUVs, minivan and pickup for Europe
Concept car: Great Wall K2
Production cars: Landwind Fashion, SUV; Great Wall Hover
Two of China's smaller automakers came targeting niche segments
for their European launches in Paris. Landwind Europe showed
a minivan and an SUV that are expected to go on sale early
next year. The Belgium-based company has exclusive distribution
rights for Landwind models built by Jiangling Holding in Nanchang.
Great Wall Motor's Hover SUV and a pick-up code-named the
K2 was on show stand organised by the Chinese carmaker's distributor
for Greece, Synergy Hellas of Athens.
The Landwind Fashion medium minivan was launched in June in
China, where its price starts at about 9,800 Euros. The minivan's
prices in Europe had not been announced at press time.
The Fashion was designed by the I.DE.A Institute in Turin.
The minivan initially will be offered with 1.6- and 2.0-litre
gasoline engines developed with engine specialist FEV of Aachen,
Germany.
A Euro 4-compliant turbodiesel engine from VM Motori of Italy
is expected to come later.
The Fashion will be targeted at Toyota CorollaVerso and Kia
Caren's buyers.
The Landwind SUV is an updated version of an Opel Frontera-styled
sport-utility vehicle that went on sale last summer. The vehicle
was pulled from the market last autumn after just 100 were
sold because the car spectacularly failed a crash test done
by the ADAC, Germany's largest auto club.
Landwind Europe says the upgraded SUV has new safety features.
Jiangling Holding builds only the Landwind SUV and the Fashion.
It has a production capacity of 50,000 units and built 17,610
units last year, according to Automotive News Europe's 2006
Guide to China's Auto Market.
By 2010, Jiangling aims to add another 100,000-unit-a-year
factory in Nanchang. Great Wall's 4620mm-long, five-door Hover
goes on sale in Italy next month priced between Û19,500
to Û23,000.
Sales in other southern and eastern European markets start
in the next six months.
The K2 is a near-production concept for a four-door, double-cab
pickup that goes on sale in Italy beginning next spring.
Great Wall has not revealed its sales plans for other European
markets.
Great Wall built 29,027 units last year and exported 18,500
vehicles to the Middle East, Africa, South America and other
markets. Its factory in Baoding, in the Hebei province in
northern China, has an annual capacity of 170,000 units.
Landwind Europe was one of three exhibitors of Chinese cars
at the IAA in Frankfurt last September. The others were Geely
Motors and Euro Motors, distributor for BMW's China partner
Brilliance Jinbei Automobile.
Both Geely and Brilliance have delayed their European launch
plans.
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