Concepts highlight luxury and tech
Cars offer a peek at future of design
The Vancouver show always does a great job of displaying the classic cars from the past. But increasingly, the show is peeking into the future of automotive design and technology with its display of concept vehicles.
This year’s show is no exception. Here’s a look at three concept cars on display that will help set the tone for the near future.
ACURA PRECISION CONCEPT
Making its B.C. debut, the sharply hewn four-door sedan is a design-study model that Acura says, “literally will shape the direction of all future Acura products.”
Concepts are, by their nature, the tangible incarnation of the imagination of the world’s great auto designers. Vancouver showgoers will be able to see the realization of the Acura visioning in this priceless piece of mobile art that is likely to lead to future design and technology innovation from the Japanese luxury vehicle nameplate.
BUICK AVISTA CONCEPT
A modern expression of Buick’s heritage of sophisticated performance is communicated with beautiful elegance in the Avista Concept on display this year. It is a 2+2 coupe that pushes the brand’s contemporary design ethos and rekindles its historic performance roots.
A sleek vehicle with sweeping proportions is the foundation for this vision of a contemporary grand tourer. The car will have a 400-horsepower twin-turbocharged V6 driving the rear wheels and a driver-focused cockpit, offering a comfortable and connected centre of control.
GENESIS NEW YORK CONCEPT
Unveiled last year at the — where else? — New York Auto Show, this hybrid sports sedan concept points to the design direction Hyundai’s breakaway luxury brand is headed. Powered by a 2.0-L T-GDi hybrid engine mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission, this concept is all about sporty agility.
The exterior is defined by well balanced proportions and refined surface treatments, while inside, the concept car combines advanced technology with luxury and contrasts innovative electronics against finely crafted materials.