Cross words...
Looking for the future? Don’t bother: it’s already here
ONCE again, the International e Auto mobil A us st el lung–that’ s the Frankfurt Motor Show to you and me – almost defeated me. The exhibition space is vast, so much so, in fact, that all the major car-makers offer free shuttle services in the Messe complex just to get visitors from one hall to another.
And boy was there lots to see. The big news was the further proliferation of small and medium crossovers and SUVs, as the body style continues its conquest of hearts and minds across the world.
First up was the Opel Grandland X, kicking off proceedings on Tuesday, the first of two media and trade preview days before the show opened to the public on Thursday. The launch was marked by a parkour demonstration by three young athletes, to underscore the lithe urban performance of this addition to Opel’s family of X cars.
The Grandland X will come with automatic cruise control with pedestrian detection and automatic emergency braking, drowsiness alert, advanced park assist and optional IntelliGrip traction for driving on snow, mud, sand or wet surfaces. The car will be available here in 130hp 1.2-litre petrol turbo version (from €27,995), as well as 120hp 1.6-litre diesel (from €28,995).
Opel also launched the new Insignia GSi that comes with a 2.0-litre BiTurbo diesel engine putting out 210hp and capable of a 0-100km/h sprint of 7.8 seconds and a maximum speed of 233km/h.
The Grandland X won’t have the crossover space all to itself, though, as many other manufacturers debuted their own new babies of varying sizes and for different market segments. They included the new Skoda Karoq, a little brother for the awesome Kodiaq I reviewed here two weeks ago. It is one of several crossovers due from the Volkswagen group over the next few months, and was shown in the same hall as the new SEAT Arona, which joins the Ateca in the Spanish line-up, with pricing here from €17,995.
Then there was the Volkswagen T-Roc, which looked not entirely unlike the Toyota C-HR with its coupé styling, though it looks far less aggressive and urban than that beautiful motor. Initial production already has been tripled to meet order-book demand and while pricing for Ireland has yet to be confirmed, it seems certain we too will fall for this VW’s very tasty good looks.
I also liked the look of the new Hyundai Kona, named after a district in the Big Island in Hawaii, apparently, which is a baby brother to the all-conquering Tucson. It’s another smart and stylish evolutionary step from the Korean brand.
Speaking of Korea, sister company KIA launched the new Stonic crossover, which I’ll be driving next week at the European launch in Berlin. First impressions in the looks department were good, especially those with highlighted colour detailing, but the real star here was the new KIA Stinger, a stunning liftback luxury car. Sleek as a bullet, it made cars from more established European marques look dated and dull.
The volume seller here will surely be the 2.2-litre diesel version offering 197hp, with 0-100km/h acceleration of 7.7 seconds, though the one we’d all probably love is the 3.3-litre V6, with 365hp and a 0-100km/h of just 4.9 seconds.
The new 8 Series BMW, due here in early 2019, is another work of art, as is the Z4 concept on display at the show. BMW also launched the new X7 seven-seater that will give Land Rover a run for its money. The huge grille divided opinion but I loved it. In a car that size, you want everything exaggerated, and the X7 is nothing if not that.
Mercedes-AMG’s astonishing Project One ‘hypercar’ was one of the standout stars of the show, as it would want to be at $2.8million. With just a 1.6-litre V6 engine and some electric motors, it delivers a staggering 1,100hp, and 11,000 revs per minute. That’s heading for Formula One territory, and the car will race from 0-200km/h (yes, that’s right, 200km/h) in just six seconds. If you haven’t ordered one, tough. All 275 of them, due on the road in 2019, have been sold.
Another standout feature of the show was the increase in production of electric and hybrid cars. Many car-makers seem to think we won’t accept electric unless the cars look futuristic. I wish more would follow the lead of VW’s terrific e-Golf and just leave the car looking as it does in its full combustion-engined glory.
If you must go futuristic, I fell for the Lexus LC500h, with its delightfully aggressive appeal. The grille looks like a portal to hell, and I mean that in a good way.
I wasn’t impressed by the new Subaru Impreza. I have no doubt it’s a fine car, as all Subarus are, but the company’s tendency to go for understated design here ends up saying hardly anything at all. If someone told me it was a ten-year-old model, I’d have believed them.
As for concepts, well, one of my favourites was the Renault Symbioz, with its almost complete glasshouse roof and an interior that looked more like a cosy room than the cabin of a car. If there was a lesson to be learned from IAA 2017, it was that the future is here – maybe not all of it ready yet for sale, but the technology is with us. The next few years will be exciting.