Before I get to the big news of the week, it’s worth mentioning some pertinent local news. Firstly, Ford SA set a new Guinness World Record at Phakisa Freeway last weekend, for the most number of Fords in a parade – 586 – and secondly, I attended the inaugural Franschhoek Time Trial & Concours event at the Franschhoek Motor Museum. An event that turned out to be one of world class standards, thanks to the setting and the competitors, which consisted of rare and exotic supercars and race cars, from the 50′s right through to the modern day.
But, as the world’s press head home and the public pour in to the Palexpo halls in Geneva it’s a good time to tell you about the biggest stories from the 80th International Motor Show, as well as those new models we can expect to see on our local roads.
Certainly one of the headline acts was the Porsche 918 Spyder Hybrid sportscar concept. The car is powered by a mid-engined, 373 kW V8 engine, with two electric motors driving each axle to supply an additional 160 kW. Power is fed to the wheels via Porsche’s seven-speed PDK double clutch transmission. The 918 Spyder hybrid can accelerate from 0 – 100 km/h in just under 3.2 seconds, it has a top speed of 320 km/h and wait for it…boasts a Nürburgring Nordschleife lap time of less than 7:30 minutes – faster than the Porsche Carrera GT! Michael Macht, president and chief executive officer of Porsche, stated during the unveiling of this sports car, “Porsche has never shown a concept car that it hasn’t put into production”. So that more or less tells us that we will be seeing this car in showrooms in the future.
Not as close to production was the crazy looking Bertone Alfa Romeo Pandion Concept. Created to celebrate Alfa Romeo’s hundred year anniversary, the Bertone Pandion is powered by a 4,7-litre V8 Alfa Romeo engine. The Pandion is the first car produced by Mike Robinson, the new Design Director at Bertone, and as such, the emphasis is placed squarely on the concept’s design. The sharp and clean lines of the car’s body are in stark contrast to the rear, where an ‘open-end’ has been designed to look as if internal parts of the car have been ripped out due to sheer speed.
South Africa was represented by two manufacturers, namely the Perana Z-One and Optimal Energy’s Joule. A year since its debut at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show, the Perana Z-One was back and this time it’s the production ready version of the first South African supercar. The car is powered by a GM sourced 6,2 litre V8 engine producing 330 kW. The Perana Z-One sprints from zero to 100 km/h in under 4 seconds and races from 0 to 160 km/h in under 10 seconds. The first deliveries of the Perana Z-One are expected for May 2010 in the UK, followed by continental Europe a few months later.
Cape Town based, Optimal Energy, once again had the all-electric Joule on display. Full-scale production of Joule will begin at the end of 2012, with cars in showrooms by mid-2013. Key design goals for the finished product include a range of 230 kilometres based on the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC); integration with existing charging infrastructure; a genuine freeway cruising capability; seating for five; a 4-star NCAP safety rating and a retail price of €24 300, or roughly R260 000 at today’s exchange rate. The car on-show was hand-built in Port Elizabeth by Hi-Tech Automotive, which is responsible for building a marketing and test fleet of approximately 100 vehicles. These will double as research and development units, some of which will be on South African roads by the start of the Soccer World Cup in June.
Moving onto cars that we can expect to see on our roads before the end of the year, or at least early 2011.
Well, no surprises is that Audi launched the new A1, as well as an S-Line package for the car and, maybe not so expected, an A1 eTron hybrid model. Don’t expect to see the A1 eTron in South Africa, but the standard A1 should be available before the end of the year, although no local specs or details have been given by Audi SA. Of course, big news was that of the new RS5. The powertrain has been confirmed as a 4.2-litre V8 producing 331 kW and 430 N.m of torque. The car takes 4.6 seconds to sprint from 0 to 100 km/h and has an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h, which Audi can increase to 280 km/h upon request. Expect to see the RS5 here in the 3rd quarter of 2010.
Another new sub-compact model to be launched, not as premium as the A1, was that of the Nissan Micra. Not as funky as the previous generation, the new Micra has adopted a more conventional design. With a slightly longer wheelbase than its predecessor, Nissan says the new Micra offers greater interior space and comfort, particularly in the rear. The new Micra should be in SA later this year.
I could go on for pages about all the news to come out of Geneva this year, but you can find more news from the Geneva show here, including details of the Brabus E V12 Coupe, Mercedes-Benz F800 Style and Citroën Survolt Sportscar concepts, new Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera, a photo gallery of the new Polo GTI, and more.
Next week I head off to P.E. for a preview of VW’s Citi Golf replacement and will be testing the Nissan Qashqai n-tec. Enjoy your week and your driving.
PS. If you missed last week’s news by SACarFan, catch it here.
