The Geneva Palexpo came alive once again in the first week of March to host the 2009 Salon International de l’Auto. The giant convention centre became a global showcase for new technologies like the Fiat MultiAir and bio-fuel W12 to futuristic concepts like the Rinspeed iChange and the EDAG Light Car. Even with the economic crunch getting tighter by the day , Geneva continued its glamorous stance with launches like the Chevy Spark and the One-77 supercar. Below are some of the star attractions of the show.
Tata Nano Europa
 The One lakh rupee is car is here. But since its inception at the ninth Auto Expo , the Nano has raised a lot of brows regarding its fortunes in the European market. TATA have decided to silence their critics with a European concept of the low cost City car. The most striking difference is in its appearance. The Nano Europa gets LED lights , 14-inch four lug alloys and a slightly longer wheelbase. The concept also gets an all-aluminium three cylinder mill with a five-speed gearbox and a power steering for better highway performance. Safety , which was a global concern for the Indian Nano , has been worked upon too. The Europa gets stability control , anti-lock brakes and airbags. It is expected to be priced at €5 , 000 (Rs 3 lakh approximately) when it makes it to production and goes on sale in Europe. Expect the finer elements of the Europa to trickle down to our local variant within a few months of its international launch.
Audi A4 Allroad
 Audi’s flared fender A4 was rolled out at Geneva with the Allroad tag and went on sale in Europe late last month. The car features the coveted all-wheel drive Quattro system and sports a taller ground clearance to aid its ‘go anywhere’ character. The engine options range from a 2.0 TFSI petrol to 2.0 and 3.0 TDI oil burners. For India though , Audi will consider plunking the same engines as the A4 sedan to reduce costs. We speculate the A4 Allroad to hit local showrooms by early 2010 at a price dearer by Rs 3-4 lakh than the corresponding A4 sedan variant.
Skoda Fabia Scout
 The blokes at Skoda unveiled a rugged new Fabia variant in the form of the Scout. The car is a based on the Fabia Estate but gets a muscular look with flared plastic bumpers and side skirts. Two roof bars are added to aid its ability of carrying adventure equipment. It gets the underpinnings of the Fabia Estate too. Unfortunately , it will come with the same engine options and a front wheel drive system. Driving on the lines of the Fabia’s success , the Scout might make it to India instead of the Estate (Combi).
EDAG Open Source Light Car Concept
 EDAG unveiled an interesting concept at Geneva , called the Open Source Light Car. The rear section of the car makes an innovative use of the OLED technology to form a screen that can either display driver configured exterior lighting or a safety screen that can flash alerts to trailing vehicles. The chassis is constructed using recyclable basalt fibre while the car itself uses electric propulsion through compact drive motors contained within the wheels to maximize interior space. EDAG are ready to share all these technologies with prospective developers for further improvement free of cost , and hence the tag Open Source.
Chevrolet Spark
 The Chevrolet Spark was finally unveiled in its production trim at Geneva. Fortunately , the car carries forward the radical styling of the original 2007 concept and will also sport the flamboyant shade of metallic green. It will be made available globally with two engine options – 1.0-litre , 66PS and 1.2-litre , 78PS , both as petrol burners. Chevrolet claim these engines to be highly fuel efficient. The Spark/Beat will go on sale in India alongside the current Spark by November this year , in tandem with its global launch.
Skoda Yeti
 After three years of development , Skoda finally unveiled the Yeti SUV at Geneva. As expected , the street ready version of the Yeti loses out on a lot of the original’s conceptual elements like the contrasting white roof , flared wheel arches , hidden door handles and the muscular front end which gave the original concept its radical form. The design of the headlights has been maintained though and the body lines are evocative of the original concept’s design. Engine choices will range between 1.2-litre to 2.0-litre configurations in petrol and diesel options. Like the Roomster , the Yeti too gets some innovative seating options like the three bucket seats in the last row for example.
bentley Continental Supersport Bio-Fuel
The Continental Supersport is the fastest , most powerful production Bentley ever to have rolled out into the market. The W12 engine is now tuned to work on E85 ethanol as well , which Bentley claims , will reduce emissions by up to 70 percent. Bentley have managed to reduce the weight of the car by up to 100 kilos and have adopted various new technologies for doing so. With the weight loss and tinkering to the engine , the W12 now puts out a massive 612PS of power while offering flexible fueling options.
Ferrari 599XX
The 599XX is to the 599 Fiorano what the FXX is to the Enzo. This track spec 599 was unveiled in Geneva as an insight into the various technologies that Ferrari is currently working on. The prototype uses a retuned version of the 599’s V12 engine and can manage a power output of 700 prancing ponies. The revised and highly efficient Actiflow aerodynamic package is claimed to offer up to 280 kilos of downforce at 200km/h. The prototype borrows the KERS tech and wheel covers for the 19-inch competition rims from Ferrari’s F1 expertise. Like the FXX , the 599XX will be available to a select clientele and only 20-30 examples will be produced. Select elements of the 599XX will also make it to the 599 GTB Fiorano with the Handling GTE package when the latter goes on sale soon.
Aston Martin One-77
The costliest Aston Martin till date , the One-77 was finally shown in the flesh at Geneva. The car houses a 7.3-litre V12 engine producing more than 750PS and was quoted by Dr. Ulrich Bez as a ‘more than enough’ performance packed car. The chassis , as expected , uses an amalgamation of aluminium and carbonfibre. The lightweight construction is expected to propel the car to 100km/h from standstill in less than 3.5 seconds. Visually , the One-77 follows all the conventional lines of an Aston but at the same time , manages to look different and aggressive.
Hyundai ix-ONIC Concept
Hyundai previewed the basic design theme behind the new Tuscon SUV by way of the ix-onic (Ikk-onikk) concept. In spite of its 173 inch length , the concept appears brutally muscular and large. Hyundai has designed the front end of the ix-onic to define a hexagonal frontal design which will be the Korean carmaker’s new aesthetic identity. Expect these ploygonal design elements to trickle down to all their upcoming vehicles soon to give the entire product line-up a familial resemblance. The concept houses a 1.6-litre GDi mill – a new powerplant from Hyundai that is expected to allow flexible states of tune and commendably low emissions. |
The Geneva Palexpo came alive once again in the first week of March to host the 2009 Salon International de l’Auto. The giant convention centre became a global showcase for new technologies like the Fiat MultiAir and bio-fuel W12 to futuristic concepts like the Rinspeed iChange and the EDAG Light Car. Even with the economic crunch getting tighter by the day , Geneva continued its glamorous stance with launches like the Chevy Spark and the One-77 supercar. Below are some of the star attractions of the show.
Tata Nano Europa
Audi A4 Allroad
Skoda Fabia Scout
EDAG Open Source Light Car Concept
Chevrolet Spark
Skoda Yeti
bentley Continental Supersport Bio-Fuel
The Continental Supersport is the fastest , most powerful production Bentley ever to have rolled out into the market. The W12 engine is now tuned to work on E85 ethanol as well , which Bentley claims , will reduce emissions by up to 70 percent. Bentley have managed to reduce the weight of the car by up to 100 kilos and have adopted various new technologies for doing so. With the weight loss and tinkering to the engine , the W12 now puts out a massive 612PS of power while offering flexible fueling options.
Ferrari 599XX
The 599XX is to the 599 Fiorano what the FXX is to the Enzo. This track spec 599 was unveiled in Geneva as an insight into the various technologies that Ferrari is currently working on. The prototype uses a retuned version of the 599’s V12 engine and can manage a power output of 700 prancing ponies. The revised and highly efficient Actiflow aerodynamic package is claimed to offer up to 280 kilos of downforce at 200km/h. The prototype borrows the KERS tech and wheel covers for the 19-inch competition rims from Ferrari’s F1 expertise. Like the FXX , the 599XX will be available to a select clientele and only 20-30 examples will be produced. Select elements of the 599XX will also make it to the 599 GTB Fiorano with the Handling GTE package when the latter goes on sale soon.
Aston Martin One-77
The costliest Aston Martin till date , the One-77 was finally shown in the flesh at Geneva. The car houses a 7.3-litre V12 engine producing more than 750PS and was quoted by Dr. Ulrich Bez as a ‘more than enough’ performance packed car. The chassis , as expected , uses an amalgamation of aluminium and carbonfibre. The lightweight construction is expected to propel the car to 100km/h from standstill in less than 3.5 seconds. Visually , the One-77 follows all the conventional lines of an Aston but at the same time , manages to look different and aggressive.
Hyundai ix-ONIC Concept
Hyundai previewed the basic design theme behind the new Tuscon SUV by way of the ix-onic (Ikk-onikk) concept. In spite of its 173 inch length , the concept appears brutally muscular and large. Hyundai has designed the front end of the ix-onic to define a hexagonal frontal design which will be the Korean carmaker’s new aesthetic identity. Expect these ploygonal design elements to trickle down to all their upcoming vehicles soon to give the entire product line-up a familial resemblance. The concept houses a 1.6-litre GDi mill – a new powerplant from Hyundai that is expected to allow flexible states of tune and commendably low emissions.