Feb 29, 2008, 16:09 GMT
Geneva - The Geneva car show is not as flashy as its counterparts in Frankfurt and Paris, but the Swiss can be relied upon to showcase plenty of important new models in this pristine lakeside city below the Alps.
The 78th Auto Salon is no exception and from March 6 to 16 around 50 new vehicles, including handsome offerings from Ford, Volkswagen, Renault and Lancia, will break cover at the Palexpo exhibition hall.
Tata Motors of India is also set to bring its no-frills Nano minicar to Europe for the first time although Continental customers will probably have to wait years in order to get their hands on one of these five-door hatchbacks. The Nano is being touted as the world's cheapest car with a purchase price of around 2,500 US- dollars.
The trend towards leaner, more fuel-efficient vehicles continues but this year's Swiss expo has a retro feel to it as well. There are new versions of models such as the Ford Fiesta, VW Scirocco and Lancia Delta whose names hark back to the 1970s and '80s.
Above all, it is spring on the shores of Lake Geneva and carmakers are desperate for a sunnier outlook. There is a chill wind blowing through the beleaguered US motor industry amid a spending slowdown in Europe which has hit new car sales in all the major markets except Germany. Luxury carmaker BMW confirmed recently that it is cutting 8,100 jobs in efforts to raise profitability.
Some of the biggest news in Geneva is over at the Ford stand where the brand-new Fiesta global car manages to shrug off the dowdy image of its predecessors. Shown recently as the Verve design study in Frankfurt, Detroit and at Guangzhou in China, the mini-hatchback has retained the concept's sporty lines.
This Fiesta shares a platform with the Mazda 2 and is a cornerstone of Ford's global strategy. The car will go on sale in Europe from autumn 2008 with production due to start in Asia in 2009 before the Fiesta debuts in North America a year later.
'This new car embodies the very essence of Fiesta fun, vitality and emotion', says Ford Europe head John Fleming, justifying the decision to retain the well-known Fiesta badge after speculation that the name would be dropped 32 years after its introduction in 1976.
A range of four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines is planned and the Fiesta will eventually be available with five doors as well. Ford has also pledged a 1.4-litre Ecoboost power unit which should emit less than 100gm of carbon dioxide per kilometre.
The name Scirocco is another blast from the past but the third generation of the sporty coupe making its world debut here marks a bid by Europe's biggest carmaker Volkswagen to make the entire marque seem more exciting.
The production version of the Scirocco takes its styling cues from the recent IROC concept complete with the distinctive honeycomb grille. Various petrol engines will be offered along with a diesel power unit incorporating the latest common rail technology.
Fiat-owned Lancia is trying to reinvent itself too by dressing up the Bravo in smart new clothes and calling it the Delta. Behind the shield-shaped grille the Delta hatchback retains the bold, rounded lines of the HPE concept in Paris.
This upmarket car is aimed squarely at customers for Audi's A3 and the BMW 1 series. Interior fittings are sumptuous for the class and the Delta offers loads of space for five people. Entry level versions will be fitted with a 1.4-litre turbo motor.
The final roadgoing version of the ground-breaking Toyota iQ city car will bow in at the Geneva event along with the sportiest Mini yet.
The hot new Mini John Cooper Works features an upgraded 218- horsepower, 1.6-litre engine which should be good for the sprint to 60 miles an hour in just over six seconds. The JCW competes for attention along with the new Fiat Abarth 500, the racy version of the popular Italian supermini. It has an equally punchy 135 horsepower 1.4-litre 16v turbocharged engine under the bonnet.
Geneva is home to the rich and famous and no show there would be complete without new luxury vehicles. Prominent among them is the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe, a 5.6-metre long monster of a car with a ridiculously high price tag to match.
The coupe features rear-hinged coach doors which are electrically- assisted to ease access. Power is provided by a 6.75-litre V12 engine which BMW-owned Rolls-Royce says 'enables the car to cover great distances effortlessly.'
The ultralight, zero-emission Morgan Life Car being shown by Britain's still-independent carmaker, is one of this year's oddball concepts. It looks like one of the vintage-style sports cars for which the marque is renowned but is driven by a state-of-the-art hydrogen fuel cell power train.
Entirely wacky is the Rinspeed Squba from Switzerland which is billed as the world's underwater car. Inspired by the Lotus Esprit from the James Bond film 'The Spy Who Loved Me', the Squba boast three electric motors and can submerge to a depth of 10 metres. It also has no roof which means that driver and passenger have to don scuba diving equipment in order to enjoy a quick spin below the waves.
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