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Car makers are hyping sleek new models at this year’s Geneva Motor Show with manufacturers for the first time proving that sustainable mobility need not mean driving in the slow lane in a car with a boring design.
This year’s show, which runs until March 18, comes only weeks after the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a shocking report on climate change with scientists listing carbon dioxide emissions from power stations and transport as one of the main causes.
Most car makers have been caught off guard as they usually present glittering new models with concept cars featuring more horsepower, more extras and wider tyres fitted to a longer wheel base in Geneva.
All of this comes at a price. Cars with bigger engines and greater performance carry more weight and consume more fuel, emitting more carbon dioxide responsible for the warming of the earth’s atmosphere.
Car makers have always argued that they would like to build more economical cars but that the market is ripe with customers simply wanting faster and bigger cars. Volkswagen had little success with its super-economical Lupo while the super small city car in the DaimlerChrysler stable, the Smart, is on probation with a revamped model after stagnating sales.
Sales of fuel-guzzling light trucks and SUVs (Sports Utility Vehicles) have slumped in the United States, plunging General Motors, Ford and Chrysler into a deep crisis while Japanese car makers have made huge market inroads with economical hybrid vehicles such as the Toyota Prius.
In Europe about half of new cars registered last year were in the mini, small car and compact segment. In Germany sales of SUVs account for only 2.7 per cent of the total market. Sales of hybrids are also insignificant compared to the US with the Prius failing to catch onto European buyers with its uninspiring design.
But as the European Union is planning higher taxes for dirty petrol and diesel engines, the hybrid and other vehicles on clean-energy drive are becoming an attractive alternative.
Showcased for the first time in Geneva, is the Saab BioPower 100 Concept, the first production-based engine optimized for pure bioethanol (E100) fuel. The result is a level of performance never seen before from a road car using this fuel.
The Swedish car maker has combined its turbocharging expertise with the use of high octane E100 fuel with the 2.0-litre engine developing 300 hp. Power is complemented by a substantial 400 Nm of torque, giving the engine the characteristics of a naturally- aspirated engine of 4.0-litre displacement. Acceleration from zero to 100 km/h is just 6.6 seconds.
Toyota, the market leader on hybrids, is making its European debut with the FT-HS (Future Toyota - Hybrid Sports) with “green credentials” combined with high performance.
A “teaser” photograph released of the FT-HS reveals a sporty front design with triangular tail-lights as part of Toyota’s new hybrid design language, aimed at differentiating the vehicles more from conventional-fuel models.
German car makers are having problems catching up with the trend toward hybrids and are betting on BlueMotion clean diesel technology. Volkswagen has announced the world premiere of the Passat BlueMotion saloon in Geneva. It lists the C02 emission level at 135 g/km. This is just above the 130 g level ceiling the EU Commission is planning for all new cars by the year 2012.
VW meanwhile says production of the smaller Polo BlueMotion has been trebled to meet high demand throughout Europe. A VW spokesman also confirmed recently that a hybrid version of the Touareg SUV is planned and that hybrid models for the compact class Golf and Jetta were also being considered.
