Inside Lane

DETROIT Review

Issue 23 Detroit Motor Show

Detroit... Home of the 1/4 mile, roaring V8ʼs and the muscle car. Yes it is that time of year again where the automotive world turns to the North American International Auto Show. And what a show it was...

We had everything from hybrid racing cars to futuristic cross-overs and even the odd “likable” Prius...

So here comes the round-up of all the major goings on from motor city!

Born in the USA

New Passat for USVW today is the worlds largest manufacturer after

consuming the likes of Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley,

Skoda and many more. It is also seen as one of the

most wealthy in the industry not only thanks to a

great line-up from itself but a good variety from its

other brands. Audi for example last week

announced record sales figures for the companies

history. VW’s own line-up though doing well is

aiming for a huge sales boost in the US through

2011 and it hopes to do this with the new Passat.

There were whispers that VW may drop the Passat

name we have come to know over the years for its

next generation medium size saloon, yet here we

are with the next incarnation . Set to be built in a

new factory in Tennessee this car is designed for

the North American market only and VW has no

current plans to bring it to Europe. However the top

spec car receives a 3.6 litre V6 petrol engine with

270BHP and 258lb-ft of torque not to mention a

DSG gearbox as standard. This new Passat will

start at a very reasonable £13,000 making it the

biggest bargain we have seen so far this year. Two

TDI “clean diesel” engines are also available.

Chevrolet hatchbacks are only generally sold to

those on a budget and in need of a bargain quick.

Quality neither deign are these cars strong point

but price is often the only selling factor people

need. The result is the many people, especially in

the current economic climate, are driving around in

cars that are more basic than ready saluted crisps

and worse to drive than a shopping trolley with a

wonky wheel. However Chevy’s new compact

aims to change that.

First seen as the Aveo concept this is the all-new

Sonic and it aims to change the image of

Chevrolet in Europe. The funky new design gives

the little car quite an aggressive stance and with a

1.8 litre four-cylinder engine it’s a bold attempt to

live up to the little blue hedgehog. The car is also

available with a 1.4 litre turbo capable of

producing 138BHP, that’s more than the Fiesta.

Super Sonic?

“If cars like this are to survive here is their future...”

At first the dream formed a reality...

...Now reality is the dream

Porsche 918 RSR With growing pressure from the Eco-Nazi this breed of car is

desperately looking for a way to appease them before they

are made extinct. Porsche last year started a revolution by

unveiling the 918 Concept, a hyper car of biblical

proportions but with enough green credentials to beat off the

authorities. So much interest was generated that Porsche

found themselves with over 1000 calls asking when they can

place an order; the result was that Porsche had no other

option than to announce it for production. Yet it is in

motorsport where the German brand really earned its stripes

and so at the Detroit motor show we catch our first glimpse

of the 918 RSR!

With the same beautiful architecture

this one seat racing variant is

powered by both the 6.2 litre V8 in

the middle of the car and two 75

kilowatt motors up front. Paired with

regenerative breaking this car could

be seen as one of the most

competitive in endurance motorsport

due to reduced fuel consumption let

alone 767BHP. The Formula One

derived KERS finds its way into the

918 for an extra performance boost

when needed.

Ford Vertrek Concept

The cross-over is an ever more popular segment of the

automotive industry giving customers that high stance of a 4X4

without the high running costs. Ford launched the Kuga a few

years ago and surprise surprise it was a big success. Mum’s all

over the country were seen dropping off kids in their little yet

large Ford and so naturally it is a model the company wish to

continue producing. The Vertrek Concept gives us our first look

into the future.

Likely to become the Kuga’s replacement in some form or

another, the Vertrek previous the blue ovals future design

language for cross-overs. We like the muscular stance and highly

aggressive front grill as the Kuga might have been a good

looking car, it wasn’t very adventurous in design. This concept

has a 1.6 litre Ecoboost motor with the addition of stop/start

functionality. It is clear that Ford want to promote this cars

economy as they describe it as “class leading.” The Vertrek is

based on the new Focus platform and in addition to it Ford plans

to add a cross-over based on the Fiesta in the near future.

You’ve only gone and blown the bloody door off!

We are not Hyundai’s biggest fans and quite openly announce our views on the cheap Korean cars. Build

quality though improved across the range still isn’t up to standard and competitors are light years ahead on

just about every other forefront. However Hyundai have of late brought a string of rather good looking cars

to the market showing that at least the design department has got its act together. That was until the

Veloster.

They were doing just fine until this unpalatable jumble of shapes

arrived. Designed to be an affordable and practical coupe the Veloster

also has the capacity to make any member of the general public

projectile vomit by sight alone. A competitor for the Renault Megan

Coupe, it shall under cut its French rival in price upon its arrival in the

UK. The door layout is also similar to that of the Mini Clubman which is

ridiculous because it is illogical to have two doors on one side of the

car yet only one on the other. The top spec Veloster will be powered

by a 1.6 litre direct injection engine that produces a rather limp

138BHP, thought it does come connected to a six-speed manual.

Will it sell? Based on price alone, maybe. We will have a full road test

on the Veloster as soon as possible. “God help us!”

Toyota Redefines Prius With Two New Models...

The Toyota Prius for me has special place

reserved in hell. I don’t fin it appealing, its far

to costly and worst of all it is no better for the

environment than a Diesel Golf. Despite my

clear and undying bias I have to tell you that

Toyota has released two new variants of its

high volume hybrid at the Detroit motor show.

They are not so much Prius with modifications

but all new models within the same name

bracket. Is there hope yet?

First up is the Toyota Prius V, a hybrid that

invites you to take that extra trip to Ikea. The

new design is much larger and as a result vast

amounts of space greets you as you enter. An

impressive 38 inches of legroom is very

generous and that boot does look like it could

swallow an elephant. However it uses the

same 1.8 litre engine and hybrid system as

the saloon meaning it wont match it for MPG.

To be honest thats not the best start for a

sales pitch of a car that is to save you

spending on fuel.

The next car is something that we rather like

the looks of and that is a rare thing on a car

that carries the Prius badge. The C Concept is

a rather futuristic looking thing that promises

to make production by 2012. The smaller

package promises to be the most fuel efficient

hybrid when it goes on sale meaning it

actually will have a reason to exist unlike its

older sibling. Also it will be the most “value

orientated” hybrid on the market, we are not

sure what to make of this as it all depends

upon how much the Japanese company value

there own product (in short, might not actually

be that cheap.) Ok so the production model

will be softened up a bit but take a look at the

iQ, Toyota did a good job there.

2012 Audi A6 Hybrid Shown At Detroit

This seems to be a running theme in Detroit this year… Oh

how the environmentalists must be cheering. Audi a few

years ago started looking at various ways to make their

model line-up “green” and we had some rather interesting

concepts. The E-tron in particular being an electric R8 is

exactly the way to try and temp people like us into EV’s. But

now all the ice-cube saving tech has filtered down into cars

like this new A6 hybrid. So whats new?

This A6 unlike any other is front-wheel-drive meaning it

doesn’t carry the brands prestigious quattro badge. It is of

course all in aid of reducing fuel consumption and yet the

Germans have specifically kept the A6 styling despite their

lack of aerodynamic efficiency. The car is powered by the

2.0 litre TFSI in combination with an electric motor

producing 242BHP and only 155lb-ft of torque. Figures only

project 45MPG so the customer base for this luxury barge is

going to be quite small.