McClatchy/Tribune
Published on: 03/21/08
Geneva, Switzerland — The new and the nostalgic butted heads as some automakers celebrated past triumphs and others tried to stake their claims to the future at the media previews of the Geneva auto show this month.
Some were more successful than others.
 Martial Trezzini / AP | ||
| The new Hyundai i-Mode was a hit at the car show. | ||
|
TALK OF THE SHOW: Tata Motors
Indian automaker Tata basked in unaccustomed attention. Tata has been a regular at the Geneva auto show since it introduced its fir concept
Hyundai's nifty i-Mode concept is a six-seat "monocab" or "one-box," the descriptive term Europeans use for vehicles that don't have an obvious hood or trunk. It's also the Korean automaker's most appealing concept vehicle in some time, sort of a good-looking take on the same idea as the Pontiac Aztek.
Power comes from a new 2.2-liter turbodiesel that produces a serious 340 pound-feet of torque — 20 more than the 4.6-liter V8 in a Mustang GT.
MOST DISAPPOINTING: Volkswagen Scirocco
Volkswagen's new Scirocco sport coupe looks more like a faster, lower, wider version of the brand's Rabbit hatchback than a successor to the lithe sport coupe whose name it revives.
The Scirocco's low and wedgy nose is true to the spirit of the original 1974 model, but the new car's boring squareback design lacks the grace and excitement of the original's unique profile.
On the plus side, the Scirocco's new grille — two narrow black bars spanning the width of the nose from headlight to headlight — looks great, and it's destined to be the face for all the brand's future models.
HAPPY 40th, ITALDESIGN: Legendary Italian design and engineering consultant Italdesign celebrated 40 years in business at the Geneva show, unveiling a new spaceship-style concept car and dusting off three beauties from its history.
The Quaranta concept's shape consciously recalls the 1968 Bizzarini Manta that was Italdesign's first design study. The Quaranta showcases new technologies, including two electric motors in an adaptation of Toyota's hybrid system, electronically controlled all-wheel drive and a carbon-fiber body.
Inside, the driver sits in the middle of the car, with a passenger seat behind each shoulder. What must be the world's smallest booster seat for kids is nestled directly behind the driver.
Italdesign's stand also featured the original Bizzarini Manta, the 1980 Lancia Medusa and the 1993 Bugatti EB 112 design studies.
ETHANOL BEING PROMOTED: European automakers are promoting E85 — the eco-friendly fuel that consists of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline — as the smart choice for guilt-free go-fast fun. Saab and Swedish supercar specialist Koenigsegg pointed out this week that E85 generates considerably more power in their engines than gasoline.
If concept cars don't impress you, E85 or 100 percent ethanol juices up Koenigsegg's Edition supercar to 1,018 horsepower compared with a mere 888 horsepower when the 4.8L supercharged V8 runs on gasoline.
The secret is that ethanol has a higher octane level than gasoline, allowing the engine's electronic controls to pump much higher levels of boost from their superchargers and turbochargers.
Like hot-rodders who pump nitrous oxide into their engines for a jolt of extra acceleration, higher boost means more horsepower. If you try it at a low octane level, bad things like exploding cylinders can happen.