2011 Seoul - Hyundai, Kia and GM Korea rock the show

If you are still not convinced about the much-publicized and widely-appreciated rise of the Korean automotive brands, look no further than the 2011 Seoul Motor Show to have your doubts crushed. Held last week under the theme ‘Evolution - Green Revolution on Wheels’, the show saw the Korean automakers come out with all guns blazing. The hidden message ‘Japan, just like in electronics, we are almost there in automobiles too!’ was very clearly obvious on the stands.

Who else could better demonstrate this supremacy than the high-flying duo of Hyundai and Kia? After all, they have been the brands currently with the Midas touch in automobiles, hitting the bull’s eye with every new model launched in the last few years. Just a casual glance at the models that were on display in their stands is enough to scare the hell out of their immediate Japanese and European rivals. Is Toyota, Honda and Volkswagen taking notice? They better be.



Hyundai showcased its globally successful ‘Fluidic’ trio of Accent, Avante (Elantra) and Sonata apart from the recently-launched Grandeur luxury sedan and the all-new Veloster coupe. The famous ‘Fluidic Sculpture’ design philosophy has evolved into ‘Intersected Flow’, which was the theme used for designing the Blue-2 Concept, a fuel-cell electric car on display. Though the car looked pretty good, the fact that it has been inspired by brands like Saab and Opel were clearly apparent.



The Kia stand in comparison was even more colorful and the models even more stylish, courtesy the brilliance of Kia's design head Mr. Peter Schreyer. The superbly-designed Forte, the stunning K5 (Optima) and the Picanto were all there as were the KV7 and Naimo electric vehicle concepts. Looking at all those models, one can only feel that its a pity Kia is not heading to India anytime soon.

The recently renamed GM Korea also showed its might with all its models now wearing the Chevrolet bow-tie badge. So did Renault-Samsung too. Ssangyong, the once-bankrupt automaker which was taken over by Mahindra, proved that the future is not all dark for the brand. Their complete lineup, starting from the India-bound Korando and Rexton to the awfully bad-looking Actyon, were on display.



With the Korean market starting to open up to global brands, more so in the luxury segment, the German brands Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi showed why they are being held with such high esteem throughout the world. The pick of the show for me however, apart from the stylish Hyundai i40 Wagon, was our very own Tata Nano. If you are guessing about Nano's connection with Korea, don't forget that Tata owns Daewoo's commercial vehicle division.



Photography: Seung Jin Shin

2011 Geneva - Italia stordisce pubblico

There are some things in life which are beyond superlatives. For instance, Ferrari and Lamborghini are such things when it comes to cars. When you set out to describe them, you tend to run out of words very soon. Only in this case, I have run out of words even before I have started. Be it in a rough open road or a polished showroom floor, these brands have traditionally left onlookers spellbound. So, when both Ferrari and Lamborghini stunned the audience at the recent 2011 Geneva Motor Show, it was just a case of history repeating itself.

 

The countdown for the global premiere of Lamborghini’s latest V12 supercar – the Aventador, started way back. Slated to replace the super-successful Murcielago and follow in the footsteps of iconic models like Miura, Countach and Diablo, the Aventador soon became the car to watch out for, both for the critics and the super-rich enthusiasts. While the pre-launch spy shots gave some hints about the aggressive design of the car, no one would have expected it to be this aggressive. At least, I didn’t. The Aventador seems to have been inspired by the stunning looking Reventon. The classic wedge shaped profile, the sharp muscular cuts and the stunningly beautiful taillight clusters make the Aventador look jaw-droppingly gorgeous. To say that it is one of the best looking cars in the world right now would not be an exaggeration at all. With 700 horsepower driving its 4 wheels, the Aventador also has the go to match its freaking awesome show.



With the Raging Bull doing what it did, can the Prancing Horse, it’s neighbor and nemesis be far behind? Like Lamborghini, Ferrari too shocked the audience, but unlike Lamborghini, it was not all too rosy at the Ferrari stand. While the two most recent Ferraris - the California and 458 Italia were pleasing to most eyes, the FF, which was unveiled in the show, would surely go down as the only Ferrari in recent history to have split opinions to such an extent. While some loved the FF, there surely were some who hated to call it a Ferrari. The front end of the FF is typical Ferrari with cues from both its previous models lending it a menacing look. It’s the rear end where the designers have lost the plot. Come on, who on earth can digest a shooting brake style rear end on a Ferrari? Having said that, the design starts growing on you after some time. Being a Ferrari, the 4 wheel drive FF grand tourer is sure to sell extremely well in the market with the added practicality of a 4 seater.



Check out the pictures of both the latest supercars and feast your eyes for all its worth. There are fewer things in life which are more pleasing to do than sitting and staring at brand-new Italian supercars, even if they are in a small LCD screen on your desk.

2011 Geneva - Tata unveils Pixel Concept

Sharing floor space and hogging the limelight amidst global premieres from brands like Ferrari, Lamborghini and Porsche at the 81st International Auto Show in Geneva, was India’s largest automaker Tata, which unveiled its vision of a future city car in Europe, the Pixel Concept. Speaking on the occasion, Carl-Peter Forster, MD and CEO of Tata Motors, said “Tata Motors holds true to its belief that there is an opportunity in Europe for a city car, which is optimal in space, maneuverability and environment-friendliness. The Tata Pixel is a reflection of Tata Motor's idea of what such a car should be.”

Though it has been derived from the Nano, the cheapest car in the world, the Pixel looks nothing like it. Compared with its probable competitors like Smart Fortwo and Toyota iQ, the Pixel looks better and would surely turn more heads than either of them. The fact that Pixel can accommodate four adults in comfort unlike any of its competitors is an added bonus.



From the front, the similarity in design cues with the Nano is clearly evident. The headlamps in particular looks remarkably similar but the LED clusters and the huge windscreen make sure that the car looks much more upmarket than it actually is. In profile, the unusually large glasshouse and the uniquely shaped scissor doors look elegant. From the rear though, the Pixel looks stunning with those beautifully shaped taillight clusters with integrated LEDs. If this car makes it to production as such, Tata can undoubtedly claim to be having one of the best looking compact cars in the world.



The Pixel also has some advanced technology beneath its alluring looks. The Zero-Turn toroidal traction drive Infinitely Variable Transmission (IVT) assists rotation of the outer rear wheel forwards and the inner rear wheel backwards while the front wheels turn at acute angles. As a result, the car has a turning radius of just 2.6 meters, thus enabling easy maneuverability and parking inside the city. The scissor doors have been designed to open skywards allowing easy entry and exit for passengers of both rows even in the tightest of places. Moreover, key functions of the car would be controlled by the driver’s smart phone through ‘My Tata Connect’, the first-ever integrated human-machine interface concept from Tata.



With a 1.2L three cylinder turbocharged diesel engine powering the rear wheels, low rolling resistance tires, stop start technology and regenerative braking, we can safely assume the Pixel to bring in lively performance, good fuel efficiency and lesser CO2 emissions to meet the strict European standards.



Hats off, Tata! Just like you did with the Nano, you have again made the Indian flag fly high at Geneva. Please don’t let the Pixel go into the drain just like the Magna, Aria, Prima and many of your other earlier concepts. Give it a shot at the Indian market too and I am sure you will be rewarded for it!