Inside Lane
Issue 41
2013 Geneva Motor Show
Welcome to the 2013 Geneva motor show! This year is the biggest show ever with more exciting bits of metal than you can shake a stick at. Ferrari revealed their Enzo successor, McLaren the P1 and Lamborghini arrived with something a bit tasty too. SO what are you still doing reading this? Get going!
Golf GTD
VW’s biggest seller, the Golf, is now in its 7th generation and is as complete a package as ever. Practical, reliable, durable, efficient are all words you could use to describe the Golf and with a wide range of model variants there is something for everyone. For those craving something with a bit extra performance but require great fuel economy, Volkswagen have the perfect MK7 for you. Powered by VW’s all-new EA228 diesel engine, the Golf GTD offers much of the sporty aesthetic of the up and coming GTI but in a package that will achieve 67.3MPG. The 2.0 litre car produces 181BHP and 280lb-ft of torque. This reaches the front wheels via a 6 speed manual or a six speed dual clutch box. 0-62MPH is cover in 7.5 seconds and the GTD’s top speed is 143MPH.
Bentley Gives You Wings... So you are the sort of chap who has a few bob. You require a car that looks every bit as tailored as the suit you are wearing but it will be Jeeves doing all of the driving whilst you sink into some of finest cowhide money can buy. Bentley has a car that might just tick all of the boxes for you in its all-new Flying Spur. Still powered by an all consuming W12 engine, the 2.5 litre until will now produce 616BHP. Capable of 0-62MPH in just 4.3 seconds and a top speed of 200MPH, this stately home on wheels can hardly be called sluggish. Equipped with luxuries such as on-board Wi-Fi, a unique form of leather upholstery and ample amounts of walnut wood this is pure luxury. Despite all of this the car weighs 50KG less than its predecessor and is able to achieve 19.2MPG.
Giving an Italian a pencil and a blank sheet of paper is like teaming a knife with butter. It just works‌ It has to be said that Italy is the design capital of the world and their cars are almost always mobile works of art. Alfa Romeo have produced many pretty cars over the past 100 years and their soon to be launched 4C reinforces my point. Also coming to Geneva is the Gloria Concept. This car is the result of twenty IED design student working in tandem with Alfa Romeo designers. The project is pure concept so don’t expect to see this shape on the roads anytime soon. Sporting heavy references to the brands past, with leather bonnet straps and well defined grill, the Gloria is a handsome machine to behold. I think it is interesting that Alfa have chosen to show this car on a platform much larger than anything in the showroom today, perhaps hinting at their future model expansion.
Mental Merc!
Mercedes AMG line has become an integral part of the firms DNA over the past few decades. Seen as the ultimate in performance for the three pointed star, this division has produced many cars of late that have given the legendary BMW M cars something to worry about. Merc’s all-new A-Class is a seductive little hatchback offering great attention to detail. The German firms new baby has just got back from spending some time with the AMG boys and the result is something very special indeed. This is the A45 AMG, a £36,000 A-Class that is as fast as the latest Porsche 911. That means a 0-62MPH time of just 4.5 seconds! Powered by a turbocharged 2.0 litre four cylinder engine, this little menace packs 355BHP. That makes it the most powerful engine of its type in the world, yet, it will still get over 40MPG. All of that performance is channeled to all four wheels completing one of the least conspicuous performance packages that has ever touched tarmac.
Pure Passion
There is just that indescribable something about Alfa Romeos. An atmosphere that you absorb as someone who can appreciate a car for being more than just a means of transport. They talk to you, communicate in a way no other car does when you drive it. Alfa Romeo for the past few years have lacked a car that does this in an obvious manor. Sure, their hatchbacks are nice but when you have a badge that descends from Grand Prix royalty it is mind boggling to think that they lack a true sports car from their range. Well let your mind boggle no more… This is Alfa’s triumphant return! First seen two years ago in concept form, the Alfa Romeo 4C is a beautiful sculpture on wheels. The attention to detail in every curve, light and vent is pure automotive art. Beneath its carbon fibre body sits a mid-mounted 1.8 litre turbocharged four cylinder engine. The power to weight ratio of this little coupe is a staggering 4KG/HP, thanks to the carbon monocoque. Alfa’s new toy gets its power to the ground via a twin clutch automatic transmission.
“Raise the Roof!!! - or erm... Lower it?”
Volkswagen’s Golf Cabriolet was welcomed with open arms last year as it had been a while since you could have some topless fun in the popular hatchback. Alfresco motoring is loved by many in the UK, despite all of the rain, and so it wasn’t long before the convertible loyalists wanted something a bit spicier from the Germans. Enter the VW Golf R Cabriolet. This is the fastest open-top Golf that has ever been produced offering not just the ability to feel the wind rush through your hair, but also the potential for a good deal of hooning about. Powered by a 261BHP four cylinder engine, this Golf R can dispatch 0-62MPH in 6.4 seconds and has an electronically limited top speed of 155MPH. The swapping of cogs is done via a 6 speed dual clutch automatic gearbox. The roof can be lowered in 9.5 seconds and raised again in 11 seconds providing the car is traveling at under 18MPH. The Golf R Cabriolet is to cost from £38,770.
Kia with their good looking portfolio and 7 year warranty are right up there when it comes to car sales. The combination of peace of mind and good value is a valuable card to play when tempting brand loyal car buyers into Kia showrooms. Though Kia’s are becoming more premium by the day, they have never produced a spiced up version of their hatchbacks to take on the establishment at their own game. That was until now… To debut at the Geneva motor show, this is the Kia Procee’d and Cee’d GT. This hothatch will take on the likes of Ford’s up and coming Fiesta ST. Available in three and five door, this new contender gets 201BHP and 265Nm of torque from its turbocharged 1.6 litre engine. It looks the part and would appear to have the numbers to compete, but the verdict on Kia’s new venture will have to wait until it hits showrooms later this year.
The New Boy...
Wraith A Rolls-Royce is a symbol of British engineering
fastest and most powerful automobile Rolls-Royce
and the countries never forgotten class system.
has ever made being powered by a 642BHP V12
They provoke imagery of royalty and fame, grace
engine. 0-60MPH is done in just 4.4 seconds and
and power. The double R has been expanding its
the Wraith will go onto an electronically limited top
model range for quite a while now but each new
speed of 155MPH. It’s 8 speed ZF gearbox uses
car sticks close to that silky smooth, ultimate in
GPS to select the most appropriate gear for the
refinement that is the Rolls-Royce ethos. Their new
road ahead. Though clearly the sportiest car the
car is very different from anything in the companies
brand has produced to date, they do stress that this
history. Can the Wraith look the spirit of ecstasy in
isn’t a sporty GT car as such. Inside it still has all of
the eye?
the lavish trim of the Ghost that it is based upon
Immediately its fastback shape promotes the
and the Rolls-Royce experience is still promised in
performance element of this new car. It is the
the Wraith.
Dawn of the i-Car... It is fair to say that BMW have more of a reputation
city run-around. For those looking to squeeze the
for producing some of the most eye-poppingly
maximum amount of juice out of the i3, three
exhilarating saloons in the business than they have
different driving modes are available; COMFORT,
for embracing Mother Nature. In fact, most of the
ECO PRO or ECO PRO+. Providing you are
stallions in the M-Sport stable are bred on a daily
prepared to do without air-conditioning and be
diet of pandas and dolphins. However, two years
restricted to a 56 mph motorway trundle, the i3’s
ago at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the German
range can be extended by a whole 25 per cent.
manufacturer announced a significant change of tack, with the introduction of a whole new range,
The real brains come in the form of BMW’s i
codenamed ‘i’. This heralded the arrival of BMW’s
ConnectedDrive navigation system, debuted on
first ever fully electric zero emissions vehicle, the
this car, which busily beavers away calculating
prototype i3. Fast-forward to the 2013 Geneva
everything from driving style to air-conditioning
Motor Show and the i3 Concept Coupe gets its
setting as well as taking in to account energy-
official European premiere.
sapping gradients and stop-go traffic jams to provide precise range predictions. Even if,
For the connoisseurs of fine styling and beautiful
somehow, you still find yourself regularly beached
craftsmanship among you, the i3 offers precious
on the hard-shoulder with a flat battery, the i3 can
little. The chunky and clunky exterior has changed
be fitted with an optional range extender, achieving
very little, if at all, from the original 2011 preview
a mammoth 186 miles! Needless to say, if this is
meaning it won’t be winning too many admirers in
you, an electric car may not have been the wisest
the fashion stakes. However, the less than
choice in the first place.
attractive looks disguise this car’s supreme
With the fully electric i8 concept due to join its baby
intelligence. Based around BMW’s eDrive
brother in Geneva later this week, this could be
powertrain, the lithium-ion battery unit supplies the
remembered as the moment when BMW quite
i3 with a standard range of 80-100 miles – freeing it
literally turned over a new leaf.
from the traditional confines of the small electric
Fun In The Sun
The Toyota GT86 is very important in our opinion. It is a machine that is currently sparking a return to affordable
sports cars, something that was last at its hight during the 90’s. The 86 offers a masterclass in having a smile on your face whilst driving, the focus not being on power or equipment but pure enjoyment. At the Geneva motor show this brilliant recipe is being served with a side order of “wind in your hair.” This is the FT-86 Open Concept, a car that will very soon become the road going GT86 Cabriolet. The low slung drop top has changed very little from its coupe counterpart, keeping its edgy architecture. Structural regality should still be high even without reinforcement due to the original car being design with a future convertible as a possibility. The 2+2 has a fabric roof with a glass rear window that is stowed in the boot. Powered by the same flat four engine as the coupe, it is currently unclear if Subaru’s BR-Z will get the same treatment.
911 GT3 The Porsche 911 comes in more flavours than there is varieties of ice cream. Carrera, Carrera S, Carrera 4, Carrera 4S, GTS, Turbo and the list goes on‌ It has been 50 years since the original and today we finally see the much anticipated GT3 variant of the 991 911. The GT3 has always been the drivers 911 offering a great balance between being race ready and liberatingly liveable. This 991 model offers the usual 3.8 litre flat-six but it now produces 468BHP and 324lb ft of torque. 0-62MPH is over and done with in 3.5 seconds and it will go onto a top speed of 196MPH. Controversially power is sent to the rear wheels via a 7-speed flappy paddle gearbox with no manual gear leaver available, something no doubt purists will be livid about. The new car also feature four wheel steering for greater speed in changing direction.
“Excuse me... Batman: You’re New Car is Ready for Collection.”
Normally when it comes to big supercar reveals manufacturers like to keep the world guessing about their next big thing, but that rarely happens these days. Thanks to spy photographers and the speed of which information now changes hands, secrets are very hard to keep. Lamborghini have done a great job maintaining that this this bad boy was hidden away, but at last we now know what the raging bull is bringing to the Geneva motor show. Veneno is its name and it translates to poison. I will just give you a moment to take in this dramatic piece of sculpture which is no concept car. The Lamborghini Veneno is a machine with a limited run of three, each costing nearly £3,000,000. Its visual aggression forged in carbon fibre houses a V12 that produces 740BHP. This engine will propel the Veneno to 62MPH in under 3 seconds and go onto a top speed of 220MPH. All three examples of the car that celebrates 50 years of Lamborghini have been spoken for.
The McDADDY
The new McLaren P1 is to become the flagship of the Formula One turned supercar manufacture at its official reveal in Geneva. Slowly the media has been drip-fed tantalising details about the car that replaces the fabled F1. Today the numbers we have all been waiting for have been announced and they are nothing short of astonishing. From the top. The McLaren P1 is to be powered by a 3.8 litre twin-turbo V8 engine that is mid-mounted. The total power output for the car including an electrical power boost is 903BHP. Now things get interesting… 0-62MPH is completed in under 3 seconds and the P1 will go onto a top speed of 218MPH. 0-124MPH is vanquished in under 7 seconds and 0-186MPH in a mind boggling 17 seconds! Only 375 P1’s will be produces at a cost of £866,000.
LaFerrari
The prancing horse has its roots deep within Formula One, in fact, the road cars back when Enzo was running the show were purely sold to fund his racing habit. Every so often Ferrari produce the ultimate in road going race tech. The GTO’s, F40, F50 and Enzo are all a spectacular showcase of what these scarlet machines are capable of. Today the much anticipated successor to the Enzo has arrived.
Named LaFerrari to stipulate that this is THE ultimate in what Ferrari are capable of, some might say that its nameplate is the only disappointment. Powered by a 6.3 litre naturally aspirated V12 engine that produces 789BHP that is paired to a 161BHP KERS electric motor, its total output is an incredible 950BHP. Maximum torque is also a mind blowing 715lb-ft. 0-62MPH is obliterated in just 3 seconds but even more incredibly LaFerrari will go from standing to 186MPH in just 15.5 seconds! Costing ÂŁ1,040,000 this Italian stallion will only number 499 examples. Extensive active aerodynamics work hard insuring that LaFerrari makes the most of its biblical power. Inside it is a highly focused interior dominated by a Formula One inspired steering wheel. The driving position has been modeled by Ferrari F1 pilots Alonso and Massa and features an adjustable pedal box.