Static displays, concepts that won’t be a reality for years to come, absurd press presentations with buttoned-up execs trying to be funky but looking stilted and, frankly, deeply embarrassed… motorshows just aren’t my bag. In fact I feel like a bit of a fraud as more serious journalists conduct trillions of interviews, say considered and interesting things about a new mundanemobile and swoon over concepts that will simply never materialise.
But you know what? I had a great time at Geneva. There was brilliant new product, concepts that looked very close to production reality, loads of crazy tuner stuff and although virtually every other car had a whacking great sticker boasting of its CO2 efficiency there was finally a bit of optimism in the air and a sense that you could talk about things like ‘performance’ again without being a pariah. The Porsche stand was at the very centre of this trend and unquestionably the star of the show was the 918 Spyder. It’s a spectacular looking thing and utilising a racing 3.4-litre V8 from the RS Spyder prototype endurance racer in combination with electric motors to offer 718bhp and teeny emissions is something only Porsche could pull off. Ferrari did their bit too with the HY-KERS concept based on the 599 GTB (by the way, look out for the brake disc ‘doughnut’ covers on their production cars soon. These manage the airflow in the tricky high pressure areas around the wheels to reduce drag), but in lurid green and based on an ageing car it looked a bit like a sticking plaster compared to the beautifully thought out 918.
I managed to grab some time with Wolfgang Durheimer, Porsche’s R&D boss, and he was clearly still buzzing from effectively stealing the show. And I think there must be some satisfaction from showing Porsche’s incredible engineering core after all the talk of them being subsumed by VW and all that scary rumour of platform sharing with Audi and the like. I asked him what he sees for the future of the 911. ‘In 10-years the 911 will still be the benchmark for our competitors to see how to make a reliable sportscars. The 911 is the backbone of the company, we will always take care of it. And if you look downstairs (on the showstand) you will see what a pure 911 racecar could look like (referring to the GT3 R Hybrid that will race at the Nürburgring 24hr in 2010), and the technologies of the 918 Spyder could be transferred into our sportscars. There is no question we will be there and we will be the benchmark.’
Durheimer also revealed that they are very close to making a decision to put PDK transmissions in the GT model cars and when I quizzed him on the 918’s sub-7:30 lap time at the ‘Ring he revealed that their own simulations are within 3-seconds of the times finally achieved on the ‘Ring by Walter Röhrl. He wasn’t saying whether man or computer was quicker, though!
Just over the way the Aston Martin stand looked rather apologetic by comparison. Aston are making some great products at the minute but without the support of a vast parent company perhaps their lack of R&D budget is starting to tell. The iQ-based Cygnet boggles the mind (especially when prices will start at around £30k before you start ticking boxes) and you have to wonder whether it will be judged a success even if they sell thousands of the things in the next few years. And I don’t think they will. Rich people are generally quite a clever bunch and I can’t believe many will be duped by the Cygnet. The limited edition DBS UB-2010, built to commemorate Ulrich Bez’s 10th anniversary as CEO, is scarcely believable. I love Astons but it felt like a pretty torrid show for them.
Back in the real world I thought that the little Citroen DS3 Racing looked great but I’d be amazed if it’s as fetishistically developed as the Renaultsport products it will inevitably be compared with. The new Focus looked a bit, erm, boring and the Alfa Guilietta could be another massive disappointment in the making. It looks terrific… but please God let it drive well and be built with a bit of German attention to detail. It’s so depressing when Alfa repeatedly get our hopes up only to dash them with shonky build and erratic dynamics. Let’s collectively cross our fingers and hope for something truly exceptional.
Other highlights had to be the fantastically bad taste Mansoury-embellished Rolls Royce Ghost, the always fabulous Brabus stand full of matt black Mercs with 700bhp or more, the lurid and wonderful Lamborghini Gallardo Superleggera LP570-4 and the funky little Citroen Survolt. Oh and the absolutely stunning Pagani Zonda Tricolore. The attention to detail on these cars never, ever ceases to amaze. The new Pagani C9 will be released later this year and has so far completed around 600,000km of testing. That figure will rise to 1-million kilometres before it’s finally released to buyers.
Funnily enough the one car I keep thinking about since I’ve come home from all the glitz and glamour of Geneva is the Skoda Fabia Combi RS – an estate version of the new Fabia RS. It’s got the 1.4-litre twincharge motor already seen in the SEAT Ibiza Cupra and now the VW Polo GTi… but for some reason in that estate format it just looks super cool and super functional. It’d be an exaggeration to call it a star of the show, but I’d happily make room for one in my garage. Just next to a 918 Spyder…