2006 Australian International Motor Show: Part III By Feann Torr - 2/Nov/2006 |  Proton's new Satrai Concept Car featured at
the 2006 Australian International Motor Show
 Renault's new Laguna 2.2dCi will sell for $46,990
 Suzuki's SX4 WRC Concept was popular with the
ladies (though they were paid to look interested)
 Kia's new 1.1-litre Picanto will add spice to
the super-mini market segment in Australia
 Citroën's C4 Picasso is classier than this photo suggests
 Bentley's Continental GTC is a real piece
of work, with a stunningly plush interior
 Maserati's GranSport MC Victory was very shiny
and only five examples of the vehicle will arrive here
 The Lotus Europa S will sell for $109k
when it comes to Australia in early 2007
 Ssangyong's Actyon SUV gets an interesting
headlight design, with an appealing body shell
 EDAG's Concept Car #8 looks very exotic
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Sydney, Australia —
The modern motor show is an incredible event to experience and, to be
terribly blunt, a completely energy-sapping affair at the same time.
The lights, the LCD screens, and the flashy display gimmicks all vie
for your attention, and when you're tasked with attending each and every
exhibit one-by-one, it takes it's toll. Especially if you haven't eaten
a solid breakfast... Held in
Sydney's bustling Darling
Harbour, the 2006 show is a great place to see the vehicles from more
than 30 different manufacturers in the one place, and I heartily
recommend it to all and sundry who have even the slightest interest in
cars. You can see the new VE Commodore line-up alongside
their go-fast HSV cousins, there's Ford's new Falcon and FPV cars,
plus some lovely exotica from Ferrari and Maserati, plus concept
cars galore. In short, it's new car nirvana. This
is the third and final instalment of this personalised account of the 2006
Australian International Motor Show (AIMS), so let's get to it: Renault
Suzuki
Kia
Citroën
Bentley
Maserati
Lotus
Proton
Ssangyong
EDAG Renault12:39pm: Of
the trio of French marques in Australia, Renault has fared the worst
this year, with sales that haven't risen as impressively as Peugeot
and Citroën, both of which have been strong on diesel models.
Unsurprisingly, the star attraction of the Renault exhibit is a
diesel-powered Laguna mid-sizer. Think of it as a more luxurious Mazda6
with French styling. Upon reaching the Renault exhibit, the
French marque introduced it's motor show exhibit via a pair of
gymnasts/acrobats, who proceeded to balance on one-another in a display
of truly impressive physical strength and endurance - which one assumes
was a metaphor for the Renault range. The new Renault Laguna
2.2dCi features a mild facelift and a 2.2-litre turbo diesel that pumps
out 102kW @ 4000rpm and 320Nm @ 1750rpm.Priced at $46,990 with a 5-speed auto gearbox, it should bolster Renault's sales.
What
bemused me most about the Renault exhibit was it's lack of Formula One
stuff. Seeing as though Renault has now won the driver's and
constructor's championships two years running in what is the most
prestigious motor racing competition in the world, I was expecting to
see more emphasis placed on this. The Renault F1 racecar was in
attendance, which was good to see, but in my opinion not enough was
made of it. If Ferrari had back-to-back wins, they'd all be wearing
Schumacher masks... That said, the Renault RS Megane F1 hot
hatch with it's turbo 4-cylinder looked awesome with it's large 18-inch
rims and Brembo brakes, but that was about it in regards to F1. Suzuki12:47pm:
By the time I reached the Suzuki stand, my feet hurt, my lower back was
sore, and my shoulders felt like they were about to dislocate, due
largely to the lack of seats and abundance of press kits slung
over my shoulder. Still, the show must go on, and it was over to the
Suzuki stand, where four platinum blonde models strutted out to dance
and jiggle and one assumes attract what attention the gathered
journalists had left. It worked, but only for a while, for as soon as
the Suzuki girls left, so did half the media pack. I stayed,
largely because my shoes had become like prisons for my feet, attached
to muscles that no longer responded to mental stimuli, and
listened to Suzuki chief Takeshi Hayasaki talk about the new Swift
Sport, which I have to say looks quite impressive with it's multi-spoke
wheels, dual rear exhausts and sporty bodykit. The Suzuki exhibit
also contained a vehicle with covers over it, but they were slightly
transparent, and the media day schedule already revealed that the
vehicle in hiding was the Suzuki SX4 WRC concept car. This vehicle is
well worth a look or two, and is a strong centre piece for the
Suzuki exhibit, and highlights the marque's plans to enter the World
Rally Championship.
Best of Exhibit: Suzuki SX4 WRC Concept Free Stuff: Press Kits, Posters Honourable Mention: Suzuki Swift Sport
Kia1:04pm: As I dragged myself towards the Kia stand, all I could think of was food. So I quickly dashed (read: inefficiently
shuffled) back to the Volvo exhibit and grabbed another apple from the
now dwindling fruit bowl. I reached the Kia stand half-way through Bill Gillespie's
sermon - he's the head honcho for Kia Motors Corp's sales and marketing
department - and was confronted by a large range of vehicles, none of
which offended me greatly. Though not quite at Hyundai's level, Kia is
certainly improving the design of it's vehicles, though I can't vouch
for the mechanicals. The main vehicle reveals included the
Picanto and the diesel versions of the Sportage, the latter of which is
coming to Australia mid-way through 2007. And I like the look of the
Picanto - it looks sharp (pun intended). With a centrally mounted rear
exhaust system like the Mini Cooper S, it certainly struck me as
different from the rear, though the front end is about half a decade
behind the current design trends. Still, it's probably one of the
most frugal cars you'll see at the motor show (5.2L/100km), powered by
a 1.1-litre engine with 48kW @ 5500rpm and 97Nm @ 2800rpm. My sister
has a scooter with more go than that, but it doesn't have ABS, four
airbags or a 6-speaker CD/MP3 stereo system. Best of Exhibit: Kia Picanto Free Stuff: Press Kits, USB sticks Honourable Mention: Kia Sportage Turbo Diesel
Citroën
1:17pm: From South Korea and back to France, it was time to see what the
Citroën people were up to, particularly as their foothold in the
Australian market has grown considerably in the last 18 months. So, as
the somewhat smaller media contingent ambled over to the dynamic Citroën
stand, there were the now-obligatory female models clad in fairly
revealing garb, though they wore Picasso-inspired masks, which was
moderately novel. The reason for this was for the launch of the C4
Picasso, a very modern-looking 7-seat people mover. The centre piece for the Citroën
exhibit was supposed to be the world-beating C4 World Rally Car - but
it got lost in Hong Kong and was delayed until a few days after the
industry day revealings. But the C4 Picasso made a good
replacement, with a clever rear seat set up, an innovative lighting
system and is has a really solid presence too. If the pricing is right,
this could be just what the Toyota Tarago and Honda Odyssey didn't
want. The French marque says the vehicle will be on sale in early 2007,
and pricing hasn't been finalised yet. Bentley
1:28pm:
For mine the Bentley exhibit was one of the best, not only due to the
fact that it had ample food and drink, but also because... Okay, it was
the food. The big number at the Bentley exhibit was the
revealing of the Continental GTC. The GT Convertible is an incredibly
imperious machine, and attracted plenty of attention from a gaggle of
photographers and reporters eager to get closer to the $400,000 drop
top. Other vehicles on the Bentley stand included the Continental
GT Diamond Series saloon and the classically-styled 2007 Arnage range.
There wasn't one vehicle at the Bentley stand that didn't demand
attention - I can't get over how incredibly large and bulky there are.
Not very practical to park one would wager, but certainly very comfy to
drive. Best of Exhibit: Bentley Continental GT Convertible Free Stuff: Press Kits, Food, Drink Honourable Mention: Bentley Shop: Ties, Shirts, Wallets
Maserati
1:40pm:
To be completely frank, I didn't even get to look at the Maserati
exhibit until after all the media launches because I found a seat back
at the Audi exhibit, where I began conversing with a chap from an
advertising company. He wanted me to think he was important. He
probably was, so I asked him if he thought the price of bananas was
part of a continental conspiracy. Suffice it to say, I was severely
depleted at this stage. But as I arrived at the Maserati stand,
it was clear the company had spent a good deal of time and money
setting up the display. The GranSport MC Victory was the piece de resistance
of the stand, a new model that celebrates the Italian marque's success
in the FIA GT World Championship. It looks a little bit different than
its lesser stable mates, and just 180 units will be built, with only
five coming to Australia. Rarity is guaranteed, and differences over
the standard GranSport model include a new front splitter and
other aero addons, which improve negative lift, a more responsive
steering system and new interior trim. In addition to the
GranSport MC Victory model, Italian brand Maserati also showed
off a lovely-looking 294kW GranSport Spyder, which is a
convertible 2-seater sports car. This drop top is only a couple of
seconds slower to 100km/h from rest than the V10-powered BMW M6
Convertible, at 4.9 seconds. Other vehicles for the Maserati
display included variants the burly Quattroporte, including the
Quattroporte Executive GT and the Quattroporte Sport GT, which offer added luxury and performance respectively. Lotus
1:48pm:
Though the Lotus exhibit was a fairly intimate display, which pleased
me no end, the hardware on offer was undeniably desirable, with the
Europa S the star attraction. Lotus will launch the Europa S in
the year 2007, in the month of January, priced at $109,000.
It's designed for the buyer who wants an Elise, but doesn't want the
stiff ride and negligible cargo space. It looks a little bit 1980s from
some angles, but in general makes a profoundly sporty impression. Another
sweet piece of performance machinery at the Lotus exhibit was the Elise
S, which costs just under $70k, about the price of a fancy HSV.
Granted, boot space doesn't really compare to Holden's Special
Vehicles, but it looks exotic, as opposed to brutally tough. And
finally there was the Exige S, which is fire-breathing midget that
costs about $115,000. Powered by a supercharged version of the Toyota
Celica's high-revving 1.8-litre 4-banger, it huffs it's way from zero
to 100km/h in just 4.1 seconds, which is quick enough to make a
12-cylinder Ferrari blush. Well worth a look. Proton
2:00pm: Malaysian
automaker Proton has had mixed luck in international markets over its
lifetime, but the new Satria could be the salve that helps to heals its
sales difficulties. With a cheeky new look (it's best design yet) and
some impressive standard features, the new vehicle went on sale in
Malaysia recently, and will be on sale in Australia before year's
end. Proton also revealed a special Concept Satria model
that looked like it could become the new Satria GTI. It looks
surprisingly smart in white, with flared wheel arches, bodykit, big
wheels and a conceptual interior. A sign of things to come from Proton?
Here's hoping. There was also a special custom-made Proton Satria
designed by Benji Marshall (Wests Tigers Rugby League player), which
looked pretty good with its vertically hingeing doors, though the
choice of high-chrome alloy wheels was atrocious in my view. Knowing
that the ordeal was almost over seemed to give me a second wind,
and for the first time that day it truly dawned on me where I was
and what I was doing. The Proton exhibit was also quite a nice little
display, and the
other vehicles at the Proton exhibit - which was aflush with Wests
Tigers cheerleaders - included the Gen 2 and Savvy, the latter of which
will find new a rival in the form of Kia's Picanto. Both vehicles have
1.1-litre engines with very positive fuel economy, and may well create
a new boom in the super-mini car market in Australia. Ssangyong2:12pm:
Ssangyong - a South Korean car company - has quite the display at the
Australian International Motor Show, with the focus on the Actyon SUV,
a rather bizarre looking creature that seems to have very little on
common with one of marque's best-looking vehicles, the Rexton. Instead
of sticking to the one design type, Ssangyong revealed the Actyon SUV -
a world first - in Sydney, displaying 'shark-like' headlights that I
reckon droop too low, as one of its styling highlights. Like a strange melding of 4x4 and hatchback/coupe styles, the new Actyon is hard to swallow. But at least it's original. Ssangyong
also showed of the Actyon Sports SUV, which is a utility version of the
vehicle, featuring a mid-sized tray sitting over the rear wheels,
useful for hauling larger cargo loads. EDAG2:22pm:
And now the end was so close I could taste it, and the final
exhibit was the EDAG stand. It was located outside of the main
hall by the motorcycle section, added as if an afterthought. But it
didn't take away from EDAG's passion, which was evident in the
unusually named Concept Car #8. This vehicle is a real looker, and is
actually a smart roadster with a modified body shell, giving a real
exotic flavour. The #8 is over a year old, and there are currently no
plans to build a production version - it's simply for show at this
stage. EDAG
is a German company with an Australia branch, and has set up a new
'protective' sub-branch in Melbourne, which is dedicated to adding
armour plating to new cars. Understandably then, it's only other car on
display was an Audi A6 featuring bulletproof bodywork and glass
that can withstand up to 9mm weapons fire. 2:43pm Well,
that's it. I've spent some time talking to other journalists and car
makers about all sorts of things, I've been to the media room to upload
some images (where I found a water cooler) and now it's time to
fly back to Melbourne to type it all up. Hope you enjoy the ride, and
until next year, this is Feann Torr collapsing in a heap and signing
off. Related articles:
- 2005 Australian International Motor Show (AIMS) - Holden | Ford | Honda | Nissan
- 2004 Sydney International Motor Show (SIMS) - Holden | Ford | HSV
- 2003 Sydney International Motor Show (SIMS)
- 2002 Sydney International Motor Show (SIMS) | 
