Geneva Motor Show: The Stuff That Was Actually Important
The Geneva Motor Show is where all the supercar and hypercar companies come out to play but, let’s be honest, in the big picture none of that matters. It’s just entertainment. Here’s what was actually important at Geneva in terms of moving transportation forward.
Volkswagen’s MEB platform is starting to appear in more applications. MEB has previously been shown under various Volkswagen brand concepts under the ID label including a Golf-class hatchback, a sedan, and a van that has apparently just been approved for production. At Geneva Audi showed the Q4 e-tron compact SUV, set to launch in 2020. SEAT showed the el-Born concept, a small hatchback, and Škoda showed the Vision iV Concept, a small crossover coupe. We’re seeing two things here. First, MEB is showing its flexibility in terms of types of vehicles it supports. Second, this second wave of MEB concepts is proof that VW is serious about electrification and a huge wave of product is coming from the German giant.
The number of high-end EV concepts from various manufacturers keeps growing and, outside of the supercar world, high end combustion vehicle concepts are fading away. This year we saw the Kia Imagine Concept, the (Aston-Martin) Lagonda All-Terrain Concept, and the Peugeot e-Legend Concept. These are not yet products but they’re a leading indicator of where the action is heading. A lot of interesting future product is clearly heading towards, very roughly, the US$50,000 to US$150,000 space.
Finally, electrification is hitting new product segments. First, Jeep announced plug-in hybrid versions of the Renegade and Compass. These vehicles will have electrically driven rear wheels to allow electronic all-wheel drive and EV ranges of roughly 30 miles or so. The same powertrain will appear in the Alfa Romeo Tonale, shown in concept form but undoubtably heading towards eventual production. Confirming that it is, indeed, Van Time, Mercedes-Benz showed the EQV Concept battery electric van. Mercedes is claiming a range of up to 400 km (249 mi) with a 100 kW*hr battery. A production version is due to be shown at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September. The takeaway here is that electrification is being viable even in these segments and for fleet use.
One way to think about importance is as the product of magnitude and domain of influence. In other words, Ferrari may be doing very cool stuff but it has little influence on the broader market. The cars your neighbors will buy over the next decade are not likely to change very much as a result of anything Ferrari does. On the other hand, when your neighbor buys a small electric crossover, or maybe an electric luxury sedan, that will have happened as a result of large industry changes that are often first visible as concepts at these shows. That makes them worth paying attention to.
