Lock me up and throw out the key! This was my first experience at the Mondial de l'Auto and, other than gorgeous cars that will never cross the Pond in order to make our lives more interesting and probably feel better, I had heard it all before. But thankfully, not seen.
Yes, everyone was out touting the fact that they were number 1 at this, the best at that, the most recognized there and, the greenest here. It all quite nearly sounded like the latest New York, Detroit and Los Angeles shows. But, with one major difference.
I saw green cars. Near-production or production EVs, PHEVs, BEVs, FCVs... Wow. If you love the business, you read or heard about the coming of the electrification of the automobile. I've been hearing it for a long time too but in Paris, I witnessed Renault's lineup of Z.E. electric vehicles which will go on sale in mid-2011.
Why EVs you ask? Because the name of the game is grams of CO2 per km. This was and is the topic in every car manufacturers boardrooms. The best way to reduce emissions is – to not emit any... Now, I knew that Europe was eons ahead of North America as they've been dabbling with small urban vehicles for years but the number of electric microcar-builders blew my mind. How about that? Small and zero emissions. If none of this makes sense to you, get your butt to Paris and stand on any corner of the Champs Elysées for 15 minutes in the morning; the insane number of cars and diesel fumes will shed some light on the issue. I'm rambling here, sorry.
Another theme which is very much related to EVs and the lot is “Mobility for all”. There are roughly 900 million cars on the road today. By 2035, crystal-ball holders expect that that number will double; can you say congestion and pollution?
On a different note, WAGONS are everywhere! Yes my friends, if you are wagonistas as I am, Peugeot, Citroën, Renault, Opel, Toyota, Fiat and others all have something for you and me! My take-home choice would be a Pug 308 or 407 SW with the larger alloys and the 2.0L HDi 140 hp and the 6-speed manual box. If you're not a fan, too bad...
I kidd, I kidd. Given that this is a very special Mondial (celebrating the 125th anniversary of the automobile), many manufacturers took the initiative to use the show as a World-wide platform. Audi took the wraps off the E-Tron Spyder and the insane Quattro Coupe Concept and Lamborghini, blindsiding us all, with evil Sesto Elemento. Paradoxically, the slew of presentations varied generally between green and exotic or performance cars, no SUVs here my friend. Paris is, after all, the capital of love and fashion, so it makes sense that all were taken aback by the sly Jaguar C-X75 Concept and intrigued by the BMW 6-Series.
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| Photo: Matthieu Lambert/Auto123.com |
Yes, everyone was out touting the fact that they were number 1 at this, the best at that, the most recognized there and, the greenest here. It all quite nearly sounded like the latest New York, Detroit and Los Angeles shows. But, with one major difference.
I saw green cars. Near-production or production EVs, PHEVs, BEVs, FCVs... Wow. If you love the business, you read or heard about the coming of the electrification of the automobile. I've been hearing it for a long time too but in Paris, I witnessed Renault's lineup of Z.E. electric vehicles which will go on sale in mid-2011.
Why EVs you ask? Because the name of the game is grams of CO2 per km. This was and is the topic in every car manufacturers boardrooms. The best way to reduce emissions is – to not emit any... Now, I knew that Europe was eons ahead of North America as they've been dabbling with small urban vehicles for years but the number of electric microcar-builders blew my mind. How about that? Small and zero emissions. If none of this makes sense to you, get your butt to Paris and stand on any corner of the Champs Elysées for 15 minutes in the morning; the insane number of cars and diesel fumes will shed some light on the issue. I'm rambling here, sorry.
Another theme which is very much related to EVs and the lot is “Mobility for all”. There are roughly 900 million cars on the road today. By 2035, crystal-ball holders expect that that number will double; can you say congestion and pollution?
On a different note, WAGONS are everywhere! Yes my friends, if you are wagonistas as I am, Peugeot, Citroën, Renault, Opel, Toyota, Fiat and others all have something for you and me! My take-home choice would be a Pug 308 or 407 SW with the larger alloys and the 2.0L HDi 140 hp and the 6-speed manual box. If you're not a fan, too bad...
I kidd, I kidd. Given that this is a very special Mondial (celebrating the 125th anniversary of the automobile), many manufacturers took the initiative to use the show as a World-wide platform. Audi took the wraps off the E-Tron Spyder and the insane Quattro Coupe Concept and Lamborghini, blindsiding us all, with evil Sesto Elemento. Paradoxically, the slew of presentations varied generally between green and exotic or performance cars, no SUVs here my friend. Paris is, after all, the capital of love and fashion, so it makes sense that all were taken aback by the sly Jaguar C-X75 Concept and intrigued by the BMW 6-Series.
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| Audi Quattro Concept (Photo: Matthieu Lambert/Auto123.com) |