2005 Frankfurt Auto Show, Part IV

2005 Frankfurt Auto Show Index by TCC Team (9/5/2005)

 

 

Ford Motor Company is in upheaval again, and it was outgoing Premier Automotive Group executive and new Ford chief of the Americas Mark Fields who presided over the company’s interlinked press conferences. Ford and its various arms presented five new models in Frankfurt, four of which were production vehicles and one a truly exciting concept that will shape the company’s future in sheetmetal. “Design will absolutely be a differentiator in the years ahead,” said Fields, who is headed back to Dearborn to take over the company’s operations in its home market.

 

Jaguar XK

First off the block at the Ford party was the stunning new Jaguar XK. Crafted in the same aluminum-bonded idiom as the XJ sedan, the new XK is lighter and 31 percent stiffer than the outgoing steel-bodied XK8. A lookalike for Jaguar’s ALC concept of last year, the new XK has a sleekly aggressive shape and a special hood that has been developed to meet new European requirements for pedestrian-impact safety. The base engine for the XK will be a 300-hp, 4.2-liter V-8 coupled to a paddle-shifted six-speed automatic. So equipped, the XK will accelerate to 60 mph in 5.9 seconds and to a top speed of 155 mph. Coming from Jaguar’s Castle Bromwich plant, the new XK goes on sale in the U.S. next year, followed by a convertible version later in 2006. Pricing has yet to be announced.

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Volvo C70

The second-generation Volvo C70 convertible arrives in the spring of 2006, and shares nothing with the outgoing car save the name and the production facility. Though it’s based on a platform shared with the S40 (and Mazda’s 3), the new C70 is nearly as large as the outgoing convertible, seats four adults and has two times the torsional stiffness of the old car. The only engine offered in U.S. versions will be a 220-hp turbo five; two other fives and a turbodiesel will be offered in other markets. The new three-piece convertible hardtop was developed in conjunction with Pininfarina, and incorporates side-curtain airbags in the door panels. Volvo expects to sell half its annual production of about 16,000 C70s in the U.S. each year, with the U.K. and Germany taking another quarter of the total number.

 

Ford iosis

Lowercase name theirs, Ford’s iosis suggests a whole new way of looking at the company’s European range of vehicle and their styling. It is “kinetic,” the company says, and the ultimate expression of the future look of Ford. The four-door coupe bears a certain likeness to a drawn-out Mazda RX-8, particularly around the wheel arches, but its glass areas and its nose are trimmer and more dynamic. A pair of angled, pivoting doors allows easy access to the smallish back seats. Since the doors are light — they’re made from carbon fiber — they can be easily rotated up and out of the way by motors embedded in the door frames. Three cameras take the place of rearview mirrors.

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Ford Galaxy

On the more practical side of business, Ford showed a near-production ready replacement for the current Galaxy minivan, which today is built in a joint-venture with Volkswagen. Not so the replacement vehicle, Ford says; it’s going it alone in the family hauler segment with the next generation, which gets interior niceties like second- and third-row flat-folding seats. To be built at Ford’s Genk plant in Belgium, the Galaxy sports a fixed glass roof and an adjustable roof rack. No powertrain information was released.

 

 

Mazda Sassou

2005 Mazda Sassou concept

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The future of Mazda’s global B-car plans lies in the Sassou concept, a sharp-looking wedge of fiberglass and luminous blue paint from the Japanese outpost of the Ford empire. The concept is a teensy three-door hatchback with a direct-injection 1.0-liter three-cylinder engine and a minimalist interior with front seats mounted on aircraft-style jacks instead of seat rails. Translucent plastic defines some of the Sassou’s design and interior; panel hide the front and rear lamps, which only become visible once the car is unlocked with a USB key that also can carry the driver’s music choices, mapping information and personal data. The Sassou can be reconfigured into a three- or four-seater by a cleverly changeable back seat.

 

 

Fiat Grande Punto

2005 Fiat Grande Punto

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While Fiat struggles to right its finances and figure out how to unlock value from Ferrari while still holding on to the sportscar maker, it’s expanding its bottom line with a new Grande Punto model that grows in size versus the traditional Punto, which remains on sale, while keeping the same general track and length. Styled with help from Italdesign-Giugiaro, the car gets a range of engines including a 90-hp, 1.3-liter turbo four; a 77-hp 1.4-liter four; and a 130-hp, 1.9-liter four. Three- and five-door models will be offered.