You’ll never confuse Geely for being an automaker that evokes first-name basis, but the fact remains that these guys wouldn’t be here if they didn’t know what they were doing. And if we do say so ourselves, these guys from China aren’t ones to take a backseat when it comes to their hometown auto show in Shanghai.
The Chinese automaker has released the first pictures of their new coupe sports car, the Gleagle GS-CC. Aesthetically speaking, we’re very impressed with the design of the car, especially the interior, which comes with what looks to be a sporty and aggressive design to go along with high-quality materials. Even the exterior looks good with the only exception being that drainage-looking grille that seems completely out of place not just in the Gleagle GS-CC, but in the entire auto industry for that matter.
Unfortunately, the good vibes of the car’s overall design don’t take away from the underwhelming powertrain under the car’s hood. We don’t know about the rest of you, but a car that’s as sporty looking as the GS-CC should have a more powerful engine than the 1.3-liter turbocharged four-cylinder it has under its hood. That engine only translates to about 127 horsepower, which is a disappointing number considering that it’s a car that looks more powerful than it actually is.
Citroen has set its path in motion for the 2011 Shanghai Motor Show with a teaser image of the third model in the DS line-up, next to the DS3 and DS4. The Citroen DS5 will make its debut at the Shanghai International Motor Show on April 20, 2011, but first, the company will be presenting their new model on Citroën’s Facebook page on April 18, 2011 at 10:30am Paris time (so about 4:30pm Eastern time).
The DS5 is described as "the manifestation of its finest expertise. A daring and sculptural creation, the DS5 perfectly expresses the DS spirit, namely bold choices on styling, architecture, sensations and refinement, while implementing the best in Citroën technology."
Next to an impressive exterior design, the DS5 is also the first Citroen model to feature HYbrid4 diesel hybrid technology, providing enhanced performance and class leading environmental credentials.
Updated 04/18/2011: This review has been updated with the official images and details. Hit the jump to read more about the new Citroen DS5.
UPDATE 10/05/11: Citroen has officially unveiled the first official promo video for the DS5. In addition to the a brief walk-around the car and some driving footage, there’s also a brief introduction on the technology and heritage of the car. Check it out by clicking on the photo above.
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It seems that Peugeot has caught itself a little SUV concept bug over the past few months. If you recall, the French automaker unveiled the HR1 last September at the 2010 Paris Motor Show. Now it looks like they’ve got another concept SUV in the works, one that’s scheduled to debut at the Shanghai Motor Show later this month.
Called the SXC Concept, the hybrid crossover concept is being touted as a China-exclusive model, which is probably the reason why it’s debuting at the Shanghai Motor Show.
Details are still minimal at this point, but it looks like the SXC Concept was created using the same styling cues and language found in a number of Peugeot’s other concepts, specifically the HR1. From what we’ve gathered, it looks like the SXC will measure 4.870 x 2.035 x 1.610 meters, big dimensions for a crossover. On top of that, there have been spy photos of the car that features a ’floating’ grille, sharp headlights similar to the HR1, boomerang-style taillights, and rounded off by a set of 22" wide alloy wheels
As for the powertrain, the car is being touted as having a 1.6-liter THP engine that produces 218 horsepower with an electric motor that adds another 95 horsepower for a total of 313 horsepower.
All these details are still subject to speculation until the car is officially unveiled at the Shanghai Motor Show. Fortunately, we won’t have to wait long for that to happen.
With just a few days before its official debut at the Shanghai Auto Show, Audi’s has unveiled the official details on their smallest SUV in the line-up, the Q3. At least the smallest at the moment, as it will be followed by the Q1 in the future years.
The Audi Q3 weights 3,307 lbs and measures 4.39 meters in 14.4 ft, 6.0 ft in width, and 5.25 ft in height, while the luggage compartment offers 16.24 to 48.2 cu ft of capacity. The Q3 will be available with all the latest technologies, including the MMI navigation plus – a hard drive navigation system – and the Bose surround sound system, with handsomely illuminated woofers up front.
Customers will have the chance to choose from three engines: one TDI and two TFSI units, with power ranging from 140 HP to 211 HP. A new diesel engine will be offered at a later date and will deliver an impressive fuel economy of 45.23 US mpg.
In Germany sales will begin in June at a price of 29,900 euro, or about $43,000 at the current exchange rates.
Updated 04/13/2011: This review has been updated with the official details and images on the car. Hit the jump to read more about the Q3.
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We don’t know if this came as a result of those leaked photos that surfaced a couple of days ago, but we’re certainly not complaining. The BMW M5 Concept will be making its official debut at the Shanghai Motor Show later this month, but BMW is pre-empting the car’s launch by releasing the first set of details of the new M5 Concept, together with a slew of photos and the official preview video.
Despite technically being labeled as a concept car, the 2012 M5 Concept is expected to become the precursor to the production version that will be introduced later in the year, possibly at the Frankfurt Motor Show.
BMW was kind enough to give us a pretty good idea of what to expect with the car’s exterior design language. It would’ve been more awesome if they shared the interior of the car as well as the official performance specs, but then again, what kind of suspense will be left if they tossed all their eggs in the same basket?
At the very least, we’ll have something to look forward to from BMW when the Shanghai Motor Show arrives.
UPDATE 04/12/2011: BMW has unveiled a new video of the M5 Concept that shows one of the six lucky fans selected to see the BMW Concept M5 at the BMW M headquarter discussing the vehicle. The lucky winners also got a chance to take a look in the BMW M garage, together with BMW M president, Dr. Kay Segler.
Details on the BMW M5 Concept after the jump.
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