Paris 2008

Part 1
Lamborghini Estoque
These days super saloons are like buses – you wait ages for one and three come along in short succession: the Panamera was a surprise no-show at Paris, the Rapide will probably debut in Detroit. The Estoque was a bit of a surprise and I should like it, but for some reason it doesn't quite hit the spot – not that this will unduly concern Lamborghini ;-) One of the undoubted stars of the show, it's an accomplished piece of styling using current Lambo cues while having a distinct identity of it's own. Thankfully the Espada references seem to be limited to the sidevents in the front wing, and the horizontal headlights and form in the bonnet call to mind the 350GT. Perhaps most intriguingly, here is a saloon that is not ashamed of looking like a saloon: the beltline is pretty horizontal and there isn't much difference between the scuttle and rear deck height. I hope the lights make it through to production largely unchanged – the rear lights in particular are the most successful interpretation yet of the new Lambo graphic. I'm not sure one could call it restrained, but in the brand context this is a mature offering (in a good way). Without wanting to sound even more of a pedant, where exactly is the front number plate to be mounted? Even the tiny Italian plates will pose a problem. The front end shown in the teaser sketches was better looking, more practical & looked equally production feasible.

Despite the excellence of the design department, I am slightly more concerned about the brand management: a diesel lump was mentioned as a possibility. Petrol? Of course. Petrol hybrid, fuel cell or battery? Yes – but diesel?? Never; that's an end of it. I'm not against diesel per se, but in a low volume £200k supersaloon? Nay, nay and thrice nay. Can you really see owners dropping a gear and opening her up as they tear through Alpine tunnels so they can revel in the banshee wail of that high performance, thoroughbred.... diesel. Me neither. Do they think they'll win custom from the Aston because the Rapide doesn't do a oil burner? And if that doesn't work maybe it's iPod compatibility, split rear seats and extra 60 litres of boot space will do it (not.) This is a saloon only in the sense of it's configuration, if practicalities were a genuine concern no-one would buy one. Desirability is the issue and who's ever lusted after an oil burner?

Nissan Pixo & Suzuki Alto
In these straitened times sales of small cars are not suprisingly on the up: people are looking at the vehicles that meet their needs if not their desires. Of late though that latter is also being catered for, the 500 being the pre-eminent example of this. So into this increasingly crowded and competitive segment come the Suzuki Alto and Nissan Pixo: the ugly sisters.

The ForTwo has shown us city cars can be revolutionary, the Aygo that they can be funky and clever, & the 500 that they can be style icons. The Pixo-Alto sisters are none of these, and given how long some of the competition has been around there really isn't a good reason why this is so. Yes, yes, the new Alto is a big step on from the previous generation – the problem is that the market has also moved on, and they should have been benchmarked against the best of the competition.

The amount of commonality on shared projects such as this varies and that can obviously make the task of differentiation harder. The external differences here seem to be confined to the front & rear bumpers, front lights and bonnet (though the bonnets look similar but not quite the same – if you're going to have distinct panels, why not go to town?) The problem is neither really works and with a joint CV that features the Swift, Micra and Splash it's not as if they lack small car expertise. Admittedly there are more differences between the B-Zero sisters, but the C1, 107 & Aygo are all better than either one of these. It's as though they're punishing you for buying a cheap car, and it's doubtful they will be significantly cheaper than the competition (which at this end of the market means hundreds, not thousands anyway).

The Pixo apes the look of big bruv Note..... just as it's been facelifted with a new look. Nice work on the product planning, guys. The Alto has lost far more in the translation from concept than the Splash did: the headlights look like the facelifted Picanto, the surfacing either side of grille makes it look like it's bottom lip is sticking out in a sulk, and the body-coloured vanes within the grille opening underline that this is a cheap, one-piece front end – blacked out vanes and maybe a chromed grille surround are an investment that would have paid themselves back in perceived quality. They share the odd window line in the rear doors.

If four doors were a necessity, I choose the Aygo, Panda, 107 & C1 over this. If you really must buy something this cheaplooking, I'd go for the Hyundai i10 or Picanto – as well as being funkier, they have winding rear windows (wow). If you really must buy a Suzuki, then get a used Swift or Splash; Nissan? Then a Micra, as long as you're secure enough in your masculinity. If emissions are a concern, I'm sure the competition will be introducing ever more efficient powerplants – or you could just DRIVE LESS.

Chevrolet Volt
The significance and achievement of the Volt have been overshadowed by a frankly overblown 'controversy' over - of all things - its looks. Although this is all down to an ill-judged comment from Mr. Lutz that the production item would stay faithful to the concept, as Autoblog pointed out: where were all these guys when the Volt concept debuted to a deafening silence?

Anyway, even if you are a fully paid up petrolhead this car – and anything like it – is no more likely to be at the top of your shopping list than a Hummer, so why get all worked up? It will be bought by a) Hollywood liberals and other do gooders who want to be seen to be doing the right thing, and b) people for whom a car is nothing more than an appliance for getting from A to B and believe this is cheap way to do it. Hell, when we see the realworld numbers they may even be right.

Indeed, some of the least satisfactory aspects of the styling are as a result of trying to incorporate details from the concept: the base of the A-pillar is too fussy, and the slim horizontal rear lights serve only to emphasise it's considerable rump. It's certainly more distinct from the Prius than the Insight II, but I question the usefulness of the lower element of the rear screen in the Volts case and this is a feature common to all three. Currently it's just on the right side of stocky but if the showroom examples have wheels any smaller than the 18” shown it will look overbodied.

Honda Insight II
Whilst Honda's styling direction isn't quite the disarray that Subaru's is, the brand clearly lacks focus. As Chevy dodges slings and arrows for a car that didn't hold true to the original concept, the Insight II – truly a Prius clone – has debuted largely without comment. Even so, I was bemused when the OSM was mooted as the basis of a new design language, largely because there was so little substance on which to hang this statement. In the short term, aerodynamics offer the fastest return in the quest for efficiency (hence the similarity to the Prius) but the Insight's front grille / headlight graphic (an evolution of the FCX Clarity treatment) would seem to offer a strong basis for a new corporate nose. The proportions could be altered and the material / finish of the infill panel varied as required; indeed, this graphic has just appeared on the new Odyssey.

Peugeot Prologue HYmotion4
Saying what you will be is basically an admission of what you're currently not (how long was Callum going on about modern Jags before it started to happen?) So I was amused by the statements in the press about Peugeot's new design direction (the plan is to make good looking cars within their sectors and ditch the current nose - hurrah!) on the eve of Paris where they showed the latest RC and the Prologue HYmotion 4.

Oh dear, this monstrosity looks suspiciously production ready and in the wake of the Koleos confirms that the French just don't seem to get SUV's. When it hits the showrooms it'll be a surprise if the most interesting bit – the hybrid drive – is available at launch or anytime soon after. Overall, the word that comes to mind is 'lumpen'. The feature line around the front wheelarch is terrible, and the one at the back only slightly better because it faces the right way and there are more distractions. Lighting graphics have historically been a Peugeot strength, but here the headlight / front fog seems to have been fitted at a drunken angle by mistake, and the rear light shape seems completely contrived in a vain attempt to add interest. Regarding the interior, the only thing that catches the eye is that they seem to have mistakenly fitted some sort of iDrive arrangement in the drivers cupholder. In the coming recession (that's right, I'm not afraid of the 'R' word) I question the appeal of anything SUV-ish, and even within that context who would choose this uninspired, stodgy lump over it's competitors in this sector?

Audi A1
Even though it's only a year since we saw the metroproject, the baby Audi does seem to have been a long time coming. Of late Audi don't seem to be doing pure fantasy concept cars – all the recent stuff has telegraphed key elements of the production item. On that basis, what can be gleaned from the A1, especially when compared to the Metroproject? First off is the evolution of the grille from four sides to six: the upper part or the sides now turn in, this is echoed by the inner edge of headlight (although this headlight graphic has appeared on the Metroproject and Cross Coupe), This is first time this particular permutation of the Audi grille has been seen and in recent past, such as the TT Shooting Brake, the main graphical elements have been pretty strong indicators of the production reality

The character line that underpins the shoulderline starts from the grille, forms the upper edge of the headlight and the lower edge of the clamshell bonnet then circumnavigates the body through the rear lights is a lovely detail, and the form in shoulderline over the wheelarches achieves the same impression of power as the wonky shoulderline of the A5 in a more elegant manner. Unfortunately the inner edge of this feature, which formed a ring around the Metroproject has been dropped in favour of more conventional form in the bonnet, presumably more redolent of power and speed. If it is the next evolution of the Audi look it's a neat solution here, but presupposes a clamshell bonnet (a more expensive solution that may be necessary for pedestrian safety in this case) and might be harder to integrate on some of the larger models.

Having only just rolled out a new look for the headlights, we'll see how literally the showcars lights are translated into production. As with the Metroproject, there doesn't seem to be a front wing / bumper shutline – not something usually omitted on Audi concepts, not least of all because they use their shutlines well. The way the rearmost pillar flows into the edge of the rear light unit is a feature I first recall seeing on the Q7 but is on it's way to becoming a cliché, having since appeared on the Toyota Venza, Insignia Sports Tourer and new Renault Megane. The crease line trailing from the rear light is very similar to that first seen on the current Astra and a number of other vehicles since, most recently on the new Ibiza which uses it in almost eaxctly the same way as the A1.

I'm not quite sure what to make of the interior: the fresh air vents are gorgeous, but I can't see how they will translate into production, but the binnacles and gearlever seem pretty workaday items with an expensive finish. Odd.

Seat Exeo
Presumably due to budgetary constraints, the external differences between the Exeo and the old A4 are pretty minimal: bootlid, bumper and lights at the rear and bonnet, wings, bumper & lights at the front – and the changes to the front seem largely driven pedestrian safety regs. Although it would be churlish to criticise the styling too harshly under those circumstances, they didn't make the best of the opportunity. The bespoke rear lights are clumsy – the silhouette clearly looks like these were originally intended to match the Altea XL units and they then spent, ohh, a whole afternoon shoehorning the badly clashing new style Seat light graphics into this outline. The rear three-quarter panel is carried over; the bumper is new yet doesn't carry any vestige of the corner surface break trailing from the light unit first seen (in Seat) on the Altea XL units and feature on the new Ibiza. The front is bland and a little fussy – the fine detail around the lower side intakes at odds with the rest of the surfacing. Given that the front wings are new anyway, why wasn't the distinctive Audi 'S' shaped bumper shutline changed? A more cohesive nose could have been achieved.

However the real problem here is the catastrophic brand management. Inter-brand associations can be a double-edged sword at the best of times, but what amazes here is how clumsily this has been executed when in the past VAG has been adept at this. Skoda being a case in point: although VW made it's association known, it played a supporting role to lend credibility rather than make it a bargain basement dumping ground for yesterday's VW products. It let Skoda develop it's own products whilst making VW's formidable resources available. The Octavia was launched with bespoke styling sitting on a contemporary VAG platform – in fact it got use of it before it's Golf IV sister. OK, the first Superb was more obviously related to the Passat (hard to disguise that roofline / DLO) but it still got it's own skin.

Convergence has been a problem for Seat of late – but this was a failing of the designers, not the design language: the outgoing Seat look still had potential, and 'same design, different sizes' stuff like the Altea & Toledo is just laziness or incompetence. But whatever else you want to say, Seats were easily identifiable as such. The Exeo seems a panicked response to the new Toledo (which was a mistake) but topping and tailing a 10 year old Audi is not the answer: it's stretching a brands credibility too far, too quickly and diluting it's identity. How is this in any way beneficial?

The Chrysler 300 was criticised for being based on a previous-gen E-Class (a little harsh given the alternatives) but it was at least redeemed by offering good value for money. The Exeo doesn't. If the pricing information reported is correct (£15-23k), this puts it in direct competition with the brand-new-from-the-ground-up Insignia, the brand-new-from-the-ground-up-last-year Mondeo (which has as rep as a drivers car). Hell, it even puts it in competition with a current A4 – what an earth were they thinking? If the Exeo had to be based on a platform this old, it might have been forgiveable if it had least been the contemporary A6.

Even the timing stinks – a cornerstone of the overrated Ibiza's campaign has been that it's the dawn of a new age of Seat design.... and the very next model launched is then a barely warmed over Audi hand-me-down. Hhhmmm. One can't help but feel the momentum to the next major Seat launch would have been better maintained if the Exeo had been launched first.

Press releases sometimes contain moments of unintentional humour, especially when PR guys are playing that doublebluff that marketing types seem to enjoy (like calling a dreary Mitsi saloon a 'Carisma'.) In the Exeo press release there's a heading 'distinctive personality' – no arguments there, just unfortunate that it happens to be that of old-gen Audi A4. Strictly speaking, the words 'magnolia' and 'interesting' were used in adjacent sentences, not the same one – as in 'The interior colour scheme of the show car is particularly interesting. Entitled 'magnolia'....' aside from making a case for magnolia being exciting, the implication that this may be for the show car only – because the world's just not ready for magnolia, rather than the fact it would wear terribly and driving after dark would be impossible with the internal reflections, raises a smile.

Auto emoción? Unfortunately, the emoción is incredulity.