DETROIT (dpa) – At the current North American car show in Detroit everything revolves around the “truck” or what Americans prefer to call Sports Utility Vehicles or SUVs, sporting off-road vehicles either in pickup, minivan or station wagon form.
These are usually muscle-bound vehicles with proportions much larger than what Europeans are used to. They dominate the sumptuous exhibition stands of the manufacturers both because of their size and importance in the marketplace.For the first time in 2001, more trucks were sold in North America than the conventional passenger saloons that populate European roads.The fuel consumption and dimensions of these full-bore fun cars is exorbitant when measured with European standards. Not that this is an issue in a country where petrol is two thirds cheaper than in Germany and parking lots around hypermarkets are frequently as large as the surface area of a small German town.The Americans love their vans and pick-ups and the manufacturers can earn a lot of money by selling them, so this year at Detroit the major players are busy trying to outdo each other by offering new models.The “Big Three” from Detroit, General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, sell the most trucks but the Europeans – particularly the Germans – and the Asian makers plan to target this segment as never before.The car show has given a taste of things to come. Mercedes-Benz demonstrated the six-seater GST concept that could go into series production soon. It combines luxury, speed and technical innovation, three factors designed to justify the relatively high price being asked for these upmarket “made in Germany” trucks.After the huge success of the BMW X5 and the Mercedes M Class, Porsche has high hopes for its Cayenne due to debut this year and Volkswagen expects great things too of the Touareg in the lucrative North American market. The same applies to Range Rover of England which has the completely overhauled new model of the classic four- wheel drive vehicle on its stand.Lexus has put the emphasis on luxury for its GX 470 which comes under public scrutiny for the first time on the shores of Lake Michigan. Toyota’s sporting marque has scheduled the car for introduction in 2003.Virtually all the Japanese manufacturers are making inroads into the truck segment, a sector of the market which U.S. makers had to themselves for decades.Toyota, which is on the verge of overtaking Chrysler in stateside SUV sales, is making a lot of music in Detroit about the new Matrix. Honda, which occupies the number five slot in sales terms in the U.S., has the eagerly-awaited Pilot while Nissan, Mazda and Korea’s Hyundai all have strong truck offerings.Industry analysts agreed before the Detroit show that the big three domestic carmakers probably have the most to lose if recession fears come true. Ironically their share is likely to slip mostly in the very lifestyle segment they have fostered, namely the one that includes vans, pick-ups and station wagons.GM, Ford and Chrysler are having to brace for a tough year. A model policy too focussed on the U.S. and the strength of the dollar make it hard for them to notch up foreign sales while at the same time the European and Asian car firms are anxious to claim a bigger share of the “truck cake”.
