FRANKFURT – The true stars of this year’s bumper Frankfurt international car show (September 13-23) are quiet and retiring.
Uncompromising sports cars and outlandish design studies may hog the limelight but the models which make their debut here all have to prove their mettle after the last visitor has gone home, namely in everyday use.
While the supercars spend much of their lives being cossetted in the garages of the wealthy, many of the more humdrum models on display at Frankfurt will have to start conquering the streets.
There never has been a better time to buy a compact car in Europe, where congested roads and pollution have forced the makers to invest billions in making small cars big in every other way.
Atracting a lot of attention at the show will be the premiere of the revamped Volkswagen Polo from Europe’s biggest carmaker and its direct competitor, the new version of the best-selling Fiesta. Final details will be revealed in Frankfurt but pictures show the designers have done their utmost to incorporate into these runabouts the best features of cars which measure longer and cost a lot more money.
The fourth generation of the Polo goes on sale in Germany this autumn. It has gained 15 centimetres length, rides a little higher and the wheelbase has grown too. The car measures 3.9 metres, making it about as large as the second-generation Golf.
The Polo can be ordered with a petrol engine turning out 65 horsepower or a 75-horsepower diesel. More variants are planned for 2002.
The Polo gets the four-eye headlight treatment of the smaller Lupo and the two seat version is said to be more coupe- like than its predecessor. An estate and maybe even a drophead are planned.
Ford is letting its Fiesta grow too. It measures 3.92 metres long and 1.68 metres wide. The interior is said to offer a remarkable amount of space for the size of car. Customers will be able to buy a two-door version soon with a four-door Fiesta making its debut in early 2002.
The Germans will be calling the shots on their home territory but foreign makers are anxious to get their share of the super-mini market.
Nissan of Japan is due to showcase the “genuine” successor to its elderly Micra, albeit a design study which may be modified slightly before production starts. Renault is not ready with replacements for the Clio and twingo but Citroen has the C3, a robust four seater with the most distinctive styling in its class. Some are already calling it a replacement for the legendary 2 CV.
The fashionable new Mini is sure to be mobbed at the show and to coincide with its appearance on the stands at Frankfurt, the car will go on sale at 400 selected BMW dealers in Germany from September 8. Some 500 have already been sold in Britain.
There’s no mistaking the family resemblance to the iconic small car that engineer Alex Issigonis built 40 years ago and that stayed on, little modified, ever since. However the new Mini is aimed at a different market.
The hatchback is a lifestyle accessory, 60 centimetres longer than the old car and packed with accessories designed to appeal to the more affluent.
Cooper and supercharged versions should ensure exclusivity for a few years, although an entry-level Mini for the masses is on the cards for next year.
