Each week, our German correspondent slices and dices the latest rumblings, news, and quick-hit driving impressions from the other side of the pond. His byline may say Jens Meiners, but we simply call him . . . the Continental.
Lightness as Perception and Reality
Just before the Old World shut down under a cloud of Icelandic volcanic ash, there was an unusually high number of new-vehicle introductions in Europe last week.
Audi held what was probably the most anticipated press launch when it showcased its 450-hp RS5 (shown above) at the Ascari racetrack near Marbella, Spain. Conditions were perfect for our first drive of Audi’s sportiest offering south of the R8, and the roads surrounding the racetrack provided fantastic space for extra play—as back roads go, few countries in Europe beat Spain. Fully laden with electronic gizmos to sharpen its responses, the Audi feels far lighter than its 3900 or so pounds would suggest.
2011 Lotus Elise
The Lotus Elise follows a sharply different approach—it doesn’t need electronic crutches because it actually is light. The 2011 model was previewed in England on the sort of country roads that make grown men weep. We love the Elise, but were somewhat underwhelmed by the new, Toyota-supplied 1.6-liter four-cylinder entry-level engine. Lotus is vaunting the 134-hp car’s 37-mpg Euro-cycle rating, but the slightly restyled new Elise proves that going for fuel efficiency at all costs can kill the fun even in a quintessential sports car such as this. The extremely tall gearing for the six-speed manual renders the top two gears unusable. Step on the gas in top gear, and the response you get is about as enthusiastic as the earth crowd’s reaction to snow in Copenhagen. (We don’t get the reference either—Ed.) Our advice: Go for one of the more powerful engines and forget about saving the planet.
Mazda Sticks with the Rotary Engine, While Audi Adopts It
Instead of the planet, let’s save the rotary engine. The Mazda RX-8 will be taken off the European market at the end of 2010, as its current engine won’t pass Euro 5 emissions. But Mazda won’t abandon the unique engine type. Internally called 16X, the next-generation Mazda rotary will again be a two-rotor setup, but this time displacing 1.6 liters instead of the current 1.3. Even in normally aspirated form, the 16X engine will make around 300 hp, which will be plenty for the smaller, lighter sports car in which it will be found. Turbocharged versions are possible, as is a hydrogen-powered variation. The U.S. market will keep getting the RX-8 for the foreseeable future, but we love the fact that a lighter car in the spirit of the last-generation RX-7 will replace it.
Audi is looking at the rotary engine, too, fitting a Wankel powerplant to the A1 e-tron concept shown in Geneva in March. The one-disc rotary engine was co-developed with Austrian engineering house AVL. We experienced its operation, and it’s smooth and quiet and avoids the shuddering on restart of a piston engine. Who wants to be disturbed as they’re humming and singing and smiling while depleting their electric-vehicle’s batteries? Not us. It’s certainly nice, but our next question was whether we could see a powerful rotary-engined Audi without all the electric-motor wizardry. Not a chance, says Ingolstadt. Pity.
Other Debuts, Forbidden and Otherwise
2011 Volkswagen Polo GTI
VW showed the 180-hp Polo GTI in the metal at the Leipzig auto show, and BMW used the same occasion to officially launch the 5-series Touring (a.k.a. Sports Wagon). Both cars are interesting and very cool—the 5er wagon is better looking than the sedan in our book—but they won’t come to the U.S. unless thousands of American enthusiasts deluge VW and BMW with blank checks. Among the Leipzig debuts that you will be getting were two minor Audi freshenings. The 2011 TT and TTS get some mechanical and cosmetic tweaks, and the 2011 Q7 does without aesthetic alterations but receives new engines, including Audi’s supercharged 3.0-liter V-6 in two different strengths. Side note: That engine is the gas-burning half of the hybrid powertrain available in the new Porsche Cayenne. Says a Porsche engineer: “A supercharged engine is not a dream in terms of efficiency, but it’s what we had to work with.” Read: Our new VW overlords made us use it.
Dacia Duster
Other notables this week include the Dacia Duster, which just went on sale and is the first SUV offered by Renault’s Romanian entry-level brand. Starting at €11,900 ($15,800; that’s dirt, dirt cheap for Europe), it undercuts the competition by many thousands of euros. And, with its trendy shape, it shows that Romanians can bodge together a styling department, too.
We sampled the Alfa Romeo Giulietta, and found it to be a surprisingly good, solid, and sporty car, and if the brand has a shot in the US market, it is with this hatchback. (Fiat announced yesterday that we’d get the car, or a derivative, in 2014.) Its top engine is a 232-hp, 1.8-liter four. We haven’t seen anything out of Chrysler’s Auburn Hills, Michigan, headquarters in some time as good as the Giulietta. Here’s hoping the Fiat-Chrysler merger pays off in a big way.
Speaking of not seeing things, we haven’t seen any Fisker Karmas on the road, and now we’re hearing Fisker likely won’t be able to deliver regular-production cars before 2011. Only buyers of the sold-out Signature Edition will get behind the wheel of the hand-built Karma in 2010. Probably.
Volt Does Europe, and the Push for a New Opel GT
Chevrolet is planning to launch the Volt in Europe alongside the Opel Ampera, which is identical under the skin. The decision reeks of a move made simply to keep Chevrolet Europe happy. Turnabout is fair play, we say, so why not turn the Ampera into a Buick back in the States? Retro remains the rage, so let’s bring back badge-engineering! Continuing the retro theme, Opel’s powerful head of the worker’s council, Klaus Franz, is pushing for a retro-styled sports coupe in the spirit of the legendary late-1960s Opel GT or Manta. Opel also is testing higher-powered versions of the Insignia, some of which are approaching 400 hp. Lesser Insignias are being reworked for the U.S. as the Buick Regal, so send that one to America as a Regal Grand National!
Renault and Daimler are teaming up to jointly develop engines and transmissions. We see the logic behind exchanging small three- and four-cylinder units, but are less clear on putting Daimler engines into Infinitis. Nissan’s VQ V-6s can be a bit rough, but they’re still very good engines. Carlos Ghosn and Dieter Zetsche, who have lived through their share of failed mergers, are taking it easy this time: The three-percent swap of capital qualifies as a modest start, and that makes the most sense of all.
Autobahn Tested: Q5 and XF Diesels
Road cars we’ve sampled include the Audi Q5 3.0 TDI, which seems incongruous in its setup. The liveliness of the steering, suspension, and the dual-clutch transmission don’t match well with the relaxed character of the powerful turbo-diesel, which always needs a moment of contemplation before responding. We were highly impressed, on the other hand, by the Jaguar XF with a 271-hp, 3.0-liter turbo-diesel. Torquey and quick, it’s our favorite corporate jet right now. Well, until we’re sure the volcanic ash has cleared and we once again feel comfortable climbing aboard an actual corporate jet.
Just before the Old World shut down thanks to volcanic ashes and overzealous politicians, the industry has unusual number of vehicle launches and .
Related posts:
- 2010 Opel Insignia Sport Tourer – Auto Shows
- Rotary Keeps Spinning, May Find its Way into a New RX-7 or RX-8
- Lotus Releases Supercharger Kit for Elise, Exige
At the 
