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By
EWAN KENNEDY
18 February 2008
Melbourne's 2008 International Motor Show is shaping up to be
one of the most exciting ever. With a lovely spread of interesting
vehicles from many manufacturers, some of the cars are being air
freighted here specifically for the show. Indicating the importance
being paid to our booming market by car makers from around the globe.
It’s likely that the star car in Melbourne will be the new
Nissan GT-R. After all this is arguably the world’s most famous
car. Famous because kids (of all ages!) have been ‘driving’
Nissan Skyline GT-Rs around the famed Nurburgring racing for years
on their Playstations.
A full-on sports machine featuring a twin-turbo 3.8-litre V6
producing an enormous 353 kilowatts (close to 500 horsepower),
this all-wheel-drive sports machine can rocket to 100 km/h in only
3.5 seconds.
Stung by criticism of its heavy 4WDs by environmentalists, Land
Rover is bringing its LRX Concept to Melbourne. Using special
materials and construction methods to keep weight under control,
the LRX is powered by an interesting turbo-diesel / electric
hybrid setup. It’s relatively compact in size but looks to have
decent interior space. Importantly, the LRX remains true to Land
Rover's ideals by being a true 4WD aimed at tackling the real
world. Note that it’s purely a concept at this stage and is
likely to be toned down significantly if it does reach production.
BMW is on a roll of new models at the moment and will display
its 1 Series coupe and X6 coupe at the show. When the 1 Series is
powered by the 3.0-litre twin-turbo petrol engine it is virtually
a Motorsport model, yet will sell in Australia for less than
$80,000 making it a real performance bargain. The coupe will be
joined by a pretty little convertible.
The X6 is an interesting new four-door coupe. A cross between a
coupe and an SUV this large vehicle enters territory that
virtually doesn’t exist at this stage in the world’s car
market. So it will be interesting to see how it’s accepted.
Audi displays the high-performance variant of its popular TT
sports car. The TTS is powered by a 2.0-litre stratified-charge
engine the produces all of 200 kW.
Fiat's pretty little ‘new 500’, fresh from receiving the
award as the 2007 European Car of the Year, will make a welcome
appearance. Fiat tells us the first shipments are already sellouts
and you will have to wait until about July or August if you put
your name down now.
E-Vade is the name of a fascinating two-seat sports machine
that’s Australian designed and built. The dream child of
Lieutenant Commander David Walter of the Royal Australian Navy,
and his wife Peta, this special car is powered by a mid-mounted
Nissan V6 engine. It can produce 300 kW in its road-going format
and up to 500 kW when in racetrack configuration.
By way of contrast to the big-horsepower supercars and sports
machines, Aurora will display two of the successful solar racing
cars at the Melbourne show. One is the 2007 challenger that
finished third in its class. The other is the 20-year-old machine
that competed in the 1987 event.
Melbourne's motor show generally starts in the first few days
of March, but this time around the leap year pulls it forward to
the 29th of February. Full details of opening times, admission
prices and special daily events can be obtained from
www.motorshow.com.au/. Tickets are available in advance on the
site if you want to avoid the rush on the day.
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
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