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.
At the Frankfurt auto show, two heavy, aggressively styled Audi concepts—the Nanuk Quattro and the Sport Quattro—wowed observers, but both begged the question: Why? The answers may not be particularly satisfying, but in the case of the Nanuk, word is that the powerful chairman of the VW Group’s supervisory board, Ferdinand Piëch, took a personal liking in the Italdesign Giugiaro Parcour and wanted it turned into an Audi.
And in related news, Piëch’s wife Ursula, who also serves on the supervisory board, supposedly hand-picked the name, which means “polar bear.” I am told that it has no chance of being put into series production.
As for the “why” surrounding the Sport Quattro, Audi admits that the concept does “not truly represent light-weight technology.” A lot of carbon fiber parts are “hang-on,” and it is “more of a power show than an eco-friendly project.” At least we will see the button-tastic steering wheel and the fully digital TFT display—which allows for an individual arrangement of speedometer, tachometer, and navigation—on virtually all upcoming RS models.
Despite the success of the AMG derivatives of the Mercedes-Benz S-class, neither BMW nor Audi are working on competitors. BMW has focused its attention and resources to electric vehicles and hybrids like the i3 and the i8. As for Audi, Stephan Reil, quattro GmbH chief engineer, says that “any RS would need to offer 20- to 25-percent more power than the same model in S guise. And in this light, an RS8 or RS A8 would not make sense.” Indeed, Reil’s rule would mean the sedan would need 630 to 655 horsepower, and while we’d all love to see such a car, it’s fairly unlikely.
The V-10 TDI diesel in the Nanuk concept is part of an all-new diesel engine family that includes four-, six-, and eight-cylinder units. The ten-cylinder TDI has not been decided yet, but it may well come to market to replace the outgoing V-12 TDI which was offered in the Q7 on some markets. And the V-8 TDI is a sure thing, despite the fact that BMW and Mercedes-Benz stopped making V-8 diesels years ago. Audi has apparently been going back and forth on offering a manual transmission for the next-gen R8, but the latest I hear is that it’s gone. A pity.
Mercedes-Benz and the CLA
I just came across a few interesting quotes by Mercedes-Benz North America CEO Steve Cannon, who was recently interviewed by my colleague Jeff Jablansky about the CLA-class. Cannon is not concerned about the possibility of it cannibalizing C-class sales, and he hopes for a 60 percent conquest rate and hints at a “dramatic step” for the CLA’s bigger brother. “The interior takes a quantum leap in terms of fit and finish,” which is true. Cannon also speaks of the diminutive CLA as a “compelling alternative” to “a high-end Honda Accord or Toyota Camry.” Really? Perhaps if no one compares the mid-size Camry or Accord’s relative spaciousness to a CLA’s interior volume . . . Cannon on the baby Benz’s styling: “It’s something we have been asking for in the United States for years now, and we have resorted to tricks to make the base vehicles more sporty.” You can read the unusually open conversation here.
GMC Granite concept: The small (ish) GMC that never was.
Mark Reuss on Opel and GMC
I had the opportunity to sit at a dinner table with GM North America CEO Mark Reuss, who was very positive about the changes at Opel under the brand’s new chief, Karl-Thomas Neumann. Reuss strongly denied that the brand has become a liability for the products it makes, and he praised Neumann’s “hard work on the brand.” German hopes for a global Opel expansion don’t seem to be founded in reality: “We will concentrate in the right places,” said Reuss, making it clear that Opel is “pretty much” a Europe-centered brand. Its cars will still be global, but only in the sense that they will continue to prop up the Buick brand.
Reuss also strongly hinted at GMC models positioned below the Terrain. The last we heard about a smaller GMC was the Granite concept, which was launched at the 2010 Detroit auto show and later confirmed to not be destined for series production. It will be interesting to see a downmarket GMC, a brand whose positioning has not changed over decades.
And Reuss revealed himself to be a fan of diesel technology, which could proliferate in the U.S. market well beyond the Cruze 2.0TD. “For now we will see how Cruze does, but down the road, we can exercise a lot of options.” And that would be a very good thing.
Source: CarAndDriver
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