In case you hadn’t heard, the titans of the automotive industry have descended upon Geneva this week for what is arguably the most important motor show on the calendar. Well, for European carmakers, anyway.
Geneva is usually where carmakers unveil the best stuff. Sure, you get interesting new models at other shows, but for the stand-out, supercar exotica, Geneva is one of your best bets.
And this year hasn’t disappointed. Ahead of the show, carmakers teased what looked like a lot of good stuff. And now we’ve had the big reveals. There’s lots to get through here, so let’s get to it.
Range Rover SV Coupe
Land Rover teased this one back in January, but only provided a top-down image of the 2×2 interior layout. On one hand, this is supposed to be a car that harks back to the Range Rover’s roots – the very first Range Rover was a three-door affair. But on the other hand, it’s meant to be the most luxurious Range Rover ever created. It’ll be totally hand-built by Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) division, and it’ll be powered by a 557 bhp, 5.0-litre, supercharged V8. With a 0-100 km/h time of 5.0 seconds, making it the second-quickest Range Rover available, after the SVR. Only 999 will be built, with prices starting at AED 1.2 million. Before options.
Mercedes-AMG GT Four-Door Coupe
This is another car that’s been a long time coming. We’ve known for a while that AMG has been creating its own, bespoke, four-door supercar. And given how good its last effort, the AMG GT, was, we’ve known it was going to be something special.
Now, the Four-Door Coupe may look quite a bit like the new Mercedes CLS, and sure, it shares some of the same parts. But the thing is, Mercedes isn’t going to make a CLS 63 AMG with a big, thumping V8. That space is now to be filled, and then some, by the GT Four-Door Coupe. Again, though, this is so much more than a hotted-up version of an existing Mercedes – it’s been purpose-built from the ground up by AMG.
So, the stats: You got a twin-turbo, 4.0-litre V8 developing 577 bhp, or 630 bhp if you opt for the S version. Power is fed to all four wheels via a nine-speed automatic gearbox, and a ‘drift mode’ comes as standard. The S version will do the 0-100 km/h dash in 3.4 seconds, and you can lop 0.2 seconds off that time if you opt for the full-fat S. Top speed comes in at 315 km/h for the S, and 310 km/h for the non-S.
The New Toyota Supra
Okay, we still don’t know what a production version of the Toyota Supra will look like, but it’ll be pretty close to this – the Gazoo Racing Supra Concept that was unveiled at Geneva. Naturally, that’s a racing car, and a concept at that. But Toyota says that all of the panels are real, meaning that, if you disregard the massive wings and splitters, you get an inkling of what the Supra will look like. Power will reportedly come courtesy of a BMW-sourced straight-six engine with over 400 bhp. That sounds like the engine from the current-gen BMW M3, and it also sounds like quite a recipe.
Remember, the Supra is being built as part of a partnership with BMW. The BMW version will be the new Z4. But Toyota stresses that the two cars will be completely different in character – the Supra will be fast and hard, while the Z4 will be a more comfortable convertible. Either way, it looks like the world’s Supra fans are close to having their prayers answered.
BMW Concept M8 Gran Coupe
Speaking of BMW, there was something pretty special from it at Geneva, too. You’ll no doubt be familiar with the recently announced 8 Series, perhaps one of the most welcome returns in all of automotive history. Well, while BMW didn’t announce an M8 at the time, it has now unveiled a concept of what an M8 might look like. Oh, and BMW has turned the 8 Series into a Gran Coupe.
What’s likely is that this car will borrow bits from the existing M5. That means a twin-turbo, 4.4-litre V8 developing over 600 bhp, fed through an eight-speed automatic. We imagine four-wheel drive would be standard, but it’ll have a rear-biased option if and when you want to get slidey.
Porsche Mission E Cross Turismo
Porsche has made a big fuss over its Mission E concept – a fully electric four-door saloon expected to go into production by 2019. And while plans for that are still going ahead, Porsche has now teased us with a slightly more robust version of the car. Now, this is just a concept, but we reckon that, if it’s well received, Porsche could well put it into production. Like the Mission E, it’s fully electric, but this one’s called a ‘cross utility vehicle’. What that means tougher wheel arches, and a slightly higher ride height, so far as we can tell. However, the body is much closer to production than the Mission E concept was when it was first announced, so this provides a pretty good idea of what it’ll look like. Also, Porsche is working on creating a range of body styles based on its electric car platform once it’s finished. Welcome, then, to a Porsche of the future.