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2009 Detroit Motor Show; the gloomiest ever

2009 Detroit Motor Show; the gloomiest ever
Written by Professor E. Clive Chirwa
Sunday, January 18, 2009 6:18:00 AM

The first thing I noticed when I landed at Detroit airporton January 13 was the faces of the immigration officers which had imaginary large letters reading “welcome to the dead zone”. If in the past you were greeted with a big smile, this time was different because many of those in immigration have or know somebody who has lost a job in the motor industry. For the African Americans working in motor industry, losing what they know best is a tragedy.

After the formalities, I picked up a taxi to the hotel in Dearborn in readiness for the show which this year started on January 11 and will close on January 25. I am a veteran to the Detroit show as I have come here every year since 1989.

In the morning, an old friend of mine from Ford Motor Company gave me a call to find out if I had already arrived. I told him yes and that we should meet at Ford stand in order to share news before I went around exploring the 2009 Detroit International Motor Show. Arriving at the gates of the show, I was surprised to see fewer people than usual. For the past 20 years, this trade day has been the busiest day of them all when only invited guests and those with company tickets and business people came to make deals. This year it was all muted. Approaching the registration desk, I was quickly served, very strange, and then I entered this glitz-free motor show. Making my way to the Ford Motor Company stand to meet my American friend was just like going through a ghost town. Very few people were about and the razzmatazz we are used to with this show was absent. Then, the words at the airport “welcome to the dead zone” clicked in my mind. This show is different and it might even be a flop.

I found the Ford stand but it was not as big as in the past. In the corner there was Peter Wilson. Straight away he asked “Clive how was your trip?” I replied “OK, but something is strange about this show”. Jokingly, he replied that the three big car manufacturers, namely General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are in intensive care on life-support machines hooked to them by government. “Their must feel privileged that their hearts are artificially propped up. Other companies in Europe and Africa envy them as their governments cannot afford to rescue them”, I replied.

This to me was astonishing because only a year ago, Peter and I were talking of big things to come out of Detroit. The vision Ford and General Motors had was something we were all looking forward to. Barely a year later, we are talking of how these companies are viciously cutting every cost to the bone and slashing salaries at all levels in order to remain afloat. Peter told me even how Ford has scaled down the cleaning of offices and factory from a daily routine to weekly and soon will be to a fortnight. The New York times that morning even reported of General Motors employee using stairs all the way to top floor because the contractor who services the lifts has not been paid and cannot come to repair them. This is a sad story and something must be done quickly to save the face of motor industry as we know it.

Many of the big boys from Europe even decided not to go to Detroit. Porsche and Ferrari thought it was inappropriate to exhibit when they are slashing jobs back at base. But Bentley and Mercedes Benz were there. Benz trying to show its recession proof character even threw up some luxury food, Lobster risotto en suivant crème brûlée for those who came to witness the unveiling of new E-Class Sedan. Lamborghini, while showing a straight face were in stand that was incomplete. What is happening? Is the recession far deeper than what we first envisaged?

The answer is yes. But whenever there is a dying empire, a new upcoming power emerges and takes over. This is a chance for China who in the absence of more than a dozen well known manufacturers they were promoted from their last year’s stand in the basement to a stand alongside the elite of motor industry on the best floor of the entire motor show.

After a good discussion with Peter Wilson, I decided to walk about and see what is really on offer. One of the most interesting exhibits was the Volkswagen pretty Bluesport Roadster. From the side-view it looked like the Toyota Roadster MR2. A second glance told me it was a crossover between BMW Z6 and Toyota Roadster MR2. What this concept car is all about is the way it brings out the features well liked by two-seater car lovers.

Expected to enter production sometime in the next two years, the Bluesport will epitomise VW’s goal to build a convertible sport car that is affordable, economical and fast. To achieve that performance the car is equipped with 2.0 litre four-cylinder turbodiesel that develops 135 kW power. With its powertrain that produces 350Nm of torque, the Concept Bluesport can sprint from zero to 100 kph in just 6.6 seconds, while its top speed is 226 kph. Even more impressive is the car's excellent fuel economy rating of 4.3 litre/100 km that is combined with an ultralow Carbon dioxide level of 113 g/km CO2. Two features that help the mid-engined, soft-top roadster achieve these figures are the automatic start-stop system and the brake energy regeneration system.

The Bluesport was designed to rival the Lotus Elise, but what I can see is the battle with BMW Z6 and Toyota Roadster MR2. No price tag has been attached to this concept car, but watch this space.

Labels: CLIVE CHIRWA, GREAT DEPRESSION II

posted by MrK @ 6:19 AM