Toyota Etios Concept

Tokyo-TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION (TMC) announces its production and sales subsidiary in India unveiled today-under the banner: "World First, India First"-a concept version of the "Etios*", a compact car newly developed specifically for the Indian market. Toyota Kirloskar Motor Private, Ltd. (TKM) is showing the concept car at the 10th Auto Expo automobile show in New Delhi, which runs until January 11.

The Etios is aimed at family users in India's rapidly growing automobile market. Reflecting its "one class above" theme, the Etios' styling evokes a sense of advanced status, and, along with a spacious interior with abundant storage space, it aims to offer both smooth and powerful driving and excellent fuel efficiency.





To make the car as affordable as possible for potential customers, thorough use of local parts will be pursued to keep costs low.

On display at the show are a sedan version with a newly developed 1.5-liter gasoline engine and a hatchback version with a newly developed 1.2-liter gasoline engine.

Etios chief engineer, Yoshinori Noritake, said at the show: "I visited many Indian cities and homes to learn the market and to hear from the consumer directly.

Over four years, more than 2,000 engineers have been involved in the development of the Etios, and each has devoted his or her best effort with no compromises. I am convinced in my heart that the Etios offers joy of ownership and quality of life to consumers in India."

TKM will produce the Etios from late 2010 at its second plant, which is now being built expressly for the new car.

Annual sales in India are set at 70,000 units. Exports are planned.

At the show, the TKM exhibit, with its key message of "Quality Revolution", comprises a total of 14 production and concept vehicles, including the third-generation "Prius" gasoline-electric hybrid passenger car, which is scheduled to go on sale in India in 2010, the "Prado" SUV recently unveiled for the Indian market, the "i-REAL" personal mobility vehicle and the "Fine-S" fuel-cell hybrid vehicle.

Suzuki R3 Concept for a Six-Passenger Compact MPV

Suzuki's subsidiary in India has unveiled the Suzuki R3 Concept MPV at the Auto Expo 2010 in New Delhi earlier today. The Indian-designed vehicle with six individual seats was designed from scratch in only nine months.

Unveiled live on national television, the R3 Concept was designed to capture the attention of a growing number of consumers in that country who require vehicles for multiple purposes. Should the vehicle make production, consumers should expect a vehicle whose seats fold away allowing for a substantial amount of cargo room.



If the subsidiary, Maruti Suzuki India, brings the car to market, rear passengers would find it much easier getting in and out of rearward opening doors versus conventional doors. The doors also look much more stylish compared to sliding versions. Color tones on the inside go together well, and include cream and black upholstery, glossy black inserts with chrome trim, and a mellow blue.

The exterior is given a somewhat brutish look, with a somewhat boxy shape and bulky rear. At the front, high-intensity lighting is contrasted with, what appears to be, subtle LED accents. LEDs can also be seen in the rear. Dual-exhaust pipes are well incorporated behind each wheel well.

It is unclear what engine is used on the car, what fuel it uses, and the performance it delivers. Some reports speculate the car could receive the automaker's 1.2- and 1.4-liter petrol engines, and a Fiat-built 1.3-liter diesel. The engine appears to be mated to a five-speed manual transmission on the prototype.

Maruti Suzuki is the big dog of the Indian auto market. The company holds nearly 50% of the market share in that country. Unveilings today by Toyota and Honda, and increased investment by GM, will require Suzuki to continue developing vehicles specifically for the Indian market if they want to continue dominating there.

A production version of the Suzuki R3 Concept MPV could come to market inside of two years.

What Bugs Me About Concept Cars

The auto shows are amazing. They show all of these super cool looking cars that are to come and some of the new features on the current model cars. They also show new designs that will be implemented on current cars. As amazing as it is, there is one thing that gets me about these shows. It's the concept cars.

Concept Cars

Concept cars are cars that are seriously being thought about publicly selling. When they show off a concept car they are getting feedback on the car they are thinking about releasing. Concept cars are usually not in final form but they can be almost completed as far as the body work goes.

One thing about concept cars is that they look really awesome. The new styling on some of these cars is just amazing to look at. Even if all you see are the pictures online! Now here lies the problem with concept cars. They are not done yet. They are like a teaser of the real car that may or may not be made available and produced for the public.

Take for instance the new Chevy Volt. A lot of buzz was created when GM introduced a concept car, the Chevy volt a few years ago. The car not only looked amazing it had some great features. It could run on all battery power and it did not use its gas engine to power the wheels. Instead it used its motor to power a generator to charge a set of batteries which then ran the car. Each wheel has an electric motor built in.

It has yet to be released, but it could be the style of car for the future.The future in which cars are electric. The problem is they ruined it! General Motors teased us with a beautiful looking car only to change its body style almost completely compared to the concept version. Now it looks like a Chevy Impala/Toyota Yaris smashed together. It is a bit different than the impala but it's too similar for my liking. There is nothing wrong with the impala but what GM had was a totally new style, a body for a new never released car. It looked great and would have stood out a lot. Now for the preview of the production car we get half of what we wanted.

So that's what bugs me about car shows and the concept cars. Just don't fall in love with a concept car too much as you may be disappointed by the production version.

Peugeot SR1 Concept Car

Peugeot has released the first details and images of its stylistic design trends for the future models through the Peugeot SR1 Concept car. The concept make its debut at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show in March.

The Peugeot SR1 features a sculpted bonnet, sweeping sides and a chiselled rear design while at the side, the styling line merge into the side windows and the front windscreen.

The carbon skin of the car merges seamlessly with the design of the lights, the air intakes and the shape of the door mirrors. Other features are full LED internal headlamp functions, radiator grille contour hard top and the new Peugeot Lion badge.



Inside, the SR1 features driver seat and all controls that are dedicated to out-and-out enjoyment for the driver, passenger compartment that is designed to provide optimum versatility and new sensations for all its occupants.

The car can accommodate 3 people whereby the third seat located in the middle, behind the two front seats. Entry to the rear seat is via the center console which can slide forward. The SR1 is fitted with patinated leather and different grained wood that mix together seamlessly with high-tech materials such as nickel and satin-finished chrome.

Other features include combination of analogue and digital read outs instrumentation, two glass crystal gauges that display fuel consumption and vehicle range and an exclusive wristwatch developed together with Bell&Ross that comes with milled inserts of solid aluminum slots perfectly into a dedicated housing on the fascia panel.

The Peugeot SR1 Concept car uses Hybrid4 technology which will be launched in the Peugeot 3008 in 2011 where a 218 bhp (160 kW) 1.6-liter THP petrol engine powering the front wheels while the rear wheels will be powered by an electric motor delivering 95 bhp (70 kW).

The SR1 becomes a ZEV (Zero Emission Vehicle) in electric only mode while its combined cycle fuel consumption is only 4.9 liters/100 km and emits 119 g/km of CO2. The SR1 Concept produces a maximum power of 313 bhp (230 kW) and benefits from 4-wheel drive when the two power trains operate simultaneously.

The suspension system consists of double wishbones with drop links at the front and the rear. The car also features 4-wheel steering while the turning angle of the rear wheels are controlled as a function of the vehicle speed via motorised links on the rear wishbones.