All of the changes in ownership of car companies in the past several years have become evident when you examine the geographic positioning of the various stands for each of the manufacturers. In one corner we have the Ford family that includes, besides the Dearborn automaker, stands for Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mazda and Volvo. In the opposite corner we have Volkswagen with Bentley, Porsche, Audi and Lamborghini in tow. BMW gets its Mini and Rolls-Royce companies almost as bookends. Then there is the DaimlerChrysler giant that has the familiar Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep lines in addition to Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi and Maybach.
Given the geopolitical nature of the business, things got off to an almost predictable start when the Mini Cooper was named 2003 North American Car of the Year and the Volvo XC90 took the 2003 North American Truck of the Year title. The awards are decided upon by the votes of 49 automotive journalists and mark the first time the European-made vehicles have won in both categories in the same year. If you think a British-built, German-designed retro-styled coupe and a Swedish-built sport utility vehicle coming from a European company renowned for its boxy sedans and owned by Ford are strange choices for the North American awards, then maybe it's time to review your understanding of the new global auto industry.
Given the strong emphasis on fuel cells and other low-emissions technologies in the past several years, it was surprising that this year's Detroit Show was more about horsepower and torque than it was about greenhouse gases and fuel efficiency. Although GM and Toyota announced that they are working together on a gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain, and Ford announced it will launch a hybrid version of its Escape sport-utility late this year, the emphasis was on big engines.
There were more than a few favorites for power-hungry show-goers. Mercedes-Benz has its 5.5-liter twin-turbocharged 500-bhp V12 that makes 590 lb-ft of torque and is found in the company's new S-Class. Not to be outdone, Audi showed a twin-turbocharged 500-bhp V8 engine in an SUV concept vehicle while Ford had a 590-bhp V10 engine in its Ford 427 concept sedan. The Ferrari Enzo made a North American appearance (it debuted in Los Angeles) with 660 bhp from its 6.0-liter V12 engine. But it was Cadillac that trumped the field with an over-the-top concept powered by a 13.6-liter V16 engine that the company smugly claims will crank out 1,000 bhp. If you came to Detroit looking for power, these vehicles probably fit the bill; just don't tell the environmental lobby about them.
If you wanted definitive evidence of how much the auto industry is changing, you didn't need to look any further than the Porsche stand. This long-time legendary manufacturer of highly efficient and extremely powerful sports and racing cars had pushed all of its 911 and Boxster coupes and cabriolets off to the sides to make room at center stage for its new Cayenne S and Cayenne Turbo sport utility vehicles. Porsche is taking no chances that the $56,000 Cayenne S and $90,000 Cayenne Turbo won't be noticed in the U.S. market, which will account for 50% of Cayenne sales.
What follows is a summary of what we saw or what we liked from the European manufacturers.