The highlight of the motoring event calendar is rapidly approaching. From 8th to 18th March, the 82nd Geneva Motor Show opens its doors in Switzerland. This year 260 exhibitors and over 70 press conferences will converge with visitors from all over the world, including the Signature Car Hire team.
Given that it is held in Switzerland, the Geneva Motor Show has come to be known as the benchmark for neutrality, representativeness, and punctuality every year. This institution has therefore been seen as the place where the world’s great names in motoring have demonstrated their progress year after year. A summary of the cars premiered at the last 107 shows reads like the history of motoring.
Indeed, the 1905 Clement which was first released at the inaugural show is now only found in a museum. The remainder of the worldwide premieres from the Geneva Show are however more familiar to us as 21st Century drivers. At the 1929 show for example, Mercedes previewed their SSK with a six-cylinder 7.1 litre engine. It was cars like these which thundered around the race circuits of Europe and gave birth to the motor sport we adore today.
The great European motoring industry was truly made world famous by models launched at Geneva. Throughout the mid-Twentieth Century, cars like the BMW 326 in 1936 and Mercedes Benz 540K in 1938 cemented this circuit’s place in the motoring world. BMW showed how accessible, and at the same time exclusive this marque could be. The 326 was available in a four-door limousine, a two-door cabriolet and a four door cabriolet. Alternately, customers could purchase a bare chassis and have the body built themselves. The Mercedes already highlighted the advanced technology of cars from Europe, with its eight-cylinder in-line 5.4-litre engine which produced 115 bhp at 3400 rpm without compressor, and 180 bhp when the compressor was used. With a top speed of 110 mph, this was some remarkable performance for its time.
In the second half of the Twentieth Century, the models premiered really showed how the world was opening its eyes to supercars. The birth of models such as the Jaguar XK 120, Jaguar E Type and Lamborghini LP500 Prototype (which became the Countach) was shown at the 1951, 1961, and 1971 shows respectively. It is cars such as these which have shaped how we look at sportscars today. The Lamborghini LP concept for instance stands for ‘Longitudionale Posteriore’ and has become famous as the way today’s Lamborghinis are uniquely constructed.
The later years saw the introduction of some of the icons of today’s luxury motoring. In 1982 the Bentley Mulsanne premiered, taking its name from the famous Mulsanne bend at the end of the long Hunaudières straight on the Le Mans track. In 1991 and 1998, the BMW 3-Series as we know it today was unwrapped. 1995 saw the Ferrari F50 unveiled to its adoring public to celebrate fifty years of exceptional motoring from this ultimate marquee. 2002 and 2003 were the years we first glimpsed the Ferrari 575 Maranello and the Lamborghini Gallardo at the Palais in Geneva. The Ferrari raised the bar with its 5.7 litre V12 powerplant generating 515 bhp at 7200 rpm and a maximum speed of 290 km with acceleration from 0 to 100 km/hr in less than 4.3 seconds. The Lamborghini took performance even further the next year with its 5.0 litre V10 engine with 500 bhp, reaching a top speed of 309 km, and 100 km in just 4.2 seconds
The 2012 event promises to continue this legendary spirit. Whilst stars of the show are being kept under wraps until the last possible minute, it is expected that debuts at this year’s show will prove an impressive line-up. With even the official webpage of the Show giving nothing away, speculation surrounds new releases including the Bentley GT V8 model and Lamborghini Aventador Roadster. There has been a lot of noise around the Lamborghini Aventador that we have shared with you recently, so we hope our hunch is right. We are of course going to be there ourselves to bring you the latest news, and find what supercars we want to add to our growing fleet to remain at the top of the car hire industry. Our aim is to continue to have the latest most sought after prestigious cars, so attending the Geneva Motor show is a priority to see what’s hot and new in the car industry.
Whichever models are previewed at the 82nd edition of this most prestigious of events, one thing that we can be certain of is the esteemed heritage that they will bear.