Schulte Off-road vehicle future
07/15/2011
G he SUVs and SUVs are very popular especially in growth markets. At the same time, there is an unmistakable trend towards compact and small crossover models. To more economical off-roaders that don't actually deserve the name because they often don't even have all-wheel drive and at best feel comfortable on a dirt road - and of course in the urban jungle. In our large slide show you will find all the detailed information on the future SUV projects of the car manufacturers - from A for Aston Martin to V for Volvo.
Audi Q3 and Q7
The purest SUV race is underway among the German premium manufacturers: Audi ventures into completely new territory in 2011 with the Q3 - the Q5's little brother. The next generation of the large Q7 will follow in 2013.
The new Audi Q3 will go on sale in June at prices from 29,900 euros. There is a choice of two TFSI engines and one TDI engine. The basic diesel with 140 hp and front-wheel drive will follow later with the Audi Q3 2.0 TDI. It should be content with an average of around 5.2 liters per 100 kilometers. At the market launch in June, however, the Audi Q3 will initially have two gasoline and one diesel engine, each with four cylinders, two liters of displacement and direct injection.
The basic petrol engine with turbocharging in the Audi Q3 2.0 TFSI develops 170 hp and transmits its power to all four wheels via a hydraulic multi-plate clutch. Above this is the 211 hp top version, which also has all-wheel drive as standard and is expected to accelerate the Q3 to 100 km /h in 6.9 seconds. According to Audi, the top speed is 230 km /h.
Mercedes is planning four new SUVs
With its major product offensive, Mercedes has several arrows for the terrain in its quiver: the next generation of The ML class will be coming in June 2011, its big brother named GL will follow in 2012 and an entry-level SUV as an Audi Q3 competitor named Mercedes BLK will be available in early 2013 at the latest. And it should come as no surprise that CEO Dieter Zetsche will also add one to the Smart brand in the medium term Crossover enriched with off-road appearance.
BMW X1 xDrive 28i
BMW already has its powder in this segment largely missed: Since autumn 2010, the Bavarians have been bringing the successor to the X3 on the market. The other three off-road BMWs have been available for a long time: the big brother X5CEO Norbert Reithofer gave a facelift in April 2010, which was sorely needed after the off-road vehicle had been on the market since March 2007. The sportier brother of the X5 called the X6 has been around since May 2008. The fourth BMW SUV - named X1 - is, however, a pioneer: with the BMW X1 xDrive28i, a new era begins for Bavaria. For the first time, twinpower turbo technology is being used in four-cylinder petrol engines. The new power motor with 245 hp is gradually coming to the company's other models.
Porsche Cajun
The fifth series from the sports and off-road vehicle manufacturer is expected to come onto the market in 2013. The Audi Q5 serves as the basis for the Porsche Cajun. Porsche is aiming for sales of around 60,000 vehicles for the new off-road vehicle every year.
With the new compact SUV Cajun, the sports car manufacturer is launching an additional Porsche entry-level model in addition to the Boxster, which is aimed particularly at young customers. The fifth Porsche series will also be based on the Group's brother Audi Q5 in terms of engine range. In addition to gasoline engines, the Cajun will also be available with a diesel drive. The starting price should be around 40,000 euros. This would make the Cajun the cheapest Porsche in the Swabian model portfolio.
Ford, Opel and VW are also making strong gains in the off-road sector
Ford is replacing the Kuga 2013 with a larger successor, the is also offered in the USA. In the USA it will replace the Ford Escape from the end of 2011, the market launch in Europe is planned for the beginning of 2013. The world car idea, however, is not without consequences. Since the American likes to have everything one size bigger, the Kuga stretches by ten centimeters to 4.54 meters. The distance between the axles increases by about the same amount. This ensures plenty of space: the trunk volume grows by 20 percent to around 500 liters and is thus on par with the VW Tiguan. The technical basis of the new compact SUV comes from the Van Grand C-Max, which in turn shares the architecture with the Focus.
The ambitious Opel model timetable includes a facelift of the Antara produced in Korea in 2011 and one in 2012 little brother based on Corsa. It goes without saying that the market leader in Germany and Europe - Volkswagen - does not omit the topic of off-roaders in its future planning: For 2011, the Wolfsburg-based company is presenting the facelift of the Tiguan - the top dog in the compact SUV segment. In 2013, the North Germans could also bring a little brother of the Tiguan onto the market, which is based on a platform from cooperation partner Suzuki. CEO Martin Winterkorn has not yet made a decision on this.
The Czech VW subsidiary Skoda is also considering other SUVs. Since the development center in Mlada Boleslaw is currently working flat out on the derivative of the VW Up small car and on a new, inexpensive model between Fabia and Octaviaonly the implementation of the Skoda Yeti Maxi is realistic. This is a roughly 30 centimeter variant of the current, 4.20 meter long compact SUV, which would be hardly longer than a Tiguan, but would have a generous trunk with space for a third row of seats. A Yeti facelift is also being planned for 2012. The Spanish sister company Seat, however, will probably go away empty-handed. There is no green light for the quite respectable Tribu study.
Jeep and Land Rover underpin their status as icons of the
And what about the icons in the segment? Jeep brings 2011 a revision of the Wrangler with a new interior as well as a revised diesel and the new Grand Cherokee - in future again with a diesel from Italian production. With new engines and light facelifts for the Cherokee and Patriot as well as a more extensive visual revision of the Compass, the entire Jeep model series was renovated piece by piece from the beginning of 2011. However, Fiat has decided to take Patriot and Cherokee out of the European program. The Jeep Compass with a facelift body and a new Mercedes diesel is supposed to do their job.
Land Rover
In 2011, Land Rover presented a subtle visual facelift for its entry-level Freelander and the brand new, stylish Range Rover Evoque. The innovations and facelifts for Range Rover, Discovery and Range Rover Sport were completed in mid-2010. The third off-road icon from the USA - Hummer - was, as is known, withdrawn from circulation by General Motors. However, the former world market leader retains the trademark rights. Should the renovation succeed in the long term, which currently looks strong, a revival of the brand with the martial design would not be absurd in the medium term.
Asian SUVs in all size classes - and even with French brand logos
2011 is the starting shot for the Mazda CX-5. Sales of the VW Tiguan opponent will start in early 2012 - with a very competitive concept. The new compact SUV will be a lightweight in this segment at around 1.4 tons. In addition, Mazda is introducing a new dynamic design language with the model and the so-called Sky engines, which consume more than 30 percent less than the old ones.
The two-liter petrol engine with 150 and 170 hp, like the 2.2-liter diesel (150 to 180 hp), can be combined with a six-speed manual gearbox and a newly developed, six-stage automatic transmission that has similarly short shift times as modern ones Dual clutch transmission should offer. It has not yet been decided whether the 4.50 meter long CX-5 will complement or completely replace the less popular CX-7 in Germany.
The French work inSUV sector together with Japanese without exception - Renault with its sister brand Nissan and Peugeot /Citroën with cooperation partner Mitsubishi: After the offshoots of the larger Mitsubishi Outlander - named Peugeot 4007 and Citroën C-Crosser - variants of the smaller Mitsubishi ASX are also being considered for 2012.
Volvo has strong renovation needs
Volvo has to bring a breath of fresh air to its manageable SUV portfolio in the medium term: With the XC90, the Gothenburg company is almost a 'young timer ex works'. Since its market launch at the turn of the year 2002/03, the Swedish SUV only received a small facelift in June 2006. A new generation is long overdue. The little brother of the big XC 90 is a bit fresher: the XC 60 was launched in Germany in September 2008. A facelift should therefore also be on the Swedish agenda in the medium term.
