Stars of Auto Shanghai

Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A Chairman and CEO Stefano Domenicali and Lamborghini Manila President Roberto Coyiuto III beside the new Huracan Performante.

The Auto Shanghai 2017 is slowly shaping up to be the biggest and most important trade-style motorshow in the world.

With over 35 hectares of display space at the Shanghai International Exposition Centre and more than 2,000 exhibitors—from car manufacturers, OE suppliers and third-party replacement parts manufacturers—strutting their stuff, it’s no wonder that the major brands have shown significant presence in this motorshow.

In 2015, over one million visitors trooped through the halls of the Shanghai Expo’s halls; this year, 2017, it’s set to be even bigger.

The event is held every two years, in the same year as other major international motor shows such as Geneva, Frankfurt and Tokyo.

To give a brief background, China is the world’s single largest car market, with over 21 million cars sold in 2015 (the last fully audited year by the Chinese government, so far).

The Chinese market is so huge that almost all major car companies have some form of technical presence locally, from R&D to design and manufacturing.

Aside from the known car brands and their models, there are special models only available in China such as long-wheelbase versions of essentially compact cars like the Audi A4, BMW 3-Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, and even Peugeot’s 3008 cross-over/MPV.

Shanghai is China’s financial capital with a very cosmopolitan and progressive business and social environment, making it the ideal location for multinational companies to set up shop.

With Volkswagen being the first major multinational car company to set up shop in China, its presence is huge.

Aside from Volkswagen, the group’s luxury divisions—namely Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini and Porsche—have a very strong presence in the country.

We were hosted by PGA Cars, the Philippines’ distributor for the aforementioned brands, and we were able to check out the latest offerings from each respective luxury brand.

We met up with their key executives to give us a glimpse into their future plans.

Audi Philippines head Benedicto Coyiutowith Audi Sports CEO Stephan Winkelmann.

The Audi R8 LMS race car

Audi TT RS

The Audi e-tron Sportback concept

Limited Edition Mulsanne Hallmark Series byMulliner also
makes China debut

Audi

Audi unveiled its latest e-Tron fastback concept, as well as a face-lifted A3 sedan and the new RS5 which features a turbocharged 2.9-liter V6 engine.

The RS5 still produces 444 hp as the old V8, but torque is up to 600 Newton meters, allowing it to accelerate from rest to 100 km/h in 3.9 seconds.

The new powertrain might lack the sonorous wail of the normally aspirated 4.2 FSI V8, but the reduced weight over the nose should dramatically improve handling, reduce fuel consumption, and deliver even higher levels of power and performance while meeting the latest exhaust emissions standards and fuel consumption figures.

A total of 60 kg of weight was removed, yet the new RS5 is safer, more solid and stable than its predecessor.

As for the A3 sedan, face-lifted variants should arrive in the Philippines in the second half of 2017.

The Bentley EXP12 Speed-6e concept

The Bentley Bentayga Mulliner – the ultimate luxury SUV

Bentley

Bentley unveiled two cars: the long wheelbase variant of the already stately Mulsanne, giving it a truly regal and royal air fit for royalty and heads of state, monarchs and oligarchs.

Aside from the additional 10 inches in length, to be found mostly in the wheelbase, everything can be made bespoke—from interior and exterior colors, fabrics and hides, stitching, quilting and piping plus the latest in in-car multi-media entertainment.

It truly is a palace on wheels!

The EXP8 Speed-6 cabriolet concept, on the other hand, is the latest design study on a possible smaller Bentley two-door aimed at a more youthful market.

While Bentley is tight-lipped on whether the EXP8 Speed-6 coupe and convertible versions will reach production, unofficially, the face, headlights and tail lights point to the direction of Bentley’s future Continental GT grand touring coupes and convertibles.

The Lamborghini Huracan RWD Spyder

Automobili Lamborghini Asia Pacific general manager Andres Baldi, Roberto Coyiuto III and
Automobili Lamborghini general manager for Southeast Asia Davide Sfrecola with the new
Aventador S.

Lamborghini

Lamborghini was flocked by onlookers as the Italian brand, headed by their new CEO Stefano Domenicali, unveiled two models to the Chinese and Asian markets: the new Lamborghini Aventador S which comes with aerodynamic refinements, and crucially, rear-wheel steering to aid handling and agility of the brand’s flagship model.

The second model to be unveiled was the Hurricane Performante, which now holds the production car record on the Nurburgring with an astounding time of 6:52.01, thanks mostly to Lamborghini’s Aerodinamica Lamborghini Attiva (ALA) or Lamborghini Active Aerodynamics.

Lamborghini is very proud of their ALA system, which insiders say was discovered quite by accident.

Despite possessing a modest power increase (640 hp and 600 Nm of torque), the new system is mostly to thank for in allowing the Performante to lap the famed Nordschleife (Northern Loop) in a new record time, eclipsing the Porsche 918 Spyder hyper-car by five seconds.

Show-goers were expecting a teaser of Lamborghini’s upcoming Urus super-SUV, which Signore Domenicali states will be a true game-changer for the brand.

Once the Urus is fully online, the Sant Agata-based brand expects production to double from their current 3,600-plus units per annum to easily over 7,000 a year, as the popularity of SUVs continues unabated worldwide.

Porsche AG Chairman of the Executive Board Oliver Blume and PorschePhilippines President Roberto Coyiuto III with the new Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo

Porsche

The biggest news from the Zuffenhausen-based specialist is the release of the Panamera Sport Turismo to the Chinese and Asian markets, a shooting-brake variant of the ever-popular but very polarizing Panamera 4-door coupe.

The Sport Turismo looks so much more better proportioned, according to onlookers at the show, and will be far more practical and versatile, thanks to the larger trunk space.

Four variants will initially be available: 4S, 4S Diesel, Turbo, and e-Hybrid variants.

Because it is a Porsche, expect it to have the road-going presence and driving dynamics of a proper sports car, yet with massive practicality, thanks to a 1,390-liter cargo space with the seats folded.

And finally, you can fit five adults inside the Panamera Sport Turismo unlike its regular 4-door brethren.

The new Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo