News analysis
Geneva 2024 Motor Show review
Just when we though the Geneva Motor Show was dead, it returned in smaller form, with big launches, as Guy Bird discovered..
Dacia: Duster & Spring Above: Dacia brought along its reworked Spring and third-generation Duster.
he last Geneva Motor Show that actually took place was in early 2019. It saw 602,000 visitors through its turnstiles to view 184 exhibitors. The 2020 show was cancelled a week before it was due to open as the stands were being constructed and as the Covid-19 global pandemic swept through Europe and led to prolonged lockdowns. And there hasn’t been another Swiss one since (although October 2023 did see the show exported to Qatar for the first Geneva Motor Show in Doha).
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So it’s fair to say the 2024 Geneva Motor Show had a lot riding on it. Industry insiders knew it couldn’t return unscathed from that length of absence. And carmakers were already questioning the marketing cut-through of costly motor show space and associated logistics well before the sharp shock of Covid. The way the market revealed and the world consumed news in an increasingly digital age had also changed. Add in the fact that many carmakers were still very unhappy at losing significant sums of money invested in the cancelled 2020 show – the organisers labelled the pandemic an insurance force majeure to avoid paying major compensation – and it’s unsurprising that the brands in attendance in 2024 were mainly new ones, or those who hadn’t planned to exhibit in a big way back in 2020.
6 | March 2024 |
www.businesscar.co.uk
Still, the Renault Group did choose to go large – with its Renault and Dacia brands – and there were interesting unveils from MG, BYD, IM and Lucid. The 2024 show took up only a slice of the old one’s lower floor (the upper mezzanine was full of lovely classics) and attendance at the reduced one-week show was more than two-thirds down at 168,000. But from a personal press perspective, it was a very useful way to see a lot of product and people in one place, in one day in a more manageable space. As I’ve commented before, the excess of flamboyant, expensive and resource- intensive large stands of yesteryear aren’t necessarily the ‘good old days’. Either way, here are Business Car’s highlights...
Renault 5 E-Tech
The biggest stand and boldest car of the 2024 Geneva Motor Show definitely belonged to Renault. Remaining faithful to the 2021 5 Prototype and referencing design elements of various older-generation R5s with a stunning new interior to match, the production 5 E-Tech EV has ‘hit’ written all over it. The public would seem to agree, with more than 50,000 orders already placed and Renault will hope to repeat this success with the forthcoming production 4. R5 sales start early 2025, launching in the UK with the larger 248-mile range 52kWh battery and a likely £25,000 starting price.
Dacia offered three world premieres in Geneva – but discounting the Dakar rally Sandrider concept on account of its lack of fleet relevance – the other two, the Duster Mk3 and Spring Mk2, more than made up for it. The third-gen Duster has matured nicely, with carefully tweaked proportions, a similar length as before but with a slightly wider track and lower roofline. Engines are either hybrid or mild-hybrid with 4x2 or 4x4 transmissions and the no-nonsense interior features the innovative YouClip system for securing modular accessories. Dare we say, it’s a bit more upmarket than the Mk2 too. “We have new customers from higher- range cars, that can afford more expensive cars,” says Dacia’s design director David Durand, “but even if they are ready to be more ‘essential’, there are some things they really want. So we have to consider comfort, details, textiles and finishes. It’s new for us.” Expect the Duster to start just under £20,000 from mid-2024 in the UK. Meanwhile, a car previously not destined for the UK, the Dacia Spring, has been thoroughly reworked and given right-hand driver status. The Romanian brand’s first full-electric car goes on sale now, from an incredible £14,995 with a 137-mile range from a 26.8 kWh battery and two powertrains, either 45 or 65hp. First UK deliveries are expected October 2024.
MG: Cyberster & 3 Hybrid The long-awaited Cyberster roadster EV was shown in final production form in Geneva. The interior has jettisoned the yoke-style steering wheel of the model shown in 2023, and instead boasts a regular steering wheel but still with a wraparound, multiscreen cockpit accessed via dramatic ‘scissor-style’ doors. Prices are yet to be confirmed but expect from £50,000-plus and single and dual-motor options, on sale summer 2024. More down to earth and fleet friendly, MG also showed its new third-generation 3. With all-new bodywork in line with the design language of its bigger brother 4, the 3 cuts an altogether smarter dash than its predecessor. Its full hybrid system consists of a 102hp 1.5-litre petrol engine plus 136hp electric motor good for 64mpg and 100g/km CO2 and can run on electric-only power in certain circumstances. Expect prices north of the current 3’s (non-hybrid) £14,320 starting point, exact prices to be announced late March.
IM: L6, L7, LS6 & LS7
MG’s Chinese parent company SAIC also took its Geneva opportunity to unveil its premium EV brand Intelligent Mobility – or IM for short – to a European audience. The smartly elegant designs have Tesla firmly in their crosshairs, with the IM L6 saloon wanting to rival the Model 3, the LS6 SUV Coupé set to take on the Model Y, the L7 larger saloon up against the Model-S and the LS7 large SUV aiming at Model X customers. All are slated to arrive in the UK in 2025 with long EV ranges – from 373-497 miles – and retail representation logically via MG’s circa 160-strong UK network. It’s too early for pricing, but sitting inside the various models, they felt well-built and premium and also offered unusual touches – including prominent frontal rooftop sensors and pixel-based infotainment running through the L7’s rear light bar. A brand to watch, given MG’s recent success.
Below: Geneva saw MG's Cyberster roadster EV shown in final production form.
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