88 January 2014 www.bahrainthismonth.com motoringfeature With the kind of spending power that the GCC has, and being one of the fastest growing regions in the world, international motoring brands take the Dubai International Motor Show very seriously. So, we were treated to several global and regional unveils, some one-of-a-kind concepts, and some of the most exclusive sports and luxury models to be found anywhere in the world. But that wasn’t all. For the first time this year, alongside the motor how hosted the Dubai Grand Parade, where private owners were invited to bring their super cars, classic cars, muscle cars and custom cars to a big parade down Sheikh Zayed Road. Unfortunately, due to the seeming lack of common sense with regards to the general public and staying off a busy six-lane highway, the parade turned into a bit of a fiasco. However, once all the cars had made it to the post-parade gallery, spectators were treated to one of the most impressive collections of automotive exotica you’d find anywhere in the world. Hybrids This seemed to be the word on everyone’s lips at the show, not least of all in the various new models and concepts that were being unveiled. While hybrids don’t really have much of a place in the oil-rich Gulf, elsewhere in the world — Europe and the US especially — they’re hugely important, and this is why they’re important to the industry as a whole. One of the biggest hybrid launches was the BMW i8, a concept made reality. With a combination of BMW TwinPower Turbo and BMW eDrive technology, as well as intelligent energy management, the total output of the i8 stands at 362hp and a maximum torque of 570Nm. This translates to a 0-100 km/h time of just 4.4 seconds, and a fuel consumption of only 2.5 litres per 100 km! Also turning out in force with the hybrids were Lexus, who showcased their entire hybrid line-up, with the LSh, GSh, RXh and CTh, all featuring Lexus Hybrid Drive, a technology developed solely by Lexus for use in its range of luxury vehicles. However, it was Porsche that went all-out by launching their E-Mobility product line with the unveiling of their plug-in Panamera Hybrid. All the Porsche staff were decked out in the grey and green of the Porsche E-Mobility corporate colours, and the Panamera was dutifully plugged into a normal power socket on the stand via the special E-Mobility adapter. While there has been a Cayenne hybrid before, it differs from this Panamera in that it can’t be plugged into normal power sockets. A notable hybrid absent from the Porsche stand, however, was the record-breaking Porsche 918, although that isn’t part of the E-Mobility range either. The Chinese invasion The Chinese are beginning to make serious moves in the automotive world, overwhelming markets with sheer production numbers and low-cost prices, if not perhaps in quality or ingenuity. Chinese brands turned out in force at the show, practically annexing a whole hall to themselves with some of the biggest displays at the event. Tony Sidgwick Last November Bahrain This Month jetted off to Dubai for one of the most prestigious motor shows in the world. This is what we saw… BTM at the Dubai Motor Show
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