Fall Shakeout

The auto show season kicks off this month in Frankfurt, and it will be followed in rapid succession by the biannual October confab in Tokyo and the Detroit show in January.

Plenty of product and business news is expected at Frankfurt, where Europe's auto makers typically pull out the stops at what is the continent's largest show.

Auto makers plan several significant product unveilings, but Frankfurt also is the first international show since a major executive upheaval at DaimlerChrysler AG and a potentially far-reaching business-and ethics-practices scandal at struggling giant Volkswagen AG.

Volkswagen and DC, ironically, were predicted to announce at Frankfurt a venture that would see DC's Chrysler Group producing a version of its next-generation minivan for VW to badge and sell in North America.

VW, desperate for new product in the U.S. after the failure of its Phaeton flagship and a lukewarm initial U.S. response to the all-new Jetta, is no stranger to minivan joint ventures: VW enjoyed a long and successful joint manufacturing venture with Ford Motor Co. for European people-movers.

Volkswagen's Audi AG upscale brand is making one of the biggest splashes at Frankfurt by unveiling the production version of its Q7 cross/utility vehicle.

Audi, late to the party with a CUV competitor for its Mercedes M-Class and BMW X5 rivals — not to mention a raft of solid Japanese and American entries — teased for some time with pre-production versions. But now the real-deal 7-passenger Q7 will be on sale in Europe in a month.

Initially, the Q7 will be powered by Audi's 4.2L DOHC gasoline V-8, which for '06 gets FSI direct fuel injection and now is rated at 350 hp and 325 ft.-lbs. (440 Nm) of torque. An optional 3L 6-cyl. turbodiesel, rated at 233 hp and 369 ft.-lbs. (500 Nm) of torque, also will be available in Europe, with a 4.2L twin-turbo diesel V-8 reportedly also available next year for Europe.

Audi's 4.2L V-8 and 3.2L V-6 gasoline engines likely will power North American Q7s when they go on sale early next year.

Mercedes-Benz, meanwhile, reputedly has a hybrid surprise up its sleeve for Frankfurt. “I can confirm we will show something concerning hybrid technology,” a Mercedes spokeswoman says.

The auto maker reportedly plans to reveal a hybrid-electric vehicle (HEV) version of its large S-Class sedan and an HEV variant of the CLK roadster. Both feature a diesel IC engine with integrated starter-generator technology.

The spokeswoman tells Ward's it is too early to confirm diesel technology is part of the company's initial HEV rollout, however.

Diesel is a likely option for any HEV for Mercedes, given its commitment to the fuel in Europe and its pushing new-technology diesel to the U.S. market.

Volvo Car's all-new 4-seat convertible bows at the show. The C70 successor has an innovative retractable 3-piece hardtop that converts the vehicle into a coupe at the touch of a button. Also new is a side inflatable curtain to improve head protection in side impacts and rollovers.

About the same size as the current C70, the new model accommodates four occupants. It uses the same platform as the S40 and V50 models. Pininfarina SpA designed the body, but Volvo engineers gave it extra rigidity and safety to compensate for the topless mode.

Renault SA debuts a pair of unusual concepts: the Egeus luxury cross/utility vehicle and the Clio RenaultSport small car.

Egeus represents Renault's vision of the high-end CUV, blending traits from traditional wagons, sedans and utility vehicles. A vast greenhouse featuring a rounded windshield and bubble-shaped glazed roof with transparent panels produces a revolutionary SUV silhouette.

Power for the Egeus comes from a 250-hp 3L V-6 turbodiesel that features a particulate filter and is Euro 4 emissions-compliant. A 7-speed automatic transmission with manual shift function improves the engine's efficiency and transfers power to the fully automatic all-wheel-drive system, which can shift up to 100% of the engine's power to any wheel, Renault says.

The Clio RenaultSport concept, a performance-design study by Renault Sport Technologies that heralds the debut of the new Clio III small car, is set to go on sale in early 2006, Renault says.

Chrysler Group's iconic Jeep brand also debuts a pair of concepts. Both are front-wheel drive — a risky foray for Jeep — and are aimed at entry-level buyers.

And the forthcoming Dodge Caliber small car, a Neon replacement, also is shown with at least three first-ever features for Chrysler: all-wheel drive, a continuously variable transmission (CVT) and a menu of global engines that are shared with Asian auto makers.

Both Jeep concepts hint at production vehicles Jeep plans to announce next year, a spokesman says. The more radical of the two, the off-road racing-inspired Compass Rallye, is similar to the 2002 Compass concept and strikes a similar pose to the Caliber, although it is 3 ins. (7.6 cm) higher and has devoted sheet metal.

Its counterpart is the Jeep Patriot, which Chrysler calls a convincing mix of Jeep's retired Cherokee design and the upcoming 7-passenger Commander.

The Patriot will be priced for accessibility, if built, and will be equipped with FWD/4WD. Chrysler says Jeep buyers are not completely married to 4WD, as 25% of buyers opt for RWD only.

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. was slated to showcase at Frankfurt its deeper range of small cars with the debut of the NOTE, an innovative new small family car; the Micra C+C, a trendy coupe/convertible; and the new sporting Micra 160SR.

General Motors Corp. plans to give the Chevy Aveo sedan its European premier, as well as the production version of the FWD Cadillac BLS sedan.

The Opel Astra twin-top — another affordable car with a retractable hardtop — will enjoy its world premier, as was the Vectra OPC, a high-performance variant of the Vectra fitted with a 260-hp turbocharged variant of GM's global V-6.

GM also plans a “surprise” Frankfurt unveiling that, at press time, the world's largest auto maker would not detail.