Mercedes wishes to renew the Citan utility vehicle
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Mercedes wishes to renew the Citan utility vehicle
- A few months ago, Inovev indicated that certain agreements between Renault-Nissan and Daimler could be called into question, following the change of management at Daimler. First, the partnership between Renault and Smart on small A-segment cars will be discontinued. The future Renault Twingo scheduled for 2022 will be built on the Indian Kwid‘s platform (with the engine in the front) and no longer the Smart's platform (with the engine in the rear). Indeed, the Smart will no longer be produced in Europe, neither in two doors nor in four doors, as it will be produced in China, at Geely, in a new 100% electric generation.
- Then, the discontinuation of the Infiniti Q30/QX30 put an end to the technical agreements on C-segment compact cars between Nissan and Mercedes. The Mercedes Citan and X-Class SUVs derived from Renault and Nissan models are still in use.
- The future of the X-Class pickup remains unclear, but the case of the Citan has just been decided, with Mercedes choosing to continue working together with Renault Nissan on this type of vehicle, rather than developing a van, whose sales volumes will not exceed 25,000 units per year, on their own.
- The future Mercedes Citan will therefore take over the platform of the future Renault Kangoo expected in 2020 and which will be based on the future Dacia Dokker. However, its bodywork will be different from that of the Kangoo, because the manufacturer believes that the main handicap of the current generation of the Citan was that its body was too close to that of the Renault Kangoo. In addition, the future Citan (scheduled for 2021) will be available for the first time in a 100% electric version, like the Kangoo has been since 2011.
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Inovev forecasts 40,000 new Mercedes GLE coupes per year
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Inovev forecasts 40,000 new Mercedes GLE coupes per year
- Mercedes unveiled in Frankfurt the new generation of its E-segment SUV coupe, called the GLE coupe, but which could have had a specific name like its competitors, the BMW X6 and Audi Q8. That is why Inovev is publishing an analysis on this model, as for the Porsche Cayenne coupé.
- The GLE coupe is part of the still quite rare category of coupé SUVs, i.e. SUVs with a low roof and a fastback style in the rear section. These models are currently mainly German (Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche) and can be considered as the most sporty versions of the SUVs.
- These top-of-the-range vehicles are proving to be quite successful, with a volume of around 40,000 units per year for the first-generation Mercedes GLE coupé, 40,000 units for the BMW X6 or 50,000 units for the Audi Q8.
- The new generation Mercedes GLE coupé takes over the platform, engines and part of the GLE's bodywork launched in November 2018. It has a 6 cylinder 3.0 l. petrol engine of 390 hp and 6 cylinder diesel engine of 272 hp and 330 hp. An AMG V8 5.3 petrol version will be available next year and a plug-in hybrid version will follow.
- This new model will continue to be manufactured at Mercedes' North American site in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, at a rate of approximately 40,000 units per year.
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Inovev forecasts 50,000 new Hondas per year
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Inovev forecasts 50,000 new Hondas per year
- While Toyota does not sell any 100% electric vehicles, having relied heavily on hybrid engines (1.5 million sales annually), Nissan focuses on an electric sedan (the Leaf) and an electric pickup truck (the NV e-200), Mitsubishi is slowly letting its range of electric models expire, and Mazda refuses to commit to this new technology "as long as conventional vehicles comply with regulations" according to its president, Honda recently chose to enter this new market for 100% electric sedans via the launch of its city car (segment B sedan) simply called E.
- Produced at the Yorii site in Japan, this new model (program code 2EX) based on the PFE-S platform is aimed at all world markets, mainly Europe, the United States, China and Japan.
- The manufacturer's objective is to sell 50,000 units per year (equivalent to the distribution of Renault Zoé), including 10,000 in Europe, figures that corroborate Inovev's forecasts.
- The Honda E is 3.94m long, which places it between the Smart Forfour (3.50m) and the Renault Zoé (4.08m). It is 1.75m wide, 1.51m high and its wheelbase is 2.53m. Its price is 35,000 euros for the 136 hpversion and 38,000 euros for the 154 hp version, excluding government subsidies. The Honda E claims in all cases a range of 220 km according to the WLTP cycle. Its competitors will be the new Renault Zoé (50,000 units per year), the new electric Mini (50,000 units per year), the future electric Fiat 500 (80,000 units per year) and the future small electric sedans of the Volkswagen group.
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Inovev forecasts 25,000 Porsche Taycan per year
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Inovev forecasts 25,000 Porsche Taycan per year
- At the Frankfurt 2019 Motor Show, the Porsche brand (a subsidiary of the Volkswagen Group) presented the production version of its first 100% electric sedan, the Taycan. This model was prefigured by the Mission E concept, which was presented at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, four years ago. During this long period, Porsche had plenty of time to refine the bodywork and adjustments of its electric sedan.
- Slightly shorter than a Panamera sedan (4.96m vs. 5.05m), but 2cm wider (1.96m vs. 1.94m) and 4cm lower (1.38m vs. 1.42m), the Taycan is in the category of high-end models, due to its weight (2,295 kilos) and price (over 150,000 euros). In other words, it is more of an F-segment model than an E-segment model, as the manufacturer claims. The Taycan is indeed more expensive than most versions of the Panamera (100,000 to 200,000 euros). This will be one of the major obstacles to a high volume of Taycan sales.
- Its main competitors will be the Tesla Model S (80,000 to 100,000 euros) and the future Mercedes EQS, which will be launched in 2021 at a price close to 130,000 euros. Available in two versions, Turbo and Turbo S, with surprising names because there is no turbo in an electric engine, the Taycan promises an autonomy of 380km to 450km depending on the version and the WLTP cycle, even if it can occasionally reach a top speed of 260km/h.
- Taycan will be produced at the Porsche site in Stuttgart (Zuffenhausen) at a rate, according to Inovev, of 25,000 units per year.
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Inovev forecasts 100,000 new VW ID3 per year, including China
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Inovev forecasts 100,000 new VW ID3 per year, including China
- Volkswagen took advantage of the Frankfurt 2019 Motor Show to showcase its first sedan designed to be a 100% electric sedan from the start, the ID 3. The new generation Golf has been postponed for several weeks, and therefore did not get the exposure of the Frankfurt show while this model remains by far the best-selling model in both Germany and Europe. The manufacturer is thus showing its willingness to focus all its efforts on its 100% electric cars and no longer on its internal combustion engine cars.
- The ID 3 is a compact sedan (C segment) of the same size as a Golf, 4.26m long, 1.81m wide and 1.55m high. Produced from January 2020 at the German site in Zwickau (the Golf will stop there at the same time), the ID 3, which inaugurates the MEB platform, should see its production volume gradually increase, reaching more than 100,000 annual units from 2025. Inovev expects 45,000 units in 2020, 70,000 in 2021, 80,000 in 2022, 90,000 in 2023 and 100,000 in 2024.
- This production volume will mainly depend on the success of the model in China, the leading market for 100% electric vehicles, and in Europe, but there is no doubt that the manufacturer will encourage Volkswagen customers to switch from thermal to electric as quickly as possible.
- The ID 3 has a power of 150 hp or 204 hp and batteries that allow it a range of 330km or 420km according to the WLTP cycle. Prices range from 40,000 to 50,000 euros depending on power and finish, before deducting government subsidies.
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