The São Paulo international auto show will pass into history as one of the most important in the 50-year series.
Though short of major-impact launches, the exhibits drew 750,000 visitors in 11 days. The public enjoyed model diversity from Chery’s subcompact at R$23,000/US$13,000 to the Pagani Zonda R supersports stickered at R$10million/$6m.
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The 31 new Chinese products again raised doubts about the Brazilian buyer being really ready to decide upon price alone.
Local analyst Letícia Costa reckons it will be difficult for the Chinese to get beyond 3% to 4% market share in the next few years.
Marcos Munhoz, communications director for GM, suggests the return of an auto sector ‘discussion chamber (the first was in 1991) in order that the entire auto producing chain and government discuss the decrease in competitiveness.
One must rethink the future, anyway. The 35% import duty on built-up cars does not balance out the high cost of local production.
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By GlobalDataOn the other hand, the Japanese are dealing with their strong domestic currency to produce new models here – the initial roster of Toyota and Mitsubishi now being joined by Suzuki. Hyundai and Chery also plan Brazilian plants.
Kia has understood the importance of our domestic market and, for the first time, a generalist automaker has developed a flexible-fuel engine (Soul 1.6) even before establishing an industrial base in the country. Bentley and Koenigsegg also offered similar engines at the show.
Ethanol producers, for the first time too, invested in an interactive, 4,300sq ft stand to snare the public and outline the fuel’s environmental advantages. After all, hybrid and electric alternatives remain in the headlines but out of Brazilian reality.
The main auto show firsts are yet to go on sale: Fiat Bravo, Peugeot 408 and Renault Fluence, the last two made in Argentina. From Mexico [with which Brazil has a free trade agreement] came the lastest VW Jetta and Nissan March [Micra], planned for the first half of 2011.
The first full hybrid to land here, the US Ford Fusion, even without customs duties (it also comes from Mexico) will be priced at R$134,000/$79,000, or 50% more than the conventional, I4 petrol version.
The electric Nissan Leaf is expected for an estimated R$200,000/$118,000. There is no subsidy big enough for this price abyss. The car was displayed on the grounds that the local city hall is considering buying 50.
The auto show also focused on Brazilian design creativity. The concept Fiat Mio is designed to house motors at each wheel.
A daring model that impressed all was the Vorax supersports, built by the recently created Rossin-Bertin brand. Powered by a V10 BMW engine, it is scheduled to go on sale in the first half of 2012 for R$700,000/$412,000. The factory located in Blumenau, southern Santa Catarina state, plans to pump out 50 units in the first year and up to 300 in three years.
