Opel Tigra TwinTop

Ten years ago, the Opel Tigra reinvented the 2+2 baby coupe market in Europe and went on to become a market leader in its segment. Opel would love this new Tigra to achieve the same success and at first sight the new car has a lot of appeal for the growing numbers of baby cabrio buyers.

The highlight of the design is the electro-hydraulic, retractable steel roof developed by Heuliez. The car is well proportioned, with a strongly diving beltline, strong face and large taillamps. The optional contrast colour for the rear pillar helps lighten the profile, while neat detailing gives a touch of spice to the design.

With a more grown-up looking exterior design than a StreetKa and a less-compromised profile than the Peugeot 206CC or Mini Cabrio, the Tigra TwinTop seems to get the aesthetic balance between roof mechanism, occupants and trunk space just right. NH

Mazda MX-Flexa concept

Billed as a concept, the MX-Flexa is really a thinly-disguised preview of a forthcoming new production MPV to sit above the Premacy in Mazda’s line-up. The aim for the design team at Hiroshima was to come up with a design that isn’t heavy-handed or over-styled but well proportioned, graceful and with clear Mazda DNA. To that end the design succeeds.

The interior of this six-seater space wagon is a composition of white, silver and blue surfaces to suggest brightness and quality, with a dash-mounted gearshift similar to Ford’s C-Max. Rear passengers enter via sliding rear doors and the rear seats all fold flat using Mazda’s 1-touch ‘Karakuri’ function, introduced on the Mazda6.

Imagine it without the LED headlamps and with revised bumper offsets and you’ve got a handsome mainstream C-MPV ready for launch this Autumn. Dimensions are: length 4470mm (175 inches), width 1745mm (68.7inches), height 1650mm (64.9inches), wheelbase 2750mm (108 inches). NH

ItalDesign Alfa Visconti concept

The Visconti is a proposal for a future Alfa 166 from Guigiaro. This large sedan mock-up model develops the proportions and surfaces from the Kubang SUV concept and combines them with the Alfa face introduced on the 156 facelift and Brera concept from ItalDesign.

The falling tail, raised trunklid and trapezoid taillamp shapes are reminiscent of earlier Guigiaro Bugatti concepts from a few years ago but the proportions are updated with slightly harder edges and a pronounced haunch over the rear wheelarch to give a dynamic look to this orthodox, yet handsome design.

It shares the 4x4 running gear of the new Alfa Crosswagon also launched this week at Geneva but adds four-wheel steering for improved handling. NH

ItalDesign Toyota Volta concept

A second concept from ItalDesign is this hybrid supercar which debuts in Geneva this week. Named after Alessandro Volta, who invented the electric battery in 1800, the Volta uses the running gear of the Lexus RX400h, with a 3.3L V6 mounted midships and a boost battery driving each axle.

The side view is characterised by two upper side strakes that run into the scissor-type door and side exhausts down at sill level. At the rear, exposed rear suspension coils are visible under the glass tailgate. The forms and body graphics are not especially radical but rather show a strong feeling of earlier Guigiaro designs, particularly those from the 1970’s.

The three-across interior features drive-by-wire controls, allowing a variable driving position between left, centre or right. On the ItalDesign stand, three versions of the car were shown: the original milled 1:1 mock-up in red, a carbon-fibre chassis and tub and the finished prototype painted in silver. NH

Fioravanti Kite concept

Leonardo Fioravanti, the former Pininfarina designer, has shown a number of interesting concepts at Geneva over the past few years. The Kite is the latest in this series and continues the exploration of LED headlamp technology and the L-F emblem for the front face.

The most interesting aspect of this design is the great subtlety of surfaces along the bodyside. Very slight changes of surface angle create a mirage-like L-shaped graphic as one moves around the car and a silver finish is chosen to show this to best effect. The ‘kite’ motif is represented in the sweeping roof shape in plan, which extends down below the rear beltline. Compared to the delicate lower bodyside, this roof treatment seems a bit heavy-handed but the dot treatment is an intriguing continuation of the taillamp LED theme.

Dimensions are: length 4444mm (174.8 inches), width 1894mm (74.6 inches), height 1330mm (52.3 inches), wheelbase 2720mm (107 inches). NH

SEAT Altea

Based on the Golf 5 platform, the new Altea is introduced at the Geneva show as a production model in the SEAT line-up. Changes from the concept model shown at the IAA in September are relatively few and mainly confined to the rear of the car, while the interior is carried over almost unchanged.

The revised tail end and rear bumper treatment result in a much taller and heavier-looking rear now that the sharp intersection of rear quarter window and tailgate has been softened to facilitate a one-piece side pressing. Pity those hidden rear door handles had to go too. Nevertheless, the Altea represents probably the most successful interpretation of a sporty compact MPV yet seen and will doubtless become a key model for SEAT brand in Europe. NH

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