Bangkok Motor Expo 2007

[motoyen]

I went and checked out the Motor Expo here in Thailand. Due to high import duties new cars are generally 2-3 times more expensive than cars in the West, $250,000 for a BMW X5 anyone?! So I was curious as to what type of cars would be on display?

Walking into the showroom the first display I saw was from Korean car maker SsangYong Motors, formally known as Dong-A Motor, their cars looked like a cross between the Pontiac Aztek and the 7 series BMW.





Ugly and boring seemed to be the popular theme with the Koreans and Hyundai didn't disappoint with this silver blob.



There was a large number of cars on display from various Malaysian car makers but as Top Gear pointed out there are no good Malaysian cars so I didn't bother taking any pictures, although the cars seemed quiet popular with the Thais.

The Southern California trend of making your car look as stupid as possible has crossed the ocean and make it's way to Bangkok. What's really annoying is to see major manufacturers embrace this crap. Toyota gave prime showroom space to this pink disaster.



Even old school BMW's could not escape the bad taste of their owners.



3D flames anyone?



Notice that this particular owner decided that it would be more important to have the his stereo deck right in front of him instead of the instrument console. Of course it's an automatic.



I really wish this trend of bling bling cars and speakers sprouting out from every body panel would die. Move on already people, F&F came out 6 years ago!



Even Kia is getting in on the trend.



I did see one E30! Nice clean M-technic body kit, Alpina wheels, poor car probably didn't know what it was doing at this show.




Next I came across what has got to be the ugliest super car I have ever seen. Made by Mitsuoka it is called the Orochi. Mitsuoka is a small Japanese company which builds cars to resemble British cars from the 1950s and 1960s. Apparently this car was made to resemble a frog. Notice it's an auto.





26,000,000THB ($848,318.00) for a Lamborghini Gallardo!



Audi had the R8 on display. I'm not a huge fan of VW/Audi because to me their cars feel like parts-bin cars. I don't find anything unique about them, they are just a combination of VW/Audi/Lambo/ bits thrown together. Top Gear raves about the performance of this car, with even Hamster conceding that it's better than the 911. The styling didn't wow me, it looks like a recycled design from the TT.




Finally I arrived at the one car I had come to see. The Bugatti Veyron! 1001BHP, a top speed of over 400KM/H, 4 turbos, 10 radiators, a price tag of over $1million and I didn't like it.

I walked around the car for some time, looking at all the angles but the more I looked the more it looked like, dare I say it, the Audi TT. The design of this car has no WOW to it. I remember the first time I saw a Ferrari F40 I almost shit my pants it looked so amazing! I think the Porsche 997 TT or the Ferrari F430 is a better looking car than the Veyron. The technology in this car is amazing and really only something the Germans with deep pockets could pull off but the design doesn't signify the technological achievement that this car is. It would be like if the Death Star was the size of a basketball.

What do you guys think? Do you like the design of the Veyron?






So my first Asian car show and what did I see? A marriage between the Aztek and the 7 series, more rice than an Asian supermarket. A frog like supercar and the world most expensive Volkswagen. At least the girls were cute!








Larger pictures here.

[Blakeoffire]

Excellent mini-report there Anthony...

It must have been difficult to walk around a place so highly decorative in automotive tackiness without dropping your head to your chest in both disgust and fascination. I saw pics of that amazingly horrific, er.. Frog-Supercar a few months back and I was similarily drowned in furrowed brows and shouts of "ugh..! My Gawd...why would this happen..?!?" ...before I read-on to realize that it was from that part of the world.. Ghastly, isn't it..?

Having driven (like, really driven) an Audi S4 Avant with the 4.2 litre V8, all hunkered down in those truly phenomenal Recaro seats (the most comfortable I have ever been in) I'd have to disagree, just a little, with your views on the VW/Audi/Lambo/Seat/Skoda/Bugatti...um, Empire. Definitely, you're going to see cross-polination between different models in the parts-bin dept. of manufacturing. But, in this case, is that really such a bad thing..? Their products absolutely reek of quality. Not to mention the outstanding materials, performance, fit-and-finish, etc. Plus, show me an Aston or Jag that doesn't have Ford buttons and dials in them....

Also, I'd have to disagree with your summation of the R8. That design was in the bag for the R8 many years before the recently face-lifted TT came out. If anything, the new TT looks like a miniature version of the R8..! I like it, a lot, in fact. There's a white one parked-up in our carpark lot that belongs to the owner of said carpark and I'm just all... ...whenever I see it in the metal. Silver is its most boring/safe colour too. Plus, I don't like the painted wheels on that one you photographed at the show. Detracts from the overall effect...

The Bugatti. An amazing feat of engineering, without doubt. I've always understood that the body needed to be as slippery and compact as the final design because of the aerodynamic issues at 250 mph..? Who knows. It's more of a missile than an everyday car...even though you could easily drive it everyday.

Once again, nice report Anthony. Thanks for delivering it to us...!


B.

[Mark D.]

Wow thanks for the pics and report. Excellent reading. The asian models were cute as well.
The Veyron is amazing, 400kph? The video on Top Gear confirms. I agree the styling lacks compared to Porsche and Ferrari .
Regarding Audi, I stopped by the dealer in my 318is last week. The salesman of course ignored me. I have to say I prefer the styling of the S4 sedan and S5 coupe much better than the R8.

[E30M20B25]

Anthony, it is people like you why I love reading bimmerclassics!

That was better than any auto magazine I could get around here.

I must admit that we all share the same opinion but man that was a hilarious read.

Damn what they did to that 5 series! I had to use the bathroom after seeing that!

And yes you are right about newer vehicles and their lack luster visual quality; I was not to impressed with the Bugatti either; I found it to be a rather plain looking powerhouse; although it is almost like a sleeping giant.

I agree with the older designs being amazing!!

I creamed myself the first time I saw a countach! I thought that it would take off and down Russian MiGs when you were not looking.

However even new VW's can be impressive; I saw a Phaeton a while back in Victoria and I was sincerely impressed.

The older gentleman even let me sit inside as he saw me scrutinizing his 75k$ "people's car" (although I don't know many people that can blow 75k on a car) and inside it was filled with constructive and useful gadgetry! Like a retractable sun drape (like a visor that covers the whole side window that comes out from the base) and a rear passenger control system, etc.

All and all it was solid!

But yes, by no means the same shock as the F40 or dare I say, even the DeLorean! (fun as hell to be in, but surprisingly not very quick *I am talking about the DeLorean not the F40, the F40 would make me shit my pants then come back ten minutes later to finish me off with a heart attack!)

Sorry, I am getting off topic again!

Nonetheless, Awesome review and *Interesting* vehicles.

As for froggy; I would not mind taking it for a spin... Once... at night ... on a closed course... where no one could see me... ^_^

[Initial D.oug]

the Orochi frog-car looks like a melted Mercedes SL55

[G-rex]

Are you sure they're all girls?

[ClassicScot]

the veyron is amazing not economic at all but mechanically.. and as a man made machine is great to see and watch.... I LOVE IT.

[FrustratedMunky]

lol strong words, i wouldn't mind the last one, not at all

[motoyen]

Originally Posted by Blakeoffire Definitely, you're going to see cross-polination between different models in the parts-bin dept. of manufacturing. But, in this case, is that really such a bad thing..? Their products absolutely reek of quality. Not to mention the outstanding materials, performance, fit-and-finish, etc. Plus, show me an Aston or Jag that doesn't have Ford buttons and dials in them....

It is bad the higher up the model ladder you go. When the Bentley Continental GT came out it had the EXACT same key as a VW Golf! The interior is lifted directely from the Audi A8/VW Phaeton. If I was going to spend that kind of money I want something unique. The only reason VW can get away with it is because most owners never spend as much time in other cars like I have.

I agree that some cross polination is going to happen but what bugs me about VW is they are so blatant about it. If you can find the episode of Top Gear where they review the Gallardo, Jermey talks about how it's nice that everything works now but some of the magic is gone.

If you sit in a Lambo/VW/Audi as often as I have you start to see how similar the cars are and that's where the magic is gone. I want my Lambo to "feel" like a Lambo, not a VW Golf. Jump between the Gallardo and a F430 and you'll know exactly what I mean.

Also I have to disagree about the quality of the cars, the cars reek alright but it ain't quality. But this isn't unique to VW/Audi as all manufactures are making crap right now. Even brand new cars from BMW/Mercedes look good but if you were to compare the quality of the workmanship over the last 10 years you would see how crap the modern cars are. New cars are designed to look good for the few years they are leased by the owner. I would suggest that no car being made today will look as good as our cars do in 20 years.

[VtwinVince]

Sorry, but I have to agree with everything in the review, what a pile of crap. The only decent looking car there was the E30, which is a pretty sad commentary. The Veyron has a zillion HP? Who cares? It's not like real people can either afford this abomination, or drive it to it's potential. And I agree that these so-called supercars are parts bin specials, created by multi-brand conglomerates run by suits who wouldn't know motorsport if it klonked them on the head. The current auto industry is like a metaphor for the rest of the current culture, creatively bankrupt and rehashing a bunch of crap that we've seen a million times before.

[E30_boy]

SsangYong Motors uses Mercedes-benz engines and parts. The first car looks like a modified R-class

[Cacciatore08]

R class is not a Mercedes-Benz it's a Chrysler Pacifica...

[E30_boy]

Originally Posted by Cacciatore08 R class is not a Mercedes-Benz it's a Chrysler Pacifica...

Please do us all a favor and think before you speak. I work for Mercedes-Benz Canada, the Pacifica has nothing to do with the R-class.