As a marketplace that has been embracing automotive mobilization in a big way for over a decade, the intensity for which global automakers are still drumming to be more deeply involved in China. As auto factories and dealerships faced closure through North America as well as Europe, the Chinese auto sector is still on the grow as established brands such as Cadillac reaffirming their production commitment inside the China’s auto market.

Being held on the Year of the Dragon (a time associated with great prosperity and power), the 2012 Auto China in Beijing sees many car companies present daring designs and technology inside of a massive convention hall. Seeking immediate success with the pitch of production vehicles such as the Ford EcoSport, automakers are also displaying concept car projecting what could be fortunes of ingenuity and mobility for the future. This year’s presentation of concept cars at the Auto China is a forward look of globally compelling shapes of motoring.

BMW i8 Concept Spyder

If you have found the BMW i subcategory of vehicles somewhat lacking of sporting edge, 2012 Auto China has BMW chopping the top of their i8 concept car. The BMW i8 Concept Spyder applies the technology and philosophies serving eco-friendly driving in a performance car wrapper. A concept renewing the extensive use of carbon fiber reinforced polymers in the previous BMW i concept car, the i8 Concept Spyder seems to instantly embed itself into the realm of sports cars. The strategic placement of the plug-in hybrid powertrain on the BMW i8 Concept Spyder for near 50:50 weight distribution only solidities its potential performance credibility. Collectively propelling the BMW i8 Concept Spyder with 354 horsepower, a turbocharged three-cylinder engine powers the rear wheels while its front wheels are spun by an electric motor. The 0 to 62-mile per hour acceleration numbers for the BMW i8 Concept Spyder hammers away eco-car sceptics with 5-second runs en route to a top speed of 155 miles per hour. In the two-seat cockpit, the BMW i8 Concept Spyder delivers a full assortment of connectivity and interface aids tailored to make a driving experience completely involving.

Chevrolet EN-V 2.0

As Chevrolet expands to become a more globally identified brand, China’s massive marketplace is a chance to appeal to roughly one-sixth of the world population.

Presented as an advancement on the radical conveyance introduced first at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai, the Chevrolet EN-V 2.0 has been acclimatized to better accept a daily lifestyle of a user. A super compact two-seat concept vehicle designed for urban transportation, the Chevrolet EN-V (weighing just over 1,100 pounds) displayed a combination of advanced battery-powered travel and intelligent guidance systems. In making the vehicle more palatable for real-world use, the 2.0 version of the Chevrolet EN-V adds climate control and a personal storage compartment.

The Chevrolet EN-V 2.0 will be a subject of pilot studies inside China through the in future identifying the prospect of the electric vehicle in urban travel.

Audi RS Q3 Concept

Teasing no only the United States with the limited edition brilliance of their RS badged vehicles, Audi tempts China with the public appearance of a concept based on the Q3 compact crossover vehicle.

Giving the world a first-time look at what a crossover utility employing the German company’s highest level of performance tweaking, the Audi RS Q3 Concept is tastefully modified through the exterior and interior but features a powertrain that near matches the TT-RS sports car. Mated with all-wheel quattro drive, the Audi RS Q3 Concept is powered by a turbocharged and direct-injected 2.5 liter, five-cylinder engine. A 360-horsepower unit, the Audi RS Q3 Concept’s uses a seven-speed S Tronic transmission to distribute momentum across the high-performance utility vehicle. Estimated by Audi as capable of 0 to 62-mile per hour acceleration in just 5.2 seconds, the RS Q3 Concept is a rocket with all the practicality one expects from a crossover utility vehicle.

With no production set on the Audi RS Q3 Concept, the basic Q3 compact utility is said to have just been launched in China.

MG Icon

While the Morris Garage acronym is a figment of the past for North American automotive enthusiasts, the MG name has been operating under Chinese ownership since 2005 when Nanjing Automotive Group bought the company. Nanjing Automotive Group (now part of SAIC Motor Corporation Limited) effectively resurrected the historic MG brand for a new hatchback and sedan. A redesigned sports car is also in the planning stage for the new MG company that, despite China ownership, continues to be developed and built partly in Britain.

For the 2012 Auto China event, a concept of a sport utility crossover is being presented in MG form. The MG Icon radiates all the beloved styling DNA of the brand’s famous sports car but delivers passenger space and cargo room never seen inside of their cute roadsters. Modern MG proclaims the Icon concept uses rear end design spawned from the MGB GT. Seating inside fits up to four occupants in a so-called ‘shell’ layout. The MG Icon is merely a design study (at least for the meantime) keeping the heritage of a former British motoring badge alive.

Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupe

Like all luxury-geared automakers, Mercedes-Benz wants a piece of the higher-income Chinese socialite’s business. An increasing theme is for premium and exotic car builders to debut their latest design concepts in China wanting to give the Asian country the first chance to set pure eyesight on their vehicles. At the 2012 Auto China event, Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupe is a four-door embodying economical luxury in a masculine, high-performance shape.

Similar to the brand’s CLS-Class as an example of a four-door coupe, the Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupe is 11.93 inches shorter in overall length than the equally styled production vehicle. Mercedes-Benz clearly wants the audience of the Concept Style Coupe to be deceived from the actual size of the car. A long, sloping front end towards a Concept A-Class inspired grille, a panoramic roof and massive 21-inch wheels accomplishes Mercedes-Benz’s intent with the debonair Concept Style Coupe. The carbon fiber-laden interior of the Concept Style Coupe features high-technology items including a multimedia system using cloud-computing power.

Powered by a 211-horsepower turbocharged engine, the Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupe is driven by 4Matic all-wheel drive.

Lamborghini Urus

For a company identifying itself with a bull on its corporate insignia, it makes some sense to consider a somewhat rugged vehicle. Italian supercar builder Lamborghini has ignited some curiosity to onlookers who were long awaiting a peek at a crossover vehicle interpretation of their high-performance, ultra-exotic framework.

Shaped by the extensive use of a carbon fiber construction, the Lamborghini Urus offers a conceptual look at a modern super-performance sport utility vehicle. Debuting at the Chinese auto show in Beijing in a shimmering red paint colour, the Lamborghini Urus towers over the road with 24-inch wheels as opposed to their ground-hugging sports cars such as the Aventador. The Urus concept crossover is linked to a 600-horsepower engine that would feature the lowest possible CO2 emissions. A permanent all-wheel drive system and dual-clutch transmission is connected to the Lamborghini concept crossover.

If Lamborghini decides the build the four-passenger Urus concept, the traditionally sports car brand will not be making its first entrance into the truck-like product market. Lamborghini actually stepped into the exotic utility vehicle arena before when they sold the LM002 in the mid-1980s.

Information source: Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A., BMW Group, Daimler AG, General Motors, MG Motor UK Limited, VW Group

The British blokes at the Austin Rover Group hadn’t so much as sneered at works rallying since they swept the sport clean in the ‘60s with the Mini Cooper. . . . That’s not true. Most people in the states just don’t recall the other rally cars the Austin Rover Group campaigned, like the Triumph TR7 V8 that proved both competitive and reliable in the ‘70s – on this side of the pond the words “Triumph TR7” bring to mind later-middle-aged men with a handlebar mustaches, polo shirts tucked into khakis, and brown leather driving gloves with holes for the knuckles to breathe through. The TR7 V8 was retired in 1980, a year after Group B was announced, and the Austin Rover Group began pushing ideas around for a new rally car to compete in this new class. Austin Rover’s “Very High Performance Division” (yes, I’m serious) decided a mid-engine, all-wheel drive version of their popular Metro econo-hatch would do quite nicely.

Austin Rover Group didn’t fool around with the development of the their new Metro rally car, which ended up being called the MG Metro 6R4, they turned chassis and drivetrain development over to the capable folks at Williams Formula 1 Racing. Furthermore they decided real world testing on the U.K. rally circuit would produce a much better WRC car than if they’d simply tested the thing on their own, off stage, and then callously threw it in the heavyweight WRC ring. In 1984 the first Metro 6R4 prototypes showed up to rallies in England – on its first go round at the York National Rally that year the 6R4 set the fastest stage times on eight stages, that is until it retired after an alternator fire, of all things. At the time the Metro 6R4 was motivated by an off the shelf Rover V8 with two cylinders lopped off – not ideal. The new 3 liter motor, dubbed the V64V (V6, four valves per cylinder) was developed by an ex-Cosworth engineer and was the first engine ever designed specifically for rallying. Williams continued to tweak the rest of the car and the final result was a seam welded tubular chassis with a mid-mounted, naturally aspirated V64V pumping out 410hp that was clad in a heavily aero’d glass reinforced plastic body shell.

An early MG Metro 6R4 prototype.

The finalized MG Metro 6R4 made its WRC debut at the 1985 Lombard RAC Rally; it took third place on the podium, right behind two Lancia Delta S4s. That was a pretty good result for a first time out, considering the mind-bending performance of the Delta S4. This was the last time the Metro 6R4 was to place in a WRC rally, Austin Rover entered Metro 6R4s into the ‘86 season’s Monte Carlo Rally, the Swedish Rally, Rally Portugal, and Rally Corsica, but the cars failed to complete any of the events due to issues with the still very new V64V. Mid-way through the 1986 season, the FIA banned Group B from WRC for 1987 after a series of fatal accidents – the cars were deemed “too fast to race.” Thus, like many potentially great Group B rally cars, the MG Metro 6R4 never reached its full potential in World Rallying. At the end of the season Austin Rover pulled out of rallying and sold off all 6R4 parts and engines, those sold V64V engines later ended up in Jaguar’s XC220 supercar — with two turbos added on to help the car reach 220 mph. Like many other Group B cars, the 6R4 went on to become a popular and successful car in privateer Rallycross.

Jaguar's V64V powered XJ220.

Next Friday: Citroën’s B4 XTC

Here’s a neat little bit of auto and racing history, Carroll Shelby’s old MG TC race car that he privately campaigned. The car, Carroll’s first ever race car actually, was loaned to him by good friend Ed Wilkins at a road race in Norman, Oklahoma. Shelby won the race (natch), supposedly handling the Jaguar XK120s with ease (must have been a tight course).

This particular TC won the prestigious Collier Cup in 2005 at the all-MG vintage race in The Glen, and includes the SCCA Log Book. The race prepped 1250cc 4-cylinder engine cranks out 100+hp and is ready to race.

I had the opportunity to race against one of these once, a BRG with red leather interior, driven by an older Canadian guy from White Rock. No, it wasn’t all-winning, but he did embarrass some kids with hopped up civics and whatnot. The improvements in chassis design and tuning was visibly noticeable from 150 yards away … the TC would dive into a corner, turn in, lean-Lean-LEAN WAAAAAAAAY to the outside, then amazingly (and to great reliefe of the corner workers) take a set and glide through the corner like it was on rails.

Anyway, if you have the yenom and the garage space, you might want to swing by Vegas.

Source: Classical Drives