Image at Auto Zurich Media Day 2023: Open the stage for the stars of the trade fair

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Moderator Rainer-Maria Salzgeber (54) sets the pace at the beginning: “Each participant has exactly nine minutes to present their new products. After eight minutes I show the yellow card, and after nine minutes I show the red card. Background: At Auto Zurich’s newly created Media Day, which takes place one day before the official start of the show, manufacturers can present their most important trade show models to the media on an impromptu stage.

The offer is actively used: Skoda highlights the new Kodiaq right at the beginning of the fair. The length of the second version of the flagship SUV will increase by 6 centimeters to 4.76 meters, which will especially benefit passengers in the third row of seats. For the first time, Kodiaq features a plug-in hybrid drive with a system output of 204 hp and an electric range of up to 100 kilometers. The SUV will also continue to be offered with petrol and diesel engines; It only comes without the plug-in 4×4.

Sports electric vehicles are coming

At Seat’s sports subsidiary Cupra, the media scene is all electric. Tavascan, the second electric model after the compact Born, is beyond visually impressive. Beneath the dynamically shaped sheet metal, a 286 hp electric motor located at the rear axle will provide propulsion at market launch in early 2024; A sports version called VZ with 4×4, 340 hp and a range of more than 500 kilometers will arrive later. year.

At the moment, things continue to be sporty at German-Chinese manufacturer Smart. The new #3 no longer has anything in common with the small city car of old: the SUV Coupé is 4.40 meters long and, as the all-wheel drive version from Brabus, produces a whopping 428 hp, meaning it can reach speeds of up to 100 km per hour. h should go in 3.7 seconds. #3 will launch in January 2024; Then it will probably have prices starting from around 40,000 francs and a range of up to 455 kilometers.

The choice is big

Other highlights include Fiat’s new electric city car 600e, VW’s new electric flagship ID.7 and the second version of Toyota’s hybrid SUV coupe C-HR on the Auto Zurich Media Stage. As its European premiere, Peugeot is showcasing the coolly styled electric SUV e-3008, which can travel up to 700 kilometers on a single battery charge. And Honda does not miss the opportunity to park three new SUV models ZR-V, C-RV and e:Ny1 with hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric drive on the stage next to presenter Salzgeber.

“Luckily I don’t have to decide; it would be really hard to choose,” the SRF officer jokes. The exhibition halls are open to visitors until Sunday; Rainer-Maria Salzgeber will thus have sufficient time to compare in detail several outstanding works.

You can find more information and innovations about Auto Zurich 2023 at blick.ch/auto.

Source: Blick