Let’s have a look at my picks for the best, worst and biggest surprises at the 2018 Paris motor show.
Best Production Car: Mercedes-AMG A35
AMG’s answer to the S3, Golf R and upcoming M135i has been years in the making, and I’m glad it’s here. 225kW, 400Nm, 0-100 in 4.7 – it is certainly no slouch. If this is just entry-level A-Class AMG, the top-rung A45 is bound to be brilliant.
Best Concept: Skoda Vision RS
The stunning Peugeot e-Legend would have taken this award, if it wasn’t for Skoda announcing this past week that the Vision RS will actually make it to production in the form of the Golf-rivalling, next-generation Rapid, set to make its debut before the end of 2018. The concept car uses a 180kW hybrid system, consisting of a 1.5-litre turbo-four and a single electric motor – the 0-100km/h sprint is covered in 7.1 seconds, and you’re guaranteed to look great while doing it.
Worst Car: Renault EZ-Ultimo
All the production cars revealed at the show were fantastic, but this French concept certainly was not. If this is what autonomous vehicles will look like in the future, I will be very disappointed. It’s just another ugly, unrealistic electric concept, advertised with words such as ‘electric mobility’ and ‘smart cities’.
Biggest Surprise: Mercedes-Benz B-Class
This is the new B-Class. You read that right. How could the ugly duckling of the Benz range look so damn good?! The A-Class still looks better, but this isn’t far off. Nice job Mercedes, this is an MPV you can be proud of parking in your driveway.
