Autocar Performance Show 2015 Report

Porsches, Jaguars, Volvos and Abarths gleam on the left. A Bentley, the Avanti, the monstrous M cars from BMW and the Spirit of Ecstasy herself, greet you on the right. And this was just as soon as you stepped into the venue of the Autocar Performance Show 2015. This year’s APS marked the tenth anniversary of Mumbai’s biggest automotive exhibitions. As the previous years, the hottest set of wheels were brought out on the MMRDA grounds for a good four days, from October 29 to November 1, 2015. You could find everything from Ferraris to Moto Guzzis, all under one roof. What more could you have asked for?

How about an all-out Autocross battle in true gymkhana style? Maruti had that covered too, right in the backyard. To add to the off-road attractions, Toyota organised a 4x4 challenge to showcase the capabilities of its Fortuner. This year, APS also played host to Mercedes’ Mumbai leg of the ‘Safe Roads’ initiative.

Besides all the hot wheels showcased, the show, as per tradition, housed all that you needed to keep your automobile spic, span and shiny; be it car care products, or chromed- out bits to add that extra bling to your ride. And how could anyone forget the Stuff Gadget show 2015? In its fourth year now, the electronics exhibition has grown by leaps and bounds since its inception in 2012. 

Here are all the brands stood proud and tall at APS 2015.

Cars:

Rolls-Royce
Starting with the big guns, the Rolls-Royce Wraith was the first car to welcome every guest to the show. Despite being the only display vehicle in its stand, its opulence was enough to bring in a horde of admirers.

DC
Next in line was Dilip Chhabria’s Avanti, two of them, one orange and the other in gray, was on display at the DC floor. The homegrown two-door, mid-engined sports car is the first of its kind from India meant for mass production.

Porsche
Porsche’s line-up included the 400bhp Macan Turbo, the fantastic looking Boxster GTS, the blood-red Cayenne GTS and the iconic 911 Turbo S.

Jaguar and Land Rover
The two British marques shared a common floor, with the XJ from Jaguar and the Discovery Sport from the Land Rover stable standing on either side of the top-of-the-line, navy blue Range Rover Sport SVR, which led the power race with all of its supercharged 542bhp.

Bentley
Bentley chose to bring in its new Flying Spur to the 2015 APS for the second time in a row. Needless to say, the five-plus metre luxury limo made quite a statement at the APS entrance.

Mercedes-AMG
Mercedes had already chosen APS as their venue of choice to put their latest safety tech on display through the ‘Safe Roads’ initiative. So they let the latest AMGs steal the show at the stand. And boy, did the S 63, the C63 S and the crazily colored G63 steal the show in all their V8 biturbo glory!

Volvo
Safety, build quality and reliability. That’s what every car from the Scandinavian brand epitomises. And to put these qualities into perspective across its range of cars available here in India, Volvo chose to display the V40 hatchback, the S60 sedan and a pearl white XC90 SUV with Thor’s Hammer.

BMW
Bang in front of the Scandinavians, stood the brutish Bavarians. And to represent all their grunt, they put up the M3, the M4, the brawny new X6 M and the sleek and stylish Z4 convertible.

Mini
The British small car specialist kept it simple as always with its three-door and five-door diesel hatchbacks. Both cars come powered by a 1.5-litre, three-cylinder, twin-power turbocharged engine from BMW.