Η Eterniti Motors παρουσίασε και επίσημα το Hemera, το πολυτελές SUV που ετοίμασε. Το Hemera θα είναι το πρώτο υπερπολυτελές SUV του κόσμου το οποίο θα έχει πίσω καμπίνα παρόμοια με μιας λιμουζίνας, αφού θα διαθέτει δύο ανακλινόμενα καθίσματα, iPads, ψυγείο, και ότι άλλο μπορείς να φανταστείς έτσι ώστε να σου προσφέρει την απόλυτη πολυτέλεια.
Το αυτοκίνητο της Φρανκφούρτης είναι ακόμη σε μορφή πρωτότυπου με το μοντέλο παραγωγής να είναι έτοιμο μέσα στο 2012. Βασίζεται πάνω στο σασί της Porsche Cayenne το οποίο έχει δεχτεί μερικές βελτιώσεις, με το σώμα του να έχει πολλά carbon μέρη έτσι ώστε να προσφέρει καλύτερες επιδόσεις.
Μηχανικά φορά τον V8 twin-turbo 4.8-λίτρων που αποδίδει 620 άλογα με την κίνηση να μεταφέρεται σε όλους τους τροχούς. Τα 0-100 χλμ/ώρα τα κάνει σε 4.5 δευτ με την τελική ταχύτητα να αγγίζει τα 290 χλμ/ώρα.
Επικεφαλής μηχανικός είναι ο Alastair Macqueen, ο οποίος ήταν υπεύθυνος για την ανάπτυξη της Jaguar XJ220, ενώ έχει κερδίσει τον 24-ωρο αγώνα του Le Mans τόσο με την Jaguar όσο και με την Bentley. Στην ομάδα της Eterniti, υπάρχει επίσης ο πρώην οδηγός της F1, Johnny Herbert, ο οποίος θα έχει ενεργό συμμετοχή στην ανάπτυξη των οχημάτων της ενώ παράλληλα θα είναι και πρεσβευτής της φίρμας.
Η τιμή του ξεκινά από τις £150.000 (€171.000) με τις πρώτες παραδώσεις να γίνονται μέσα στο 2012. Θα έχει τριετή εγγύηση και η τιμή θα περιλαμβάνει και την υπηρεσία flying doctor” service. Η Eterniti Motors αναφέρει ότι προσδοκά να πουλήσει 30 μονάδες μέσα στο 2012 ενώ θα ανοίξει και αντιπροσωπεία στο Λονδίνο.
Τέλος έδωσε και τα πρώτα σκίτσα από ένα νέο supercar που θα παρουσιάσει μέσα στον επόμενο χρόνο. Περισσότερες λεπτομέρειες μπορείς να βρεις στο δελτίο τύπου που ακολουθεί.
[Πηγή: Eterniti Motors | Live Photos Copyright: Autoblog.nl]
[learn_more caption=”Δελτίο Τύπου”]
NEW BRITISH CAR COMPANY DEBUTS AT FRANKFURT INTERNATIONAL MOTOR SHOW (IAA)
Eterniti Hemera Prototype – The World’s First Super-SUV
Eterniti Motors, Stand A80, Hall 6.1
Eterniti Motors, a new luxury carmaker, makes its public debut today at the Frankfurt IAA, the world’s largest automotive motor show, and is previewing a prototype of its first product, the Hemera.
Brand Launch and Hemera Preview
When launched next year the Hemera will become the world’s first Super-SUV, providing new levels of luxury, exclusivity and performance in an SUV to create a new niche. The body of the car shown at Frankfurt closely reflects the final production version, although that will have bespoke Eterniti LED headlamps and lenses. All panels are new and made of carbon composite. The interior, which will be almost 100% unique to Eterniti, is in the final stages of prototype testing and will be revealed later in the year.
Eterniti is backed by a group of international investors and is an independent, boutique British marque, uniquely based in London, where it is establishing a hub with not only a showroom but an atelier and a build facility where bespoke vehicles can be created and hand-built on-site to any specification required. The facilities will be completed later this year, followed by further Eterniti-owned showrooms from 2012 in key overseas markets.
The business aims to help satisfy a growing demand for additional luxury and personalised specifications among wealthy car buyers, particularly in major cities, global wealth centres and emerging markets ranging from London to the Asia-Pacific region.
The company’s debut vehicle will be a first step towards becoming a fully-fledged carmaker but will fully reflect the bespoke luxury objective. The Hemera will be the first product in a space which Bentley, Maserati and Aston Martin, with the Lagonda brand, have identified for future product. It will be based on the most dynamic version of VW Group’s latest-generation large SUV platform, the best in the industry. At Eterniti it will undergo a complete chassis-up rebuild, including a new, re-packaged interior, and the light-weight carbon-composite re-skin. It will also have additional engine performance, with the 4.8-litre twin-turbo V8 engine producing over 620bhp for a top speed in excess of 180mph.
The Hemera will feature a limousine-like rear cabin, including twin electrically-reclining rear seats with heating and cooling, twin iPads with wireless keyboards, and a drinks chiller. This satisfies a specific – and currently unmet – need, particularly in Asian markets, for a car suitable for being chauffeured in as well as driving. Unlike a conventional limousine, an SUV’s relatively compact footprint and wheelbase allow it to offer excellent handling and driver appeal, and the ride height and ruggedness are suitable for poor road surfaces which can make limousines and conventional high-performance cars impractical.
Production will start early in 2012, with deliveries by the summer. Prices have yet to be confirmed, but will be around £150,000 for the standard vehicle. Buyers will receive a full, three-year warranty. Warranty and servicing work will be carried out on-site in London, with collect-and-return and supplemented by a ‘flying doctor’ service. Customers will have access to finance and insurance depending on the market.
People
Although Eterniti is basing its business case around meeting market needs, its people have a passion for cars. The team has extensive experience in retailing some of the most prestigious British and European luxury and high-performance car brands, including Aston Martin, Porsche, Bentley and Ferrari, in markets from the UK to Asia-Pacific. It has further experience in motor sport.
The engineering team is led by Alastair Macqueen, who was responsible for the development of the Jaguar XJ220 supercar to production and has won the Le Mans 24-Hour race three times, with both Jaguar and Bentley. Eterniti also has its own F1 driver, Johnny Herbert, like Macqueen victorious at Le Mans but in addition a winner of three Grands Prix during a ten-year Formula 1 career, including one for the British Stewart team. Johnny will have an active involvement in developing Eterniti vehicles as well as serving as an ambassador for the brand. Alastair and Johnny have a long association, having both graduated from the Eddie Jordan stable and then competed together at Bentley. The trim operation is headed by one of the luxury car industry’s leading interior trim specialists, who has worked closely with marques including Bentley.
Future
Eterniti has a long-term plan. It will be opening an Asia-Pacific hub in Hong Kong in 2012, and showrooms in Tokyo and Taipei are scheduled to open by the end of the year. Representation in China will be established from 2013. The product plan includes a second Hemera derivative for 2012. Plans for another SUV and a high-performance car which could form the basis of a racing programme are currently being developed.
BRAND
As a new, independent car company, Eterniti Motors is small and recognises the need to be smart and offer something different.
London
Eterniti is unique in being based in London but it is there for a reason. Not only is the UK home to many of the most revered luxury car brands, and best engineers and craftsmen, but London is a world economic capital. It is where the world’s wealthy and influential converge. Eterniti will offer London a spiritual successor to the now defunct Bristol Cars showroom, but with a full infrastructure on site including build facilities.
The company will not only try to meet the demand for higher levels of luxury, bespoke specifications and exclusivity, but is aiming to produce vehicles with British engineering, craftsmanship and soul running through them.
Eterniti’s London hub will provide a physical presence in the city and a place where customers can easily talk to the company in person – not over the internet or through a third-party dealership. The comprehensive complex covering almost 7000 square metres is in Park Royal, North-West London – the historical home of the great coachbuilder Mulliner Park Ward – with a showroom, car build and service centre, and a separate atelier. The complex will be ready this autumn.
Atelier and Build
The facilities will allow customers to discuss their requirements with sales personnel and trim experts to create a bespoke specification. In the Nyx Atelier – named after the Greek goddess of night time who was mother to Hemera, the goddess of daylight – they can choose from a wide range of body colours and trim options, ranging from the finest leathers and woods to state-of-the-art materials like clear carbon. Or they can specify whatever their imaginations can dream up – if they want platinum or gem stones then they can have them.
Eterniti will source any materials required, and the car will then be hand-built on site by British craftsman and technicians, working under one the UK’s most respected trim engineers, who has worked extensively with Bentley. Even the standard-specification vehicles are hand-built on-site. This applies to everything on the vehicles from the chassis up, including body work.
Network
The showroom will be the first of several Eterniti-owned and staffed retail outlets, differentiating the company from other specialist and boutique carmakers. The second, located at a prestigious address in Hong Kong, will form an Asia-Pacific hub and is scheduled to open by summer 2012.
Because of the fast-growing economies in the region, further wholly-owned showrooms in Tokyo and Taipei are scheduled to open by the end of the year. All with offer an atelier and service facilities as well as showroom. The company is aiming to have representation in numerous cities in China by 2013.
Ownership and Customer Care
With this retail structure Eterniti will be able to provide a level of customer interaction beyond what boutique car companies have previously achieved, allowing it provide a personal service which extends from the moment a customer creates a bespoke specification throughout the lifetime of ownership.
All Eterniti vehicles will have a full, three-year/unlimited mileage warranty. For UK customers, servicing and any warranty work will be carried out on-site in London, collected-and-returned and supplemented by a ‘flying doctor’ service, which will also be used where appropriate for customers in continental Europe. Eterniti will also be able to accept customers’ trade-ins, and UK customers will have access to finance and insurance products.
PRODUCT
Eterniti products will all offer hand-built and – where customers require it – bespoke specifications, whether in a high-performance sports car or an SUV.
In-house engineering and sourced-in parts will be of benchmark standard, and materials, whether leather and wood or futuristic composites, will be of the highest quality, and created by craftsmen and engineers with both traditional skills and state-of-the-art technologies.
Hemera
The World’s First Super-SUV
Luxury is not only about the quality of the product, service and exclusivity. It is also about anticipating and providing what customers want but cannot get elsewhere.
Eterniti’s first car, the Hemera, will be an expression of that, meeting an unmet need – for new levels of luxury, space and performance in an SUV – to create a new niche. Its limousine-like rear cabin will give customers the option of being chauffeured as well as driving themselves: an SUV’s relatively compact dimensions, 4×4 ruggedness and dynamic performance mean that it can offer driver appeal and practicality which a limousine cannot. The Hemera is the world’s first Super-SUV, and will come to market ahead of luxury SUVs from Bentley, Maserati and, if it is confirmed for production, Aston Martin’s Lagonda brand.
The Hemera is being shown in Frankfurt as a fully engineered prototype ahead of the production start-up next year. The front light clusters and lenses will be different however, unique to Eterniti, and will feature LED units. The interiors are still undergoing prototype testing and will be shown later this year. They will be almost 100% new and unique to Eterniti.
A First Step
The Hemera is very much a first step for Eterniti. The company knows that it will take time to develop luxury vehicles which are completely designed in-house and fully reflect the Eterniti brand values, but the next products will move the company strongly in that direction.
Meantime the Hemera will be based on the most dynamic version of the latest generation of VW Group’s large SUV platform, the best in the industry. The platform is not only of the highest quality but is thoroughly proven and with a drivetrain capable of delivering additional performance without requiring significant changes to key components.
Indeed, few car brands even among the major OEMs now have stand-alone platforms: there is considerable technology sharing between VW Group’s brand stable for instance, and the Bentley SUV will reportedly be based on the next VW Group large SUV platform. The Maserati will reportedly be based on a Dodge platform and the mooted Lagonda on a Mercedes-Benz G-Class. Elsewhere, one of the industry’s most significant new-brand launches, Tesla, has heavily based its only car to date on the Lotus Elise.
The Hemera indicates that where future Eterniti products source in major elements like drivetrains they will always be from industry benchmark products for that vehicle type.
The Hemera will be the result of a chassis-up rebuild, including the new, re-packaged interior, additional engine performance, carbon-composite body panels and carbon fibre aerodynamics features. The principle behind the car might be compared to what Alpina does with BMWs, only with interior specification more akin to a Maybach. But, in addition, the skin of the Hemera is almost completely new, with only the pillars and the roof line being original, and in standard specification the roof panel will effectively be replaced by a full-length glass sunroof.
Luxury and Interior
The interior of the Hemera will be a large part of the story, especially the rear cabin. It will not only re-trimmed but re-engineered and repackaged to provide additional rear legroom of over 100mm, creating an SUV suitable for chauffeuring. This will make it more versatile but in particular satisfy the demand in Asia-Pacific markets, especially China, for driving as well as being driven, and where variable road surface quality means that conventional limousines and high-performance cars have limited usability.
As well as moving the line of the rear seats backwards, the configuration will be entirely new, with two individual seats separated by a central console. The seats will be fully electric, with fore, aft and recline controls, a footrest which is automatically raised when the seats are reclined, lumbar supports, and heating and cooling.
Individual iPads which reveal electronically will be concealed in the front seat-backs, and there will be accompanying wireless keyboards. An iPhone dock will connect to a choice of entertainment systems including one from B&O. All rear cabin features will be operated by controls in the new console, which will also house a drinks chiller.
The seats will be trimmed in highest-quality bespoke leather, and there will be a bespoke alcantara roof lining and a choice of floor coverings. There will be an option for a smaller sunroof with a starlight roof lining in place of the standard full-length glass sunroof. A state-of-the-art glass roof which goes from translucence to a dark tint at the touch of a button will also be available.
Technical and Performance
The Hemera’s body is made of advanced carbon-composite material, typically used in racing car manufacture for light weight and strength. With a width of 2112mm at the rear wheel arches, the Hemera has real physical presence, complemented by bespoke 23” wheels. Bespoke front and rear lights, high-mounted full-width brake light and front headlamp lenses, a clear carbon front splitter and rear diffuser – flanked by two large, flush exhausts – provide further individuality.
Width at the front wheel arches is 2074mm, length 4911mm and height 1674mm, giving a low, purposeful stance but with the ability to increase ground clearance by 110mm through the air suspension system which also provides active management.
Eterniti has increased performance from the twin-turbo 4.8-litre V8 petrol engine from 500bhp to over 620bhp, resulting in a top speed in excess of 180mph (290kph). Acceleration time from 0-100kph is expected to be under 4.5 seconds. The technical team is able to call on ex-Formula 1 driver Johnny Herbert and sports car racer Tim Sugden as test drivers to prove test cars under extreme conditions.
The transmission features an 8-speed semi-automatic gearbox with active all-wheel drive, electronically variable multi-plate clutch, automatic brake differential and anti-slip regulation.
Buying and Owning
The Hemera is undergoing final testing and will be put into production from early next year, with the first deliveries expected by summer 2012.
Prices will be confirmed shortly, and are expected to be in the region of £150,000. Eterniti’s London sales facility and atelier will be operational this autumn. Buyers will receive a full, three-year/100,000-mile warranty. Eterniti is commited to providing a first-class experience from the point of enquiry throughout the lifetime of ownership.
Servicing and warranty work will be carried out on-site in London, collected and returned and supplemented by a ‘flying doctor’ service. UK customers will have access to finance and insurance products.
The Future
The Eterniti product plan includes a second Hemera derivative for 2012, and plans for another SUV to meet the growing demand for luxury SUVs are currently being developed.
A high-performance car is also being planned. This is intended ultimately to form the basis of Eterniti’s racing programme and will fully express Eterniti’s brand DNA and its own design language. It will feature significant input from Alastair Macqueen and Johnny Herbert.
BUSINESS CASE
Eterniti knows that the automotive industry is littered with the failures of small car companies. However, its business case is founded on sound principles.
Eterniti is not launching a 300kph supercar pipedream. The company’s strategy is to exploit an expanding area of the automotive market, super and ultra-luxury vehicles, where there high profit margins, and its first product is focused on a specific gap in that market – for luxury SUVs. This has huge potential, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region but also in the Middle-East, Russia, South America, world capitals like London and hot-spots such as the Cote d’Azur, Florida and the USA’s west coast.
In addition Eterniti has identified a specific demand for an SUV with additional rear legroom to make it suitable for both chauffeuring and driving, so it has provided that as standard, allowing it to exploit this segment in a more targeted and effective way.
Eterniti has not tried to create a car from the ground up. A new, independent company could never invest in R&D on the same level as the major OEMs, which are predominantly part of large groups with huge resources and economies of scale. So the Hemera is deliberately based on an existing platform – the most suitable version of that platform for meeting the needs of buyers in the Super-SUV market – with ample technical proficiency and proven engineering integrity. Investment has been focused on the areas of the car which will provide a USP and best meet the needs of the market.
This strategy also allows Eterniti to create the Super-SUV niche by bringing the car to market ahead of competitors from the major OEMs. Eterniti has first-mover advantage, with deliveries commencing in 2012. However, the company knows it that it will not be able to compete absolutely head-on with the likes of Bentley when it launches its SUV in 2014. Production capacity and a powerful brand with a decade of heritage make that unrealistic.
Nevertheless, Eterniti can compete in ways which are significant in the high-luxury segments. By definition its lower volumes mean that its products will be more exclusive. That also allows a more personal service to be provided, which is valued by wealthy customers. Eterniti’s size means that it will be able to react swiftly to customer requirements, and because it is not burdened by a large corporate culture or a century-old history it can provide precisely what individual customers demand. Eterniti’s independence will be appealing to customers who would prefer not to deal with a brand which is part of a large group selling commodity products, elements of which may be used in its luxury vehicles, and it allows Eterniti to source the best technologies from the most attractive brands to create a compelling and unique package.
Finally, and most importantly, Eterniti can provide bespoke specifications to a degree which does not make business sense for a larger carmaker. Creating a dedicated car for royalty does not fit easily with well-oiled, small-tolerance procurement and build processes, which is why many luxury brands outsource short-run vehicles to external coachbuilders and other technical providers – companies rather like Eterniti.
Luxury car demand
The super-luxury and ultra-luxury ‘F’ segments of the car market, which Eterniti is targeting, are traditionally far less sensitive to unfavourable economic conditions than other parts of the market. There will always be super-strata of extremely high-worth individuals, and typical buyers own between three and six vehicles. If they want it they buy it.
In the recent global recession, the ‘F’ segments have not only countered the general economic trend but are thriving. The wealthiest sectors of society are growing, especially in the emerging economic powers of China and the Asia-Pacific, which are driving the growth in these segments, and forecasts suggest that the growth trend will continue.
Globally the market grew by around 500% between 1995 and 2005, from around 5800 units to over 25,000 units, and over 350% from 2002-2007, when volumes peaked at over 30,000. Growth did slow following the global economic downturn, but forecasters are predicting another surge to over 33,000 units by 2015, with the global market reaching over 38,000 in 2017 – an increase of 56% from 2010.
China and Asia-Pacific demand
Eterniti is being careful to establish a presence in the Asia-Pacific region for good reason – the principal growth market over the last 10 years and the period to 2020 is China. No F-segment vehicles at all were registered in China in 2000, but 2005 saw 272 registrations, and this grew by over 700% to exceed 2000 units by 2010. That already outstripped Italy, which had been the fourth-largest F-segment market. Japan has also grown progressively, also eclipsing Italy by 2010.
Forecasts suggest that Chinese sales will reach over 3300 units in 2015, close to 10% of the global market and second only to the USA. And, unlike the almost all other significant F-segment markets around the world, Chinese growth will not begin to flatten out after 2015 so its share will increase.
Between them China, Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan, the four markets outside the UK where Eterniti is setting up showrooms, accounted for 13% of the world’s F-segment sales in 2010, and are forecast to increase their share to over 15% by 2015.
SUV demand
Eterniti’s decision to launch with a high-luxury SUV and to include another SUV in its future product plan is endorsed by the fact that major brands are entering these segments. Bentley, Maserati and Aston Martin are all targeting the high-luxury end of the SUV market, while Porsche now relies on the Cayenne for half its sales and will add a smaller SUV in 2013. Demand for luxury SUVs has nearly doubled since 2000, and analysts forecast that the market for large, luxury SUVs will grow by 24% to 1.1 million vehicles by 2015.
Market Representation and Volumes
Eterniti knows that its wholly-owned network of showrooms in London, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Taipei will not generate sufficient sales volumes on their own, and the cost of establishing representation in all the major wealth centres in China would be prohibitive. It will therefore operate through partners in China, allowing it to target the regional cities where many of the country’s one million USD millionaires are located.
Eterniti will also accept trade-ins, allowing it to retail suitable used luxury vehicles, and will be able to offer servicing, specialist technical and trim work and parts to any customers. Finance and insurance products will provide another revenue stream.
Eterniti is aiming to sell 30 new vehicles in the first year of operation, with a target of 150 in year two.
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