Barcelona’s Automobile Fair opens its doors

Barcelona (ACN).- During the next 10 days, Barcelona will be the centre of the world’s automobile industry. Car enthusiasts on one side and the car industry and professionals on the other, will meet at the 36th annual Barcelona’s Automobile Fair. The ‘Saló de l’Automòbil de Barcelona’ opened its doors on Thursday, in the Montjuic venue at ‘Fira de Barcelona’, and will run until Sunday May 22nd. 37 different companies will each show off their new models. Suzuki, Subaru, Lexus and Honda will not be present at the fair following the recent Tsunami in Japan. However, Nissan will be present due to one of its main factories being based in Barcelona.

The first day focused on the local car manufacturer SEAT, whose plant will be assembling the new Audi Q3, the new crossover from the German brand. The electric car is also set to be one of the fair’s main attractions. A world premiere, the new Hyundai i40 was finally unveiled, and for the first time in Europe, the Volkswagen Beetle electric model and the Hyundai Elantra were also seen. Organisers expect more than 1 million people to visit the Fair. The fair will coincide with Catalonia’s Formula 1 Grand Prix, set to be held at the Montmeló circuit.

The Audi Q3 was officially introduced to the media and the industry at the Shanghai Automobile Fair, but its European presentation will take place in Barcelona. The car will be built in SEAT’s plant in Martorell, in Barcelona’s Metropolitan Area. James Muir, SEAT’s President, is said to be “very proud” of building the model. Audi’s Marketing Director in Spain, Joan Miquel Malagelada, explained that the car is already available on the market – the company keen to meet the early high demand for the model. However, the car itself will not be delivered to its new owners until October. The Audi Q3 will have four different engines (petrol and diesel), all with a reduced fuel consumption. According to Malagelada, “it will be a very competitive price” alongside the other models currently on the market. Prices for the Audi Q3 will start at 29,900 euros.