Les Concepts

As the earth's first motor city, with five companies manufacturing cars by 1897, Paris is the logical place not only for Rétromobile but for an exhibition of concept cars by automakers on two continents. Just such a show was presented last month by Le Festival Automobile International at Les Invalides, the military museum and monument in the city's 7th Arrondissement.

Anchoring the exhibit were 15 concepts from nine major manufacturers, only one of which has been seen in North America. Not surprisingly, France's Big Three, Renault, Peugeot and Citroën, were best represented. Citroën had three cars, the Lambo-doored C-Metisse, the quirky little C-Cactus and an almost mundane C5 Airscape convertible. Peugeot's concepts were a little less radical. The 308 RCZ exhibited the same fishmouth I find so unattractive on their present-day cars. The 908RC sedan was a little more interesting, but I found the frontal theme reminded me of a harelip, less so from head on.

Renault's cars included an utterly uninteresting Laguna coupé concept (though intriguing enough to one lad that he wanted to sketch it) and a perky Altica sport wagon. The piéce de resistance, however, was the Nepta, a gull-wing convertible with no apparent provision for a top. Other European manufacturers included BMW with a CS four-door coupé (the front looks too predatory) and Volvo with an XC 60 that improves a bit on the current Cross Country. Saab parent General Motors, of course, is on an Ethanol binge, so the 9-4X BioPower Concept drinks E-85. Just plain silly, though, is the power-operated ski rack that stows the staves inside the car. Surely people agile enough to ski should be able to load their gear without help.

I'm not a Mercedes man, but I did like the F700 limo, a boardroom on wheels. A new Stratos concept from Atabeyki Design wore the expected Lancia badge. Asian entries were the Mixim, a quirky coupe from Nissan and the Kia Kee, a turret-top terror.

There were side shows aplenty. An amberoid bubble car was dubbed "Zooop." A Giugiaro-designed Bugatti EB 18/3 was a 1999 debutante from Frankfurt. Perhaps most surprising was the Faurecia "Premium Attitude," a contemporary interior that looks not a whit out of place in a 1960 Tatra 603. Students from the Strate Collège were exhibiting some of their automotive design features.

Almost hidden among all this futuristic artistry was "La Plus Belle Voiture de l'Anée," the most beautiful production car of the year. High on the dais, the winning Renault Laguna Estate Wagon was being seriously ignored by everyone present. Who can fixate on today when the future is staring you in the face.

The show was well-attended. Let's hope it becomes a regular fixture on the Parisian calendar.