BRUSSELS – Finally we start again after almost 3 years in which the very future of motor shows has been questioned. It’s up to Brussels to reopen the almost completely closed chapter, not only because of the pandemic, of international car reviews. The event in the Belgian capital opens the year ahead of the traditional times of the Geneva Motor Show, which emigrated to Qatar in October, and casts a ray of light on the automotive world. Which starts again with the trappings of extended electrification, now made mandatory by well-known regulations on emissions, particularly stringent in the old continent. The most interesting novelty, also because it opens up new glimmers in this direction, comes from Mazda. After proposing the exclusively electric MX-30, the Japanese brand presents the e-Skydive R-EV variant. It is, in fact, a hybrid version in which propulsion is ensured solely by a 125 kW electric motor, 170 hp at the gearbox, which can travel up to 85 km using only the energy stored by the 17 .8 kWh of autonomy. The trump card of the new Mazda is represented by the presence of a rotary engine which is not used to move the wheels of the car but to produce energy for the electric propulsion. With a 50-litre petrol tank, it allows you to reach at least 600 km of autonomy without having to stop and plug in as happens with any pure electric vehicle on the market. However, this operation is permitted by the new version of the MX-30 for those who want and can use it in urban environments or in any case within the range permitted by the battery capacity. Three ways of use: in electric, normal and finally in recharging the battery using the action of the engine with a single triangular piston that re-proposes an old Mazda dot: the Wankel.
Among the ideas offered by the Brussels Motor Show, the presence of the Opel Astra in fully electric conjugation should be noted, which uses the same propulsion system as the Mokka which in turn has a slightly changed name with an extended ending to underline its nature. At Peugeot, the range of electrified variants is expanding, with an increase in autonomy for some models such as the e-208 GT. Meanwhile, the advance of Chinese manufacturers begins, much more comfortable with electric vehicles than with those powered by combustion engines. This is how the Seres 5 EVR makes its debut in Belgium, a luxury sports SUV that is offered in two versions, with 220 and 475 kW (300 and 646 hp), with two and four-wheel drive. All enlivened by the presence in the European premiere of Ford Bronco, Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato and Abarth version of the 500e.