Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Cars
  3. News

Chinese Qoros Cross Hybrid Concept to debut at Geneva Motor Show

Stephen Edelstein
By

China is entering the hybrid automotive field with a new brand called Qoros. The name may sound like a planet from Star Trek, but it’s actually a joint venture between Chery Automotive, one of China’s largest car companies, and Israel Corporation, an industrial holding company. Qoros plans to debut an all-new hybrid at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

“We are a new company without any legacy or previous history, which gives us a great advantage because we are starting from scratch with a clean sheet of paper,” Qoros vice chairman Volker Steinwascher said in a press release at the brand’s launch, making his company sound a little like China’s version of Tesla Motors.

Recommended Videos

So far, though, Qoros isn’t offering a midsize luxury sedan with the accelerative ferocity of a BMW M5. The company’s first car will be the GQ3, a C-segment (compact sedan), which kind of looks like a Chrysler 200 with the front end from a Scion tC.

Related

A second Qoros model, the Cross Hybrid Concept, will debut alongside the GQ3 at Geneva. According to the China Daily, its gasoline engine will power the front wheels, while an electric will power the rear wheels.

Interestingly, the Cross Hybrid Concept will be able to switch between front-, rear-, and all-wheel drive; most cars with a rear-mounted electric motor start out with all-wheel drive and de-power the rear axle when the electricity runs out. The concept was designed by Gert Volker Hildebrand, who led the redesign of the Mini.

Details on the new hybrid will be revealed at Geneva, but Qoros is saying that it will have a state of the art infotainment system. An eight-inch touchscreen will perform typical functions like controlling audio and navigation functions, and the system will have Cloud and social media connectivity.

Qoros will also offer concierge services, including traffic information, point of interest search capability, and an automatic emergency services alert (think OnStar). Qoros plans to make infotainment standard on all models.

The hybrid crossover and GQ3 sedan and wagon will be built in a new factory in Changshu, China. The conventional GQ3 sedan and wagon are set to go on sale in China in mid-2013, with a production version of the Cross Hybrid Concept scheduled for a 2014 launch.

Qoros has no plans to sell its cars in the United States. It’s targeting young urban professionals in China and Europe instead.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Stephen Edelstein
Stephen Edelstein
Contributing Editor
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
2025 Mercedes-Benz EQS sedan gets new face, bigger battery
2025 Mercedes-Benz EQS sedan front-quarter view.

The Mercedes-Benz EQS sedan arrived during the 2022 model year as the flagship of Mercedes' EV fleet. But now that it's been on sale for a few years, it's time for this flagship to get a refit so that it can stay competitive with other six-figure electric sedans like the BMW i7, Lucid Air, and Tesla Model S. The updated EQS sedan is scheduled to reach dealerships later this year as a 2025 model.

One of the most controversial features of the EQS has been its unorthodox streamlined shape, which makes the EQS one of the most aerodynamic sedans around, but also means it doesn't look much like a traditional Mercedes. For 2025, the EQS takes a step closer to that traditional look with a new grille featuring chrome bars like on the Mercedes S-Class. It also sports the brand's trademark hood ornament.

Read more
Best electric car charger deals: $100 off home charging stations
The handle of the Grizzl-E EV charger plugged into a vehicle.

A few years ago, electric vehicles were pretty rare or cost a fortune, but with more and more of the larger car brands getting into the game, there are a lot of excellent and even budget-friendly choices nowadays. That said, the electrical network for charging your cars might not be that widespread, so instead you'll have to rely on charging your car at home. Luckily, there are a lot of excellent car chargers at a discount, so if you've just bought an EV or want to upgrade your current charging solution, be sure to check out our favorite deals below.
Shockflo EV charger — $205, was $220

This EV charger by Shockflo is a Level 2 EV charger, which offers six times faster charging than a standard charger. It delivers 24 miles with just one hour of charging, and it can act as a mobile charger you can throw in the trunk or be mounted to a wall. It has an LCD display with useful information like charging rate, voltage, and charging time, as well as LED indicator lights that lets you know charging progress and errors.

Read more
Mercedes-Benz EQG: range, price, release date, and more
Concept image of the larger electric G-Wagon

The G-Class is going electric. We already knew that Mercedes-Benz was working on an electric, small-size G-Wagon, but it looks like the company is also working on a larger G-Class SUV, in the form of the EQG. In fact, Mercedes has gone as far as to show off a concept version of the off-roader.

While there's much we don't know about what will become the production model of the EQG, Mercedes has also shared a lot about it. Curious about whether the Mercedes-Benz EQG could be the EV for you? Here's everything we know so far.
Design
Fear not -- the EQG will retain many of the design aspects of the G-Class that you already know and love but with a modern face-lift. The EQG will keep the boxy design that gives the G-Class a classic look but with some additional modern styling, at least if the concept version is anything to go by.

Read more