Business & Economy

New York auto sales show reopens with new electric models

New York, Apr 13 (EFE).- The automobile sector on Wednesday reaffirmed its commitment to electric vehicles at the opening of the 2022 New York International Automobile Show with the presentation of several new electronic models, including the Chrysler Airflow, which will soon be arriving on the market.

After a two-year hiatus due to Covid-19, the New York show – the most popular among auto manufacturers because it is a showcase for presenting new developments in all-terrain SUV vehicles, once again opened its doors on Wednesday on the first of two days devoted to the communications media.

Although the New York show still has not recovered the level of activity that made it one of the three most important such events in North America, it will be open to the general public starting on Friday and running through Sunday, April 24,

To emphasize the importance of the show, which in the past generated hundreds of millions of dollars for New York City, state Gov. Kathy Hochul on Wednesday participated in the opening ceremony at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan.

Hochul also took advantage of the show’s reopening to announce that La Guardia International Airport will install stations for recharging electric vehicles and that New York state soon will have 100 new rapid-charge stations scattered around the state to accelerate the electrification of the transport sector.

This year, the International Automobile Show includes the biggest-ever area for electric vehicles where visitors will be able to examine different models.

The president of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, John Bozzella, said Wednesday during the show’s opening presentation that the US is fully in the midst of the transformation of the sector, emphasizing that consumers can already select from among more than 70 electric vehicle models.

“On a global scale, automakers are planning to spend $515 billion on electrification by the end of the decade,” said Bozzella, adding that “The future is electric, but to increase this momentum and get us where we want to be, it is going to take collaboration, coordination and a range of government policies that span energy, transportation, the environment and the overall industrial base.”

Jeep and Hyundai, Kia and Chrysler, the manufacturers who have brought new models to New York, have all strengthened their commitment to transform their lines of vehicles from internal combustion engines to electric power.

Jeep, the specialized all-terrain brand which now is part of the Stellantis group, on Wednesday presented the Grand Cherokee High Altitude 4xe, a new version of the hybrid model that has a 2-liter turbo gasoline engine along with two electric motors and a 400 volt battery.

Jim Morrison, the head of the Jeep brand in North America – who emphasized during the presentation that New York is the best market in the world for all-terrain SUVs and, in fact, is Jeep’s main market – said that the acceleration of the Grand Cherokee 4xe improves on the vehicle equipped with a V8 engine.

The Grand Cherokee 4xe, the first hybrid plug-in vehicle in the line, is beginning to be produced right now in North America and the first vehicles will get to auto showrooms in the coming weeks, Morrison said.

The Stellantis executive said that Jeep’s objective is to transform itself into the world’s most ecological SUV brand via its electronic model plants.

Jeep also presented several other new models: the Wagoneer L, Wagoneer L Carbide and Grand Wagoneer L, all of them large-size all-terrain SUVs, as well as its Hurricane bi-turbo engine family.

Another brand from Stellantis, Chrysler, also took advantage of the New York show to reaffirm its desire to quickly transform itself into a firm that exclusively turns out electric vehicles.

Chrysler CEO Chris Feuell on Wednesday unveiled the Graphite, a new version of its Airflow electric vehicle prototype.

The prototype is equipped with two 150 kw electric motors that offer total traction, and with a battery that provides enough power to drive 644 kilometers (400 miles).

Feuell said that Chrysler will launch its first electric vehicle in 2025 and by 2028 all automobiles that it manufactures will be electric.

Meanwhile, South Koreas’ Hyundai and Kia in New York launched new versions of their largest SUVs: the Hyundai Palisade and the Kia Telluride.

But Kia also presented the second generation of its Niro model with three versions – hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric – along with a new exterior design.

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