BEIJING, April 27 — Despite the best efforts of BMW, Volkswagen and Lexus, a domestic carmaker, ITA may just have stolen the show at this year’s Auto China in Beijing with a totally original SUV that would look outlandish anywhere other than on Batman’s driveway.
Thanks to the increasingly global nature of the automotive market, many new cars are built via a focus group of consumers who give their opinions at each stage of the development process.
However, one look at the ITA Karlmann King that made its global debut at the Auto China show in Beijing this week suggests that the only way the million dollar plus SUV could have been developed via consumer input is if its makers had sought out the opinion of mild-mannered fictional billionaire Bruce Wayne.
And that’s because the SUV, hand-built on a Ford F-450 pickup truck chassis, looks like the sort of car Batman would use on the school run. Six metres long and boasting more exterior angles than an adjustable set square — think radar-avoiding surfacing — it makes a Hummer look discreet.
ITA stresses that although it has every intention of putting this car into very limited production — 10 units, globally — this is just a working prototype. Therefore, the cabin is still a work in progress. It keeps the dashboard setup found in a Ford pickup, although it’s been dressed up with an Alcantara wrapping and gold accents, but because there are only seats for four, the space inside is more like a limo than a king cab.
The roof liner is full of fibre optic lights in a nod to Rolls-Royce’s starlight headliner and wood panelling abounds. The rear-seat passengers get their own tables for working, a bespoke porcelain set for drinking tea and there’s the obligatory champagne cooler between the rear seats.
But the most outlandish feature of the Karlmann King is its price — RMB12 million (RM7.23 million). And while that’s pocket change for Batman, it could prove to be the car’s sticking point for many others, especially as for the same money one could buy four Bentley Bentayga SUVs and still have enough left over for a Lamborghini Huracán and a Ferrari 488 Spider. — AFP-Relaxnews
