Entop is back again with its Afghanastanian supercar, now rebranded as the Simurgh. The company’s CEO, Mohammad Reza Ahmadi, who also has the role of designer and chief engineer, unveiled the car at the 2023 Geneva International Auto Show’s Doha branch, making some bold claims.

While he didn’t disclose any information about specifications, power output, or performance targets, he did say that the team wants to race at Le Mans before selling the previously named Mada9 supercar to the public.

The startup popped up in the news at the beginning of this year when it announced the Mada9, what it called their prototype at the time, the world’s first Afghan supercar. Ahmadi had stated that the car would be ready in a mere two weeks but, once more, didn’t reveal any specific specifications. Eagle-eyed automotive enthusiasts noted that the Mada9 appeared to use the same Toyota 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine found in a 2004 Corolla sedan. However, Entop reportedly said that the engine had been modified.

More: The Top 5 Cars You Wish Were Real And Made It Into Production

Photos GIMS

Now, nearly 10 full months later, Ahmadi showed up at the capital of Quatar with no mention of the Mada9 and a car that looks identical but now features the name Simurgh. “I want to build something to put my country on the map again,” he said in an interview at the Doha show. “The Simurgh represents the heroes and art of Afghanistan.”

Don’t take Entop’s presence at the Doha branch of the Geneva Motor Show as lending toward its credibility though. According to Bloomberg, the hopeful automaker paid for the space and crowd-sourced the $130,000 in funds to make it there. Now, before announcing any sort of detail about its chassis, features, specifications, or production schedule, Ahmadi says his team wants to go racing at Le Mans.

He’s hoping to raise $43.2 million to finish the development of the Simurgh and enter it into the historic 24-hour race. “We plan to start sales after the Simurgh has been through Le Mans, where it can be tested and prove itself,” said Mr Ahmadi. While the likelihood of that happening appears to be incredibly slim, it certainly would be impressive.

As we mentioned in our first piece on Entop, the Mada9 and now the Simurgh both benefit from being real physical creations. That’s a lot more than one could say for the numerous companies that create renders in the hope of gathering funds before building a single car. Still, the fact that the Simurgh features an unfinished interior and questionable build quality has us wondering if it’s already peaked.

Lamborghini has confirmed that it will have a presence at the Geneva International Motor Show Qatar running from October 5-14, around the same time as the Qatar Grand Prix.

Plans to spin off the famed Geneva International Motor Show were first announced in August 2021 in partnership with Qatar Tourism. The original plan was to hold events in both Geneva, Switzerland, and Doha, Qatar but this year’s event in Geneva was canceled, meaning it is only the twin show in Doha that will proceed.

Lamborghini chief executive Stephan Winkelmann confirmed to Autocar at the recent Goodwood Festival of Speed that the Italian brand will exhibit at the event. Winkelmann noted that the Middle East is an important market for the car manufacturer and when asked about the value of the show, said “We will see, it is the first time [it has been held], so we must look at it.”

The report adds that all VW Group brands are expected to attend the show in Qatar. This is primarily because the investment arm of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, Qatar Holding, owns a 14% share of the Volkswagen Group.

While Lamborghini will be at the show, Winkelmann noted the carmaker cannot make long-term commitments to events like these.

Read: Lamborghini Revuelto Sold Out For More Than Two Years

“We have to see year by year how [a show] develops and then make a decision,” he said. “These days, we never make long-term commitments on shows, because things are changing very fast. A lot are going down the drain and are not successful anymore, so if attendance is going down and there’s no press, there’s no need to go.”

Interestingly, Winkelmann noted that the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California is the most important auto event for the brand because of how many current and potential owners it attracts.

“For us, Pebble Beach is the biggest auto event in terms of importance,” he said. “All the types of people who are customers or could become customers go there. It’s growing in terms of presence from outside the US, and so it’s going to keep growing in importance.”

The Geneva International Motor Show has been canceled for the fourth consecutive year and will instead be held exclusively in Doha, Qatar in 2023.

Organizers had planned to hold the Swiss show from February 14 to February 19, 2023. Its twin event, the Geneva International Motor Show Qatar, was then scheduled for November 2023. Now, only Qatar will go ahead.

“Due to the uncertainties in the global economy and geopolitics, as well as the risks related to the development of the pandemic, the organizers have decided to focus exclusively on the planning of the event in Doha in 2023,” president of the Comité permanent du Salon international de l’automobile de Genève foundation, Maurice Turettini, said in a statement.

“We have done everything possible to ensure that we could host GIMS 2023 in Geneva in February. The enhanced event format and project had been very well received. But in the end, the risks overweighed the opportunities.”

Read Also: 2023 Tokyo Motor Show To Be “Reborn” As The Japan All-Industry Show

The chief executive of the Geneva International Motor Show, Sandro Mesquita, added that “many brands are not in a position to commit to participating in a show in Europe in the winter,” due to the “uncertain times.”

This marks the fourth consecutive year that the motor show in Geneva, Switzerland has been canceled. Things went south in 2020 when it was dropped last minute due to the coronavirus pandemic. It failed to materialize in 2021 as well and despite an announcement in May of the same year that the show would return for 2022, those plans were later scrapped. Confirmation of the 2023 edition was given in April this year but now, just four months later, it too has been scrapped.

The first Geneva International Motor Show Qatar will take place in November 2023 at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center. It is scheduled to take place every two years.

The organizers of the Geneva International Motor Show announced today that the historic event will return next year after a three-year hiatus. The show will run from February 14 to February 19, 2023.

As usual, the show will be held at the Palexpo exposition center in Geneva, Switzerland. The Geneva International Motor Show has been running in one form or another since 1905 but was canceled in 2020, 2021, and 2022 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have pushed very hard and tried everything to reactivate the Geneva International Motor Show in 2022,” Maurice Turrettini, President of the Comité permanent du Salon international de l’automobile said last year. “Despite all our efforts, we have to face the facts and the reality: the pandemic situation is not under control and presents itself as a big threat for a large indoor event like GIMS.”

Read Also: 2022 Beijing Auto Show Could Be Postponed Due To Covid-19 Outbreak In China

Turrettini, though, was sure to specify that the decision was only a postponement and that the show would come back stronger this year. The existence of auto shows is in flux, though, with shows like the North American International Auto Show, held in Detroit, rescheduling to the summer in order not to compete with CES, a tech trade show that has stolen its thunder in recent years.

Still, automobile-centric shows persist with the New York International Auto Show set to take place later this month. In addition, the organizers of the Geneva International Motor Show want to lean on the second word in the show’s title and have announced a spin-off show in Doha, Qatar in 2023.

You’ve probably heard of long-COVID, the term used to describe COVID-19 symptoms that last far beyond the four weeks it takes most people to fully recover. Well, it sounds like it’s not just humans, but motor shows, that are susceptible.

The organizers of the Geneva Motor Show traditionally held annually in Switzerland have announced they’re abandoning plans for next March’s scheduled event. The axing of the 2022 show means this is the third year running that Geneva has been canceled.

“We have pushed very hard and tried everything to reactivate the Geneva International Motor Show in 2022”, said Maurice Turrettini, President of the Comité permanent du Salon international de l’automobile.

“Despite all our efforts, we have to face the facts and the reality: the pandemic situation is not under control and presents itself as a big threat for a large indoor event like GIMS.”

Related: New York Auto Show Cancelled Due to Covid – Again, For The Fourth Time In A Row

But Turrenttini tried to stress that the announcement doesn’t mean the end of the Geneva show. “We see this decision as a postponement, rather than a cancellation,” he said. “I am confident that the Geneva International Motor Show will come back stronger than ever in 2023.”

Plans to host a spin-off show in Doha, Qatar, in late 2022 or 2023 appear to be unchanged, though it seems likely that the 2022 option could now be in doubt.

The main reason for the show’s cancellation is the ongoing limitations on global travel resulting from the pandemic. But the global shortage of semiconductors currently wreaking havoc with car industry production schedules has also played a part in the decision.

“The chip crisis is likely to drag on well into next year, with negative financial implications for OEMs,” Sandro Mesquita, CEO of the Geneva International Motor Show, explained.

“In these uncertain times, many brands are therefore unable to make a commitment to participate in a trade fair that would have taken place in just over four months.”

Geneva is far from the only motor show forced to repeatedly cancel dates. The New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) was due to take place this August, having been moved from April, but organizers were forced to abandon plans to host the event in 2021.

But it’s interesting to note that Germany managed to hold the Munich Motor Show last month without a problem, and the Los Angeles Auto Show is scheduled to go ahead as planned this November.

The organizers behind the Geneva International Motor Show have partnered with Qatar Tourism and announced plans to host an automotive show in Doha.

The show will be dubbed the Qatar Geneva International Motor Show (strange, we know) and the first edition is planned to take place in the autumn of 2022 or 2023. Final dates are expected to be confirmed in the coming weeks, with current plans to hold the event every two years.

Full details of the event will be announced at the official Geneva International Motor Show in Switzerland being next held from February 19-27, 2022.

Read Also: The Geneva Motor Show Is Coming Back In 2022

“We are very proud and honored, that Qatar Tourism has put their trust in us for the conception of the new motor show in Doha,” president of the permanent committee of the Geneva International Motor Show, Maurice Turrettini, said in a statement. “Our partnership is the result of very trusting and constructive discussions from day one. The joint forces with Qatar Tourism empower us to focus on the upcoming 91st edition of GIMS in February 2022, where we will be able to gather ideas and learnings for the new motor show in Doha.”

“In line with the national strategy, Qatar National Vision 2030, we are expanding our tourism proposition to position Qatar as a world-leading destination and ensure guests enjoy the very best of Qatar,” added Qatar Airways Group chief executive and chairman of Qatar Tourism Akbar Al Baker.

After the Geneva International Motor Show was canceled at the last minute in early 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, organizers of the event were forced to sell the show to Palexpo SA, which runs the exhibition center in Geneva where the show is held. The event didn’t run this year.

The Geneva International Motor Show’s (GIMS) organizers announced today that it has opened exhibition registrations and is on track to host visitors in 2022.

The show will be the 91st edition and it will run from February 19 to 27 with press days on the 17th and 18th.

“With the dispatch of the tender packages, we are now officially starting the organization of GIMS 2022,” said CEO Sandro Mesquita. “My team and I can hardly wait to present our concept to the exhibitors and subsequently to the public. We really hope that the health situation and the corresponding policy regulations regarding Covid 19 will allow us to bring it to life.”

Read Also: Geneva Motor Show Organizers Put Show Up For Sale And Cancel 2021 Event

Geneva was one of the first major auto shows to be canceled in 2020 when the Swiss Federal Council announced a decision to ban all large-scale public events in late February. The decision, a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, was bad news for the event, whose exhibitors were already in the process of setting up for the show.

The organizers were offered a bailout package, but the terms were deemed too onerous and the show was eventually put on sale and bought by Palexpo SA, which runs Geneva’s largest exhibition center.

Related: The Virtual 2020 Geneva Motor Show Debut List

No exhibitors have been announced at this point but the show’s new owners have promised that the 2022 edition will have evolved from previous years and will be “substantially different.” Exactly what that means has not yet been revealed.

Even before the pandemic took auto shows away, though, they were not in good shape. Automakers are increasingly avoiding expensive shows in favor of smaller events whose news cycle they can control. Whether the Geneva International Auto Show can attract the world’s automakers back with its new format and whether there will be a post-pandemic bump will be interesting to see.

Elation Hypercars’ Freedom is starting to take shape, in the digital world at least, as the EV startup has released renderings of its first prototype, the Dogo 001.

Named after the Dogo Argentino, a South American dog breed known for its strength that is often used in big-game hunting, it previews the upcoming fully functional prototype which will enter the testing phase next year.

The final production model is planned to debut at the 2022 Geneva Motor Show, with carbon fiber bodywork, a carbon-kevlar monocoque and an all-electric powertrain. The base variant is understood to use three electric motors for a total output of 1,427 HP and 1,062 lb-ft (1,440 Nm) of torque, while clients can upgrade if they so wish to an even more powerful model with an extra motor and 1,903 HP.

Video: Take A Tour Of The Rimac Factory Building The C_Two Electric Hypercar

Elation has announced that the Freedom will be able to hit 62 mph (100 km/h) from a standstill in just 1.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 260 mph (418 km/h). Two battery units, with capacities of 100 and 120 kWh, will give it a range of approximately 300-400 miles (483-644 km).

An ICE-powered version of the hypercar, the Freedom Iconic Collection, will join the lineup with a 5.2-liter V10 that makes 750 HP at 8,500 rpm and is paired to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The 0 to 62 mph (0-100 km/h) acceleration is estimated to take 2.5 seconds, and top speed will be electronically limited to 240 mph (386 km/h).

With production of a single example said to take over 4,000 hours, Elation plans to make 25 units of the Freedom each year. Pricing for the electric model will start at $2 million, whereas the ICE variant will cost at least $2.3 million.

Back in June, the organizers of the Geneva Motor Show cancelled the 2021 event as a survey showed most exhibitors “would probably not participate” and instead preferred the show return in 2022.

On top of that, they announced their intention to sell the rights to the show as the last minute cancellation of this year’s Geneva Motor Show cost them approximately 11 million Swiss francs ($12.1 / £9.3 / €10.1 million). The Canton of Geneva offered to provide a loan to cover that and then some, but it came with conditions the organizers couldn’t live with.

While it was hoped the rights to the show would be bought by the Palexpo exhibition center where it is held, organizers wanted 15 million Swiss francs ($16.5 / £12.7 / €13.9). That was described as a “huge” sum and it appeared Palexpo wasn’t interested.

Also Read: Geneva Motor Show Organizers Put Show Up For Sale And Cancel 2021 Event

Fast forward to today and the Geneva Motor Show might live on. According to documents seen by Automotive News Europe, “automakers are being offered an all-inclusive package that covers the cost of their stands and accommodations for guests” at a 2021 event.

However, it would be a shell of past Geneva Motor Shows as it would only span three days and be limited to members of the media. No automakers have confirmed their involvement yet and authorities would have to sign off on the event.

The show would reportedly be hosted by Palexpo and combine physical as well as digital elements. The entry-level package reportedly costs 150,000 francs ($164,825 / £127,512 / €139,042) and would enable automakers to display one car and invite up to 10 members of the media. The range-topping package, on the other hand, would cost 750,000 francs ($824,201 / £637,368 / €695,129) and allow for four vehicles as well as 100 guests.

It remains to be seen if any automakers will sign up for the 2021 event, but it’s possible they could just opt for their own standalone event or go the digital route like recent reveals for the Mercedes S-Class, Maserati MC20 and Nissan Z Proto.

Earlier this week, the organizers of the Geneva Motor Show threw in the towel as they canceled the 2021 event and announced their desire to sell the rights to the show to the Palexpo exhibition center where it is held.

The news was a bit surprising as the Canton of Geneva agreed to give organizers a loan of 16.8 million Swiss francs ($17.7 / £14.2 / €15.8 million) to help offset the approximately 11 million Swiss francs ($11.6 / £9.3 / €10.3 million) in losses caused by the last minute cancellation of this year’s show.

However, the loan came with a number of conditions including the hosting of a 2021 Geneva Motor Show and the repayment of 1 million Swiss francs ($1 million / £848k / €941k) as early as June 2021. The organizers couldn’t live with those demands and rejected the loan, while also noting a majority of exhibitors said they would “probably not participate in a 2021 edition” of the annual motoring show.

Also Read: Geneva Motor Show Organizers Put Show Up For Sale And Cancel 2021 Event

That decision threw the future of the Geneva Motor Show into question and now we’re learning more about it as Auto News Europe talked to the director of the Palexpo exhibition center. He noted organizers want 15 million Swiss francs ($15.9 / £12.7 / €14.1) for the rights to the show.

Director General Claude Membrez said Monday “was the first time we heard the amount and the amount is huge!” He went on to downplay the possibility of purchasing the rights as he said a show wouldn’t take place in 2021 and future events would likely become smaller as auto shows are declining in popularity.

That doesn’t sound promising, but Membrez said the decision will be made by the Palexpo board and he expects they’ll meet in the next two weeks to discuss the issue.  Regardless of whether or not they buy the rights to the Geneva Motor Show, Palexpo still wants an auto show to be held in 2021 as they believe even a small show is better than none at all.