German carmaker Borgward attempts comeback with SUV

Borgward is also planning to produce new-energy vehicles. It said the BX 7 that hits the market in 2016 will sport a conventional gasoline engine but a plug-in model will follow soon after. The plug-in hybrid system demonstrated at the Frankfurt auto show boasts an output of 295 kW and a top torque of 650 Nm. It has a range of 55 km in the all-electric mode, and its fuel consumption is 2.2 liters per100 km.

Design

Borgward's history is helping designers drive forward the brand's development.

"The styling of our new series is not based on the design of classic models such as the Isabella. What we do instead is to draw inspiration from these iconic vehicles, decode the original design DNA of the Borgward brand, and then transplant this into the modern age," said executive design adviser Einar Hareide.

Elegance, sportiness and dynamism are the qualities of today's Borgward automobiles. The design focuses on the vehicle's hallmark octagon-shaped radiator grille and its characteristic wing design, which invokes a host of different wing shapes, ranging from the rounded contours of the classic biplane wing to the angular lines of a modern jet plane.

Roland Sternmann, executive design director at Borgward, said that nature was another rich source of inspiration for the brand.

"We borrowed the wing design for the new Borgward BX7 directly from the world's dynamic nature. Just like a bird of prey, dragonfly or ray, our new SUV offers a completely individual interpretation of the wing shape and is therefore unmistakeable," he said.