German automaker Borgward to return after 54-year slumber

Geneva — More than half a century after going belly-up, German automaker Borgward is set to rise from the dead to make an appearance at the Geneva Motor Show next month, organisers said on Tuesday.

The brand, which declared bankruptcy in the early 1960s, is planning to unveil a new strategy at a press conference at the show, considered one of the global auto industry’s biggest and most diverse events.

“Relaunching Borgward is a childhood dream come true for me,” Christian Borgward, the grandson of brand creator Carl F.W. Borgward, said on the company’s website.

He said he had been working for more than a decade with a range of partners to revive the company, once one of Germany’s most successful carmakers, which sold more than one million high-end vehicles between 1919 and 1961.

“Perhaps through the influence of my grandfather’s history, we believe that, given the will to succeed, you can achieve anything,” he said.

“You have to set a target and pursue it with all your heart, and if you have a dream, as we do, you will fight for it. Everything is then possible,” he added.

Geneva Motor Show president Maurice Turrettini meanwhile told reporters Tuesday that the long-suffering car industry “is bouncing back, especially in the United States, and things are improving in Europe.”

The 85th edition of the show, which will take place on March 5-15, will show off 131 new models this year, including 90 world firsts and 41 European premieres, Turrettini said.

US collector James Glickenhaus, who made his fortune in finance and movies, will present the latest creation of his company Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus, with a 2.6-million-Swiss-franc ($2.8-million, 2.4-million-euro) price-tag.

Ferrari is set to present its latest model, the 488 GTB, which is meant to replace its 458, while BMW will unveil its new seven-seat Series 2 Gran Tourer.

The Geneva show will also see the unveiling of several concept vehicles, like the Budii by Rinspeed, which can be driven or can autonomously take passengers for a spin.

The Geneva Motor Show expects to draw around 700,000 visitors from Switzerland and abroad, with some 700 brands and about 220 manufacturers from 30 countries on display.