Detroit Auto Show 11th - 24th January 2010

http://uk.cars.yahoo.com/motorshow/detroit/

Top 10: hot new cars due on sale

The Detroit Show had a distinctly global theme to it this year and many of the exhibits are due to hit the showrooms in the near future. Here are the top ten and their on-sale dates.
1.
Audi A8: The new range-topping luxury saloon from Ingolstadt goes on sale in spring 2010 priced from £54,760 in the UK. It's rumoured that a hybrid version will arrive later in the year.

2.
BMW Z4 sDrive35is: BMW's new naming strategy is a little long winded, so 'sDrive' means rear-wheel drive, '35i' refers to the turbocharged 3.0-litre petrol engine (don't ask) and the 's' is what's new about this sportier Z4. Due on sale in the UK on March 2010 at a price of £43,885.

3.
Cadillac CTS-V Coupe: GM's sports luxury division hasn't been doing as well as it had hoped to in the UK, but apparently plans are in place to roll out a new dealer network and re-launch the brand with a line-up spearheaded by the CTS-V Coupe muscle car. If that all happens, expect it to arrive early in 2011.

4.
Chevrolet Aveo RS: We've not yet had confirmation that Chevrolet will bring the shapely new Aveo to Europe, but it will go into production in the US in 2011 and there are high hopes for a hot hatch version in the vein of the RS Detroit show car. We'd guess that a European version will be made in this part of the world and go on sale by the end of 2011.

5.
Chrysler Delta: This Chrysler-badged Lancia was one of the biggest talking points of the Detroit Show. Since its debut Fiat Group's boss has more or less confirmed that Lancia and Chrysler will merge, with rebadged cars highly likely. That doesn't necessarily mean that the Delta will ever come to Europe with a Chrysler badge on it, but you could wager that our American friends will receive it by 2012.

6.
Ford Focus: The all-new global Focus was our star of the Detroit Show. That it will be sold worldwide is quite an achievement given the different preferences of each market, but we're also blown away by its sharp new look and promising range of engines. Expect it in your local dealership in time for January 2011 sales.

7.
Honda CR-Z: Does a sporty hybrid sound like an oxymoron to you? Honda wants to change the image of the fuel-saving technology with its cool little CR-Z coupé. It's not far off either, going on sale in the UK in the summer of 2010.

8.
Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet: All the headlines made a big deal of Merc's new 'Aircap' technology that alters the airflow over the new Cabriolet so that passengers' hair dos are not ruined. There's a lot more to like about this elegant car though. It goes on sale in the UK this spring.

9.
MINI Beachcomber concept: Actually, it doesn't look like this open-air concept will make production in the near future, but it gave a massive hint to how the new MINI Countryman will look and that has already been unveiled. It's due to go on sale in March at a starting price of about £17,000.

10.
Volvo C30 BEV: That's Battery Electric Vehicle in case you were wondering. Before you get all excited and run down to your local Volvo dealer to slap down a deposit you should know that the 'production-ready' electric C30 is set to be leased to specific sets of drivers as part of a feasibility study. You may see one on the road from 2011 though.