2003 Detroit Motor Show

No less than 12 petrol-electric hybrid production cars formed the basis of General Motors' multi-million dollar Detroit splash, showing an eco-friendly side completely in contrast with the irresponsibly over the top Cadillac Sixteen: a 2.3 tonne four door luxury concept powered a 13.6-litre V16 engine, which, the maker claims, returns an 'impressive' 20 miles per gallon (12l/100km).

Ford stole the limelight with a sensational Mustang concept pointing none too subtly at the next production version of the American icon. That other American icon, and the world's best selling vehicle, the Ford F150, got a new lease on life as well as forming the basis for an outrageous SVT performance concept. And then there's the 427, a retro muscle car version of the next generation family sedan.

The Europeans weren't to be outdone, however, with debuts for BMW's first Rolls Royce and the xActivity with gives clues to the forthcoming X3 smaller brother to the X5 four wheel drive. Audi unveiled the Pikes Peak concept which looks set to become their X5, M-class challenger, built on the Volkswagen Touareg/Porsche Cayenne platform.

Japanese and European manufacturers played second fiddle to the might of the Americans at Detroit, but still managed to grab their time in the sun with interestingreveals from Nissan, Honda, Lexus and others.

Without a doubt, CarPoint's showstopper award goes to Chevrolet's Tomahawk concept, an incredibly overt and left field take on transportation built around the Viper's 8.3-litre V10 engine.

For more details on these vehicles and others, here's the top 10 highlights from the 2003 Detroit Show. (photos from MSN Autos).

Dodge Tomahawk
Hot Damn! Essentially an 8.3-litre V10 Viper engine on wheels, the Dodge Tomahawk is clean sheet approach to personal transportation. Dodge design chief Trevor Creed calls the Tomahawk "an icon of extreme thinking… encapsulating the Dodge brand philosophy which always challenges us to grab life by the horns."

Grab on is right! The 680kg Tomahawk can do 0-100km/h in 2.5 seconds on its way to a theoretical top speed "potentially more than 400 miles per hour (644km/h)". And it's not a lifeless design exercise, the Tomahawak actually runs, and was ridden onstage by Chrysler chief operating officer Wolfgang Bernard in requisite leather jacket.

Will this concept vehicle make it to production? Dieter Zetsche, president of Chrysler group, said "maybe", though if the Tomahawk ever does the numbers will be highly exclusive.

Cadillac Sixteen
Talk about mixed messages. On the one hand General Motors unveils no less than 12 petrol-electric hybrid vehicles. On the other hand it unleashes the Cadillac Sixteen. GM product supremo BobLutz calls the Sixteen "a modern interpretation of everything that made Cadillac the standard of the world, and can again". He's talking about the custom built Fleetwoods of the early 1930s, sixteen cylinder behemoths renowned for their exclusivity, grandeur and power.

The Sixteen measures 5.67m in length, is more than 2m wide and just 1.4m tall. Its 2.3 tonne all aluminium body rides on polished aluminium wheels shod with 24 inch tyres. The 13.6 litre pushrod V8 engine produces 1000hp (745kW) of power and 1000 ft-lb (1355Nm) of torque. GM powertrain experts claim the vehicle can return a best on highway fuel economy of 20mpg (12l/100km) thanks to next generation Displacement on Demand techonology which is able to 'drop' cylinders when they're not needed.

Production? Not likely. The Sixteen makes a bold statement of Cadillac's heritage and points to GM's goal of putting Caddy back with the best in the world.

Ford Mustang
It's a bold new look for a sports coupe with almost four decades of heritage, which Ford says "gives strong indicators of the next generation Mustang's design direction". Read that to mean we're practically looking at the 2004 Mustang right now, the release of which will coincide with the legendary Pony car's 40th anniversary.

The front end has been designed to accommodate Ford's 4.6-litre, 32-valve V8 engine, in both naturally aspirated and 300kW supercharged form. Inside the cockpit, the retro-future look continues with a modern interior that Ford says "pays to another era in Mustang history.

GM production hybrids
General Motors confirmed that while hydrogen cars - like its HyWire fuel cell concept - are the way of the future, it will bring no less than 12 petrol-electric hybrids to market in the interim.

General Motors' president and CEO Rick Wagoner said "we see hybrids as a bridge to fuel cells," and explained the 12 hybrids cars - which range from V8 powered pickups to four cylinder small sedans - are important "for developing production drive systems and power controls".

The GM hybrid systems will be developed specifically for American tastes, and are aimed at improving fuel economy from 10 to 50 percent depending on which of the three available systems are selected. First vehicles will be the 2005 GMC Sierra and Chevy Silverado pickups, followed by Saturn VUE, Chevy Equinox and Chevy Malibu sedan.

Ford F150
How do you redesign the world's biggest selling vehicle? Last year alone the F-Series almost outsold the entire Australian new car market, and America's love affair with big, gas guzzling trucks doesn't look like ending any time soon - especially when petrol is just $1.30 per gallon (AU$0.55 per litre).

New body, reworked V8 engines, all-new car-like interior, and more interior and cargo space are the key points in Ford's F-Series makeover that take the big truck into the 21st century. It's set to go onsale in the 'States with the 2004 model year, so Australians can expect it early in 2005.

Aston Martin AMV8
A sure sign that Ford Motor Company has no time for boutique players, Aston Martin will put grow its sales volumes exponentially with this AMV8 Porsche 911 rival when it goes into production in 2005. You'll be excused for thinking it's just a shrunken version of the bigger Vantage - we did.

The AMV8 concept is a two seat, front-engined, rear drive sports coupe with an aluminium and carbon fibre chassis and body. Power is from a state of the art V8 engine exclusive to the Aston Martin, fed to the rear wheels via a 6-sp manual gearbox. Aston engineers have put the engine and gearbox well back in the body, achieving a nearly perfect 50/50 weight balance which bodes well for the super coupe's on road handling.

BMW xActivity
Okay, so mid-sized sport utility vehicles aren't new, and certainly not in the USA. BMW, however, will be the first of the luxury Germans to enter the market, stealing a march on Mercedes-Benz and Audi with the X3 4WD. BMW showed its hand to the world with this xActivity concept vehicle revealed at Detroit. BMW says the xActivity is " a good example of how BMW could execute a sports activity vehicle without compromise."

In other words, we're looking at the new generation X3 four wheel drive. Some of the concept vehicle's more radical features, like the lack of B and C pillars, aren't likely to make the production version, but dimensionally, and graphically, this is it.

The X3 will be built on the 3 Series platform, will use six cylinders engines from that range, and is expected to sell under the X5 when it launches later this year in Europe and the United States.

Australians may have to wait a couple of months before it arrives downunder. Expect a killer pricetag starting around $55,000.

Ford Freestyle FX
Look familiar? It should. Ford's Freestyle FX concept car was designed in concert with Ford Australia's R7 concept car from the 2002 Melbourne Motor show. Displayed to the masses at the 2003 Detroit show, the Freestyle FX, says Ford, "is a new kind of vehicle that transcends boundaries". It will go into production in 2004.

The Freestyle FX's sliding rear roof can transform it from a 6-person carrier to a 4-passenger sedan at the push of a button, and the four rear seats can fold flat giving unrivalled cargo space. The concept car is powered by a Duratec 3.0-litre V6 engine mated to a continuously variable transmission.

Ford model U
Just as the Ford Model T started the first century for Ford, the revolutionary Model U concept car kicks off the company's second ton. The key to Model U is its 'upgradeability'. It's interior design is highly modular, allowing "nearly infinite opportunity for upgrading and personalization". Owners simply slide out components they don't want, and slide in those they do. Seat upgrading has never been so simple.

In keeping with the Model U's intense focus on environmental friendliness, the concept is powered by a 2.3-litre, four-cylinder, supercharged and intercooled hydrogen engine. Ford says the Model U uses materials that are "safe to produce, use and recycle over and over again". Will we ever see it in production? Not in its current form, but Ford says most aspects of the Model U will find their way onto production cars in the coming years.

GM Equinox
This one's interesting because the mid-sized Equinox 4WD fills a major gap in Holden's Australian lineup - and yet General Motors did not include right hand drive in the development cycle. Holden boss Peter Hanenberger, in Detroit for the show, said oversights like this are frustrating, and he wishes GM would take a more strategic view with future product development.

Hanenberger says that because Australia is one of the few rhd countries with a strong SUV market, it is easily overlooked. "If we had Europe [with us] we could make it happen. But their preferences are for vans like the Zafira and Opel Corsa, not 4WDs."

But wait, there's more!

We've barely touched the surface of the wealth of new models displayed at the 2003 North American International Auto Show. BMW's first Rolls Royce, Audi's first big 4WD, the awesome Dodge Magnum and Bentley GT… there's dozens more that are equally innovative and interesting.