Anyone doubting that 2008 would be the year the car world woke up to the social, political and environmental threats it faces needed only to have spent an hour or so wandering around the Cobo Hall, Detroit, the venue for the motor city’s annual car show, to doubt no longer. Where once you’d have seen cars as long as canal boats designed by people with all the environmental awareness of a plague of locusts, now there were hybrids, alternative fuel, flexi-fuel and fuel-cell cars from wall to wall. Even Hummer, the transport of choice for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in his gun-toting days, showed a concept that was not just smaller and lighter than any to date, but powered by biofuel. When Hummer starts bigging up its environmental credentials, you know things have changed, and have done so for good.

Ferrari F430 Spider Biofuel

Ferrari has twigged that bio-ethanol provides the perfect platform for it to show its concern for the environment. By rigging the F430’s engine to run on E85 biofuel (85% bio-ethanol, 15% petrol), it can claim a renewable power source and a slight emissions, but also an extra 10bhp and a little more torque besides. Shame,reduction in CO2 then, that the car is not scheduled to go on sale soon. Still, Ferrari is committed to reducing its vehicle emissions by 40% by 2012.

Mercedes-Benz GLK

Before it was unveiled it seemed astonishing that the new Mercedes-Benz GLK, a smaller SUV designed to compete head-on with the likes of the BMW X3 and soon to be unveiled Audi Q5, would not be sold in the UK. The official reason is the difficulty in engineering its four-wheel-drive system to accept right-hand drive, though this was no problem for Audi and BMW and, indeed, Mercedes’s other all-wheel-drive products. But now we’ve seen it, perhaps it’s no bad thing, for its strange proportions, fussy detailing and inelegant shape suggest that Mercedes’s designers have had an off day like few in its recent history.

BMW X6

Time alone will tell whether the new BMW X6 will prove to be a crossover too far. On the face of it, it’s either a coupé robbed of the sleek style that defines the breed, or an SUV denied the space and practicality that underpin the existence of that genre. Most striking of all is a plunging roofline that robs the rear cabin of vital headroom. We’ll save final judgment until we drive it but this niche within a niche seems a triumph of style over substance.

Land Rover LRX

For many, the purposeful and conspicuously relevant Land Rover LRX was the star of the show, not least because one of the worst-kept secrets in Detroit was the fact that something like it will go into production within two years. It’s smaller, lighter and more frugal than any Land Rover of recent times yet it has more presence than most hulking SUVs. And Land Rover promises that all its technology, from its hybrid drive to its stop-start engine, will make it into production.

VW Passat CC

This was one of the more curious cars at the show. Longer, wider and lower than the standard Passat, it is a four-door coupé in the same mould as the Mercedes-Benz CLS but will be offered for sale at lower prices. When UK sales start this summer, the range will be topped by a 3.6 litre 300bhp engine that, combined with all-wheel drive, promises to endow the Passat with the performance commensurate with style. The only question is whether it will sell: VW’s last attempt at an upmarket four-door car, the Phaeton, has been a slow seller.

Lexus LF-A Roadster

Every time Lexus shows its LF-A supercar concept, frustration mounts further. It was first shown in Detroit three years ago, yet we’re no closer to knowing when it’s going to go into production, though the latest betting suggests 2010. At least Lexus had the sense to reveal the convertible version for the first time this year to keep up the interest level and, unlike most convertibles, it looks perhaps slightly better than the coupé on which it is based. It’s still powered by a 5 litre V10 that gives more than 500bhp and will still take the LF-A to more than 200mph. But the agonising wait for a drive goes on.

Ford F-150

It’s never going to go on sale here and it’s not even a car, but no show report would be complete without mention of the all-new F-150 pickup truck, a replacement for the longstanding most popular vehicle in the US. With Ford’s North American business in desperate straits, the temptation not to mess with a winning formula is clear from the new F150’s conservative styling. But underneath lurks a truck that Ford says is more robust, spacious and versatile than ever.

Mazda Furai

The prize for the car with the greatest visual impact at Detroit has to go to the Mazda Furai, a concept car that blurs the lines between an outright Le Mans car, such as the Mazda 787B, which in 1991 became the first and only Japanese car to win Le Mans, and a mid-engined supercar. Like its famed racing forebear, the Furai is powered by a Wankel rotary engine while its chassis is by Courage. However, its interior is more like that of a road car and its engine runs on 100% ethanol. It will never go into production, but as a device to showcase new technologies and test new design themes, it takes a lot of beating.

Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1

More powerful than any Ferrari made today and likely to prove quicker (in a straight line at least), the ZR-1 should cost about £75,000 when sales start here next year, or about £100,000 less than the Ferrari 599 GTB whose concept and performance it most closely mirrors. That’s a fabulous achievement for the Corvette legend. The only complaint from showgoers seemed to be a lack of visual impact. For a 620bhp car using a supercharged 6.2 litre V8 motor, its lines are perhaps a trifle sedate.

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