I wasn’t expecting much from this year’s Detroit Auto Show, and because of that, I wasn’t too disappointed. After last year’s rather subdued and woeful event, it would have been a bit much asking for a return to the razzamatazz days of years gone by.

However, for guys my age, the Motor City show is, and will always be, the number one automotive event in North America. It’s the true home of the N.A. car industry and automobile history pours from its veins and sidewalks. There’s also something quite magical about driving along streets named for American automotive legends. Yes, I love Detroit, and I love the friendly people of that fine city (Yes, I really did say that! No matter what you’ve heard, Detroit residents always make visitors feel welcome).

Sadly, the industry is still suffering and hobbling along on crutches so to speak, and because of that, this year’s event closely followed the theme of last year’s. Several manufacturers chose to use their platform to relate tales of minor successes, and just about every manufacturer claimed to be outperforming its competition...”Oh yes, the others may be losing ground, but we’re still rolling along just fine thanks”!

Honestly, the spin doctors were out in full force this year. In fact, if I were to believe half what I heard in Detroit, I’d be announcing that there’s very little wrong with the industry today.

However, no matter what the suits with the beaming smiles say, the automotive industry in North America is traveling down a rather rocky road, to say the least. With the odd exception from the likes of Hyundai, just about every car company is struggling to keep its head above water. Yes, there are a few new models which are doing reasonably well in the market, but if truth be told, these are simply plugging the financial gaps in the dam which others have created.

Then we have the utter confusion and lack of direction within the industry today. What will we be driving in years to come? Will it be electric vehicles, Hybrids, Diesels, or will Hydrogen be the future of the industry? Who knows, because from what I can see, just about every manufacturer has its fingers in each and every pie. Maybe the long-term planning geeks have got it all wrong and good old gas-powered vehicles will still be powering the next generation. It’s difficult for anyone to make a prediction at this time, and it becomes even harder when the car companies change their minds as often as I do socks.

Speaking of which, Volkswagen shocked me slightly with the announcement of its NCC Hybrid Coupe Concept. This from a company which has been the industry leader in promoting diesel technology, wow! I also have to wonder whether this announcement was mainly for the ears of us North Americans as Europeans aren’t exactly hybrid fans.

Today it seems that just about every car company has an electric vehicle in some stage of design. Weather it’s a true production model or simply a wishful thinking concept, it appears that electrically-propelled vehicle ownership will be part of the future, but how far are we from that becoming a reality?

Well, I believe that there’s a place for electric vehicles right here and now. Maybe not as daily transport for everyone, but there are certain applications for which electric vehicles are simply perfect. Obviously I’m not alone in this line of thinking as the Korean company, CT&T, arrived in Detroit with a rather impressive stand full of exactly that. Small electrically driven vehicles designed for local urban use...Downtown parking enforcement vehicles, local delivery vans, and even a rather cute and purposeful food vending unit.

I’ll be honest with you and say that although Ford had the display which made the most logical sense short term i.e.: small cars like the new Fiesta and Focus models, I found the CT&T presentation by far the most interesting. Now if we could only get our governments to get serious about electric vehicles and start leading by example, the world might just be a better place to live.

What’s that, encourage our government to buy electric vehicles from Asian companies??? Well they don’t have to because Chrysler actually owns a U.S. company (www.gemcar.com) which manufactures almost identical vehicles.

Another pleasing presentation was that of GM’s Cadillac division. Now here’s a company which has truly been reinventing itself over the past few years, and just seems to be getting better and better. However, what I really liked about the Cadillac presentation was that it was direct and to the point. No waffling about how they were planning to save the planet single handedly and make us all sleep safer in our beds. No, just plain and simply, “this is what we have to show you”, and they did precisely that, with a super-luxurious XTS Platinum Concept, and the striking 2011 CTS-V Coupe.

Other notable vehicles on display included the 2011 Chevy Cruise, 2011 BMW 7-Series, 2011 Honda CR-Z, and the new Hyundai Sonata. The 2011 Sonata truly did impress me. In fact, sitting next to the company’s flagship Genesis, it was hard to tell which the more expensive vehicle was!

The Brits had a great showing in Detroit with the all-new 2010 Jaguar XJ, and the gorgeous Bentley Mulsanne made me quite proud to hail from the old country.

Then of course we come to the Audi stand, and talk about eye catching vehicles! Apart from the E-Tron concept which I have a slight difficulty buying into, the whole display was sensational. In fact, if it wasn’t for the security guards, I’d have jumped into the R8 Spyder and driven off. Mind you, given the opportunity, I might have struggled while choosing between the open-top R8 and the new flagship A8, because that’s quite a machine also!

The Fiat 500’s certainly pulled a lot of attention at Detroit. Part of that may possibly have had something to do with the young ladies standing next to the vehicles. However, the 500 is a very cool looking car, although I’m saving my final judgment until the prices are revealed.

There were a lot of concept vehicles at the show, which is something that I often have an issue with. Show me something which looks ready for the road and maybe I’ll buy into it, but if it’s simply fiberglass and balsa wood, take it home for the kids to play with. However, one concept which did grab my attention was the Buick Regal GS. A good looking car which looks production ready, and if the specifications are to be believed, I want to see this vehicle on the road. Mind you, I had to chuckle a little to myself when the presenter said something about Buick’s return to performance models. To be honest, I had a quick glance around to see how many in the audience were old enough to remember back that far!

Well, that’s my wrap up of Detroit 2010. There are probably one or two models which I’ve failed to mention and for that I apologize. It’s always a mad rush at the Motor City event and I’m sure to have forgotten a couple. However, although I wasn’t expecting much from this year’s show, I was actually quite pleasantly surprised. The industry may still have a few bumps on the road ahead, but if Detroit showed me anything, it’s that the industry has finally fixed a few suspension problems!!