Traditionally the Italian manufacturers and design houses reserve their finest releases for the Geneva International Motorshow and as you could see in our exclusive report last week, this year's edition was no exception. Today we take a closer look at the individual cars that starred at the Swiss show.
Both Bertone and Pininfarina celebrated Alfa Romeo's centenary with exceptional concept cars. Our favourite was the very extreme Pandion, designed and built by Stile Bertone. Based on 8C Competizione underpinnings, the fully functional coupe sports many organic shapes, large glass areas and enormous doors. Compared to the wild Bertone, Pininfarina's 2uettottanta is a rather more understated show car. A clear tribute to the great Pininfarina styled Alfa Romeo Spiders, it also marks the 80th anniversary of the two companies' first joint effort.
After an absence of many decades, Touring returned to Geneva with the Bentley derived Flying Star. There are plans for a limited run of this stylish 'shooting brake', which is built with approval of Bentley and can be serviced at the marque's dealers.
Green was the main theme in Geneva and that is certainly the correct description for the Ferrari HY-KERS Concept and not only because of its striking paint-job. Based on the 599 GTB production car, the experimental machine features a KERS system similar to the one used on the Ferrari Formula 1 car in 2009. Italdesign / Giugiaro presented the Proton Emas; the first of a family of small, environmentally friendly cars. It uses the Lotus Engineering developed hybrid drivetrain that was also fitted to the Lotus 414E.
Fortunately Geneva also had its share of old fashioned supercars; a very Italian speciality. Lamborghini took the wraps of the Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera. As the name suggests, it is considerably lighter but also features a more powerful version of the direct-injection V10 engine. Pagani continued the farewell tour of the Zonda with the introduction of yet another limited edition model. Dubbed the Tricolore, it is a tribute to the Italian Frecce Tricolori aerobatics team.

Tomorrow morning the 80th annual Geneva Motor Show will open its doors to the public for the first time. The eager crowd will definitely not be disappointed with the displays provided by the mainstream and speciality manufacturers. After a rather sedate edition in 2009, the exhibitors have once again pulled out all stops to impress the gathered world media and potential consumers. Looking at this year's Geneva show it is hard to imagine that the industry is still far from healthy. Lavish concept cars and cutting-edge eco-friendly vehicles vie for the most attention. If there is only one thing to take away from the 2010 show it is that supercar manufacturers like Porsche and Ferrari are no longer immune for the hybrid trend. Particularly Porsche's 918 Spyder Concept showed that green can also very, very cool. There were many more reasons why this year's edition stands as one of the most exciting of recent years. Bertone, for example, made a grand return after a two-year absence with a spectacular show car that combines classic Alfa Romeo shapes with organic elements. In addition to the exotic one-off machinery, many interesting production cars also saw the first light of day in Geneva. Alfa Romeo's Giulietta and Volvo's S60 were among the most prominent. Green was once again the main theme and we feel Lotus showed the way forward with the Evora 414E Concept, which uses electric motors and a purpose built petrol engine as a generator.
Our photographers were on the floor for the better of two days to capture everything of interest in great detail. All the material gathered has been compiled in a 1700-word report and a mouth-watering 340-shot gallery.

On the eve of the 80th annual Geneva Motorshow, Koenigsegg have released the full details of the new Agera. Intended as an extension of the range, the Agera's introduction coincides with the 15th anniversary of Koenigsegg. Much of the mechanical package of the CCX and CCXR has been retained but the engine has been further improved to produce a staggering 910 bhp and 1100 Nm of torque. The styling is still very familiar but the many detail changes have given the original Koenigsegg design a new lease of life. The car at Geneva is a pre-production prototype and will be tested extensively in the coming months. The final production version of the Agera is expected to be launched before the end of the year.
Lamborghini will extend the current Gallardo range with a Superleggera version. As the name suggests, it is a lighter (70 kg or 154 lb to be exact) and more poised version of the V10-engined model. Compared to the 'standard' model, it also sports a slightly more powerful version of the direct-injection ten cylinder. It is capable of a 325 km/h (202 mph) top speed and the sprint to 100 km/h (96 mph) takes just 3.4 seconds. In this case faster also means greener; the Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera's CO2 emissions have been reduced by 20% compared to its predecessor.
One of the big surprises of this year's Geneva show must surely be the Porsche 918 Spyder. We believe the name is a reference to the hugely successful 718 RS Spyder racing cars of the 1950s and '60s but the new concept car's technology is cutting edge. The aggressively styled roadster features a mid-mounted V8 engine and three electric motors. The potent yet green drivetrain emits just 70 gram CO2 per kilometre and it uses just 3 litre per 100 kilometre (94 mpg).
We will be on the show-floor from tomorrow morning and will take a very close look at all the exciting new machines for you.

Three years after making a grand return, Fiat Abarth will reveal its second generation Punto at the upcoming Geneva International Motorshow. Based on the new Punto Evo, the hot hatch features a sophisticated 1.4 litre four cylinder engine, which produces 165 bhp and 250 Nm of torque. Despite a 10 bhp and 20 Nm hike in power, the turbo-charged unit is more efficient and cleaner than its predecessor. All this power is transferred to the front wheels through a six speed gearbox. The Fiat Abarth Punto Evo will share the 'Scorpion's' stand with a modified version of the 500C with its roll-back convertible roof. It shares the engine with Punto Evo but equipped with a different turbocharger, it produces 'only' 140 in the smaller Fiat-based machine.
After releasing a teaser picture a few weeks ago, Lexus have now revealed all details of the CT 200h. The all-new Lexus is the first hybrid car in the premium compact market segment. In addition to the petrol-electric engine, the small CT 200h also features a CVT transmission. Its styling is directly derived from the LF-Ch Concept shown last year in Frankfurt.
At last month's NAIAS in Detroit Mercedes-Benz had an unusual sculpture on their stand. It turns out it was a full-size teaser of the F 800 Style Concept that will star in Geneva. It serves to showcase future technology and also as a preview for the new generation CLS. The F 800 is built to accommodate both a hybrid drivetrain and a fuel-cell.
One of the most interesting cars in Geneva will most definitely be the Lotus Evora 414E Hybrid. Based on the Evora road car, this concept is powered by two electric motors. A specifically developed petrol engine can be used to generate additional electricity. The copper-coloured Lotus is packed with sophisticated technology, which is all ready for production. A single picture of the drivetrain is all we can show but we will surely capture every angle of the car this week.
A detailed and well illustrated report will be published here from the show-floor later in the week.

Ever since the first rules were made to sanction racing, manufacturers have tried to explore them to the fullest. One of the most spectacular examples of creative rule interpretation is the Porsche 935/78. Based on a 911 Turbo, it was developed by some very clever engineers at Weissach, with Norbert Singer at the helm. It was still homologated as a 'Group 5' GT-racer despite sharing only the passenger compartment with the road car. The front and rear of the car was formed by space-frames and the car was powered by a trick turbocharged engine that produced well in excess of 800 bhp. The dramatic shape of the heavily flared body earned the 935/78 the nick-name 'Moby Dick' after the white whale in Herman Melville's famous novel. Porsche had high hopes for the car and even believed it could win at Le Mans outright. Unfortunately the 935/78 only managed to score a debut win in the Silverstone 6 Hours, suffering from mechanical problems in all of the subsequent races. After a single season, Porsche abandoned the project. The engine first used in the flawed machine did score many more major wins in the 956 and 962 prototypes.
It is believed that Porsche built three examples, which were all retired from service and stored at the end of the year. Joest, one of the German manufacturer's best customers did manage to pry the drawings for the chassis from Porsche a few years later. They were used to construct the 935/81 'Moby Dick'. The two cars built were used with some success by various privateers, with a class victory at Le Mans as the highlight. Joest's incarnation of the inspired design struggled against the competition as it lacked the four-valve engine used for the original cars. Sadly one car was completely destroyed in a fatal accident that took the life of Rolf Stommelen. Ironically, he had piloted the original 'Moby Dick' at Le Mans a few years earlier. The sole surviving Joest car, and the only 'Moby Dick' in private hands, was recently acquired by a French enthusiast. He had it restored to full running order and raced it during several rounds of the CER championship in 2009. This provided us with ample opportunity to get a closer look at this phenomenal machine. The result is a 18-shot gallery with action and detail shots of the car. Hopefully it will be back out this year for the Le Mans Classic in July.