Behind all the flag-waving and hyperbole about the "Great British Car Show", this year's exhibition at Birmingham truly illustrates the troubled state of the car industry there, writes Michael McAleer, Motoring Editor
For all the bulldog spirit and calls for a patriotic turn-out, the very fact that number two on Autocar magazine's list of 101 great reasons not to miss the show was that "it's the British show and we should be proud to support the home exhibition" said it all. Fifth on the list was the fact that visitors could "walk up to a Mazda RX8 and play with the suicide, sorry, freestyle rear doors", something that they could just as easily in any Mazda showroom, given that the car's been on sale there since last year.
Of course, there were those looking for someone to blame, and those treacherous Continentals fitted the bill once more. On the eve of the D-Day anniversary, the blood boiled in some as the Germans, the Italians and the French all seemed to snub this ailing British institution.
This year's show, which opened to the press yesterday, is a last-gasp attempt to put the British show back on the A-list with the big quintet of Detroit, Tokyo, Geneva, Frankfurt and Paris.
Like a poor relation desperate to make it in more illustrious company by forking out on a shiny suit and sparkly cuff-links, Birmingham pulled out the glitz and showbiz.
There were off-road driving courses, driving lessons for teenagers, Minis doing stunts and an entire Ford stand dominated by paraphernalia from the upcoming Thunderbirds movie, for which the US car firm provided the pink 'Fab1' car. But none of it could hide the lack of motoring glamour.
The absence of big-name German brands, such as Mercedes and BMW, and Italy's Alfa Romeo left several British conspiracy theorists citing concerted efforts to undo the British industry. There were whispers of boycotts of these marques. It's hard to take these suggestions seriously. Surely the German absence can be attributed largely to cold financial calls - they just don't see sales benefits coming from Birmingham.
If it hadn't been for the likes of the home-grown talent of Land Rover, which unveiled its stylish new Discovery to European audiences yesterday, there would have been a distinct lack of a big-name draw.
Sure, you get to see cars such as the Aston Martin DB9 in all its shining glory - and the chance to get up close and personal with celebrities such as supermodel Jodie Kidd.
But at the heart of every car show are the international launches. For Birmingham we were promised it was going to come from Renault, with its sparkling new mid-range five-seater Modus.
But, adding to British chagrin and fulfilling the conspiracy theories of a Franco-German alliance to see the British industry buried once and for all, Renault stabbed Birmingham in the back by unveiling the Modus a week earlier at the Madrid Motor show.
When you consider another Autocar reason to attend the show - "Birmingham is in the middle of the country and has excellent road, rail and air links" - you begin to believe they've lost the plot. So, some would say, has the British industry.
Organisers hope to attract over 400,000 to prove it's a viable show, but if the big makers were to go through the Autocar list of reasons, one suspects the British show may slip further down the rankings, to somewhere on a par with Amsterdam or Copenhagen.
Even reaching 400,000, it would be far behind Paris, which attracted 1.45 million in 2002 and is expected to beat that in September with a claimed 60 world debuts.
Circus-like crowd pleasers are quick fixes to bigger problems. Car shows need to distinguish themselves from the car park outside. This show struggles to do that.
Discovery tops bill
In a show that was more about audience entertainment than industry revelation, the biggest metal attraction at Birmingham was the Land Rover Discovery (right).
Taking design cues from the Range Rover and with its sharp edges, it may take some a while to get used to, but it may also mean the car will have a longer shelf-life and stand out in an increasingly crowded 4x4 market.
The latest addition to the range is a 2.7-litre 190 bhp common rail diesel unit, joining the 4.4-litre V8 petrol version launched in New York earlier this year. The diesel is the one currently featured in the revised Jaguar S-Type and was built in conjunction with Peugeot to critical acclaim.
While BMW and Mercedes were no-shows, several prestige marques put on a good show, in particular Ferrari and Porsche. The German marque offered a world premiere (of sorts) with its new 911 Turbo S, the latest revamp of the current 996 generation model before the next generation arrives next year.
With a top speed of 191mph and a 0-62mph in 4.2 seconds, the brilliant 3.6-litre Turbo engine has been tuned to offer 30bhp more - bringing it up to 450bhp - and increasing the take-off power, or torque, from 560 Newton metres to 620Nm.