The car world is preparing to descend upon the Swiss lakeside city of Geneva next week for the start of the annual motor show.
Rated as one of the top four motor shows in the world, this year's show is set to concentrate on the growing niche markets.
Ford is set to introduce its new S-Max, the 5+2 entrant in the people carrier market. While the new Galaxy is a full seven seater, this is designed to be a five seater with two extra seats for children.
Ford is also set to launch a new coupé concept with a hard-top retractable roof, similar to that on the new Volvo C70.
Fellow General Motors brand Chevrolet is hoping to build on its rising sales with a new medium-sized SUV, the Captiva, and the Epica four-door saloon.
The Captiva is built on the same platform as Opel's new Antara SUV, due for launch later this year. After the launch of its new Civic recently, Honda will expand the line-up with a three-door version and the range-topping Type R, powered by a 200bhp 2-litre engine. The Japanese brand will also introduce its new Legend saloon, which will go on sale from September.
Another Asian marque due to have a busy time at Geneva is Hyundai.
It will unveil a new Accent, that's larger in all directions than the current model. The Santa Fe also gets a major revamp with a revised chassis and new seating formats. The new Santa Fe, due here in the coming months, will be available in five and seven-seat formats.
The Lexus LS460 will gets its first European outing at Geneva.
The Geneva Motor Show is open to the public from March 2nd to 12th.
