Auto News 5

When we heard Mercedes-Benz would be showing a design concept of the next-generation CLS at the Detroit auto show, we naturally expected the Germans to roll out some form of a clay model concept car. Instead, Mercedes has taken a much more abstract approach, presenting a sculpture that appears like a cloth draped over a car.inline_mediumwraptextright26545301/features/news/1001_mercedes_benz_cls_sculpture_previewmercedes-benz-sculpture-front.jpgTrue

Chevrolet may have been quick to return to the B-car segment in 2004, but timing isn't always everything. Shortly after the Korean-built Aveo hit the market, competitors -- namely Honda and Nissan -- launched subcompacts that outpaced the Chevy in terms of style and sophistication. GM promises that won't happen with the next-generation Aveo -- and if this Aveo RS concept, which debuts at the 2010 Detroit auto show is any indication, it's dead serious.inline_mediumwraptextright26558858/features/news/1001_2010_chevy_aveo_rs_conceptchevrolet-aveo-RS-show-car-front-three-quarters-passenger.jpgTrue

Volvo unveiled its first electric C30 prototype in September, but already has a second-generation car ready to show at the 2010 Detroit auto show in January. Volvo will build a test fleet of its new electric C30 to help further its development.inline_mediumwraptextright27775741/green/news/1001_electric_volvo_c301001_01_z+electric_volvo_c30+front_three_quarter_view.jpgTrue

It’s a Prius! It’s an iQ! It’s…well, we’re not exactly sure. All Toyota’s saying at this point is it’s a conceptual “dedicated hybrid” model, and that it will make its world debut at the 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.inline_mediumwraptextright26492525/green/news/1001_toyota_hybrid_concept1001_08_z+2010_nAIAS_toyota_hybrid_concept+emblem.jpgTrue

Looking back over the past few decades, it's easy enough to stereotype Buick as the preferred ride of octogenarians -- but during a few (and all too brief) years in the late 1960s, early 1970s, and 1980s, the phrase "performance Buick" didn't elicit fits of laughter. Those days may soon return, if the Regal GS concept -- which debuts at the 2010 Detroit auto show -- is any indication of things to come.inline_mediumwraptextright31985028/features/news/1001_buick_regal_gs_conceptbuick-regal-GS-front-three-quarter-1.jpgTrue