What the designers saw

Interesting to see what rival products attract rival bosses and designers at the Detroit motor show this year.

I'd say the three cars they all want to see are the Audi Shooting Brake concept (because it's the new TT, and that car has been quite influential over the years), the Kia Stinger (because rivals are coming to admire and even fear the consistency and beauty of Peter Schreyer's efforts) and the Jaguar F-type coupe (because half the members of the tiny world car design community have Eagle E-Types or want them - and they want to decide whether the F-type coupe has the magic).

I saw BMW's Adrian van Hooydonk examining the Audi, and Ford's Mark Fields and Bentley's Wolfgang Schreiber examining the F-type - with what looked like admiration. When I spoke to him, Jaguar's Julian Thompson was heading off to see the Kia.

And several who should remain nameless declared admiration for the Toyota concept that might eventually be a new Supra.

To me, the F-type looks increasingly beautiful, courtesy of its compactness and proportions to die for. The Audi is highly competent, and the TT will look very professional, but I do think a lot of their cars finish up at the same place. The Kia is bold, a bit too bold for my taste, but as usual it is eye-grabbing and beautifully executed. 

My sleeper is the Chrysler 200, a very competent American car given there's an Alfa Alfa Romeo Giulietta underneath. If this is an era when it's vital to swear your assets, the 200 (provided it sells) could be a quiet triumph.