2017 Geneva motor show report

In the power race, MacLaren's new 720S, with 720hp had people noticing its reworked company direction with the car's revolutionised driver visibility and mid-engined supercar aerodynamics. Cars with similar engine outputs were the new Ferrari 812 Superfast, Aston Martin's hypercar, now dubbed Valkyrie, the Techrules Ren and Singapore's all-electric Dendrobrium, built by Williams Advanced Engineering.

The new Honda Civic Type R was showcased with an even higher engine output of 320hp and a 0-100kph time in the mid-five-second bracket. The Tata Tamo Racemo sportscar was also avidly discussed due to its kit-car options and the scale of its ambitions.

Peugeot let word out that it would officially announce the purchase of Opel a day before the show. Volkswagen-owned Italdesign (which showed its super-exclusive Zerouno) and Mahindra-owned Pininfarina (with the spectacular but plausible Fittipaldi EF7) both made interesting comebacks. Alongside other concepts, Bentley had the EXP12, the second iteration of a roadster which looks on course to being its fifth model, and at the other end of the scale, Citroën extended its new look with C-Aircross, a pretty accurate view of the forthcoming C3 Picasso. Jaguar chief designer Ian Callum opened the bidding with the long-awaited XF Sportbrake. Also, Gerry McGovern unveiled the impressive Velar whose similarity under the skin to the recently launched Jaguar F-Pace wasn't picked by many.

Words such as 'autonomous' and 'driverless' were often used to prove that the cars there were, after all, ready for the future. Peugeot focused on the connectivity and self-driving aspects of its new Instinct concept to the point that it forgot to shed light on its coupé-like proportions or how this is a new design style for the brand. Audi’s RS3, Bentley’s Continental GT, BMW’s 4-series and Infiniti’s Q50 were few other cars on display. Volkswagen also showcased Sedric, its futuristically-styled self-driving pod.