BMW, Audi, Mercedes, Lexus show off latest models in Detroit.

Detroit is renowned as America’s basket-case city but, as any regular visitor to its annual motor show will attest, it’s visibly recovering from decades of decline. Every year another of its magnificent buildings is restored, more businesses open. Detroit’s resilient spirit is slowly getting a deserved reward.

But the annual motor show has never returned to its pre-global financial crisis glory days. The razzamatazz has gone, elite brands seldom turn up and car companies shoot their technical salvos a few days earlier, at the enormous Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Its light has dimmed, for sure, but, as it showed again this week, it still illuminates the upcoming motoring year like nothing else.

The German luxury brands always have something to reveal. Audi declared that a new large SUV, the Q8, would be its luxury flagship, BMW showed the seventh generation of its core 5 Series and Mercedes unveiled a sleek E-Class Coupe.

Thanks to 11 per cent growth last year, Mercedes is celebrating retaking market leadership from BMW. But all three are enjoying bumper sales with Mercedes and BMW brands going past the two million mark for the first time and Audi approaching 1.9 million. Japanese luxury makers Lexus and Infiniti remain a long way behind but showed attractive new additions to their ranges.

At the other end of the scale, GAC became the first Chinese carmaker to display on the main exhibition floor. Its expansion plans include tackling the US market, something long threatened but never achieved by a Chinese brand. It was impossible not to wonder how Donald Trump might respond.

Mainstream makers have been caught in the middle but are fighting back, with Toyota showing the Camry that Australia will get when local production finishes late this year and Kia drawing impressive crowds for its striking-looking Stinger GT, a sporty sedan. And it wouldn’t feel like a proper motor show unless Volkswagen rolled out yet another study for a potential Kombi revival. Diesel scandal? What diesel scandal? Look over here!

1. AUDI Q8 CONCEPT

What is it? A large SUV that evolves Audi’s design language and takes technical features and luxury to the next level. Driveline: Plug-in hybrid combining 3.0-litre turbo V6 and an electric motor driving all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic. Acceleration to 100km/h in 5.4s and a pure electric range of 60km. What’s good about it? Head-up display system features augmented reality — navigation arrows appear as though on the road. Next generation control ­system.

BMW 5 SERIES

What is it? Seventh generation of BMW’s full-size sedan raises the bar on autonomous driving, connectivity and comfort. Driveline? Large range of petrol, diesel and hybrid drivelines, climaxing in a 340kW 4.4-litre V8. Rear drive or all-wheel drive using an eight-speed automatic gearbox. What’s good about it? Up to 100kg lighter than its predecessor. Smartphone features such as remote 3-D view of areas around the car. Automatic steering, braking and acceleration up to 210km/h.

LEXUS LS

What is it? The fifth-generation full-size four-door from Lexus aims to shake up the industry the way the original did 28 years ago. Driveline: A new turbo 3.5-litre V6 with 310kW drives through a 10-speed automatic transmission. What’s good about it?Sleek proportions, improved dynamics and Japanese-inspired luxury. Latest safety tech can ­detect an imminent pedestrian collision and steer to avoid the pedestrian while staying in lane.

VOLKSWAGEN ID BUZZ

What is it? The latest in a string of concepts suggesting revival of the brand’s famous Kombi is imminent. Driveline: Electric motors front and rear deliver 275kW to all four wheels. Battery pack built into the floor can be 80 per cent recharged in 30 minutes. Range of 600km. What’s good about it? Flexible seating for up to eight and “space for bikes and boards” in an uncluttered interior with next-generation control systems. And, of course, it can drive itself.

INFINITI QX50 CONCEPT

What is it? One step short of a new production model midsize premium SUV for Nissan’s premium arm. Driveline: Unspecified, but Infiniti suggests this could be the debut vehicle for its groundbreaking variable compression engine, with front-biased all-wheel drive. What’s good about it? It’s the latest expression of Infiniti’s expressive design language with innovative use of luxury materials.