Top Five Cars from the Shanghai Auto Show..

The bustling megalopolis of Shanghai is a good place – in fact, better than most others – to have an auto show. This city of almost twenty million people, situated on the banks of the Huangpu River, is at the forefront of what the modern Chinese city has come to embody in the 21st Century - evolution. With skyscrapers that reach to the heavens situated next to the ancient parts of the city, Shanghai is where the East meets the West and where the global "Next" is created.

China is also a big market for the global automotive industry and the place where corporations are hedging their bets on the future. It is also a whole different world. In China, General Motors is the number one sales leader. Audi and BMW both make special long wheelbase models - those who can afford a luxury car usually have a driver to go along with it. Furthermore, automobile sales in China keep growing at a torrid pace year over year.

That said, China is still a country with its learner's permit. The country's burgeoning market is so new that there is still a sense of excitement about its nascent automotive culture.

That excitement was palpable at the 12th Shanghai International Automobile & Manufacturing Technology Exhibition. The 120,000 square meters of the New International Expo Centre were overflowing with hundreds of cars and thousands of journalists, fog machine smoke rising to the rafters and the sound of music blasting from the packed stands.

The floor was littered with a wide array of different models – from the odd, tiny El Camino-type Changfeng concept to Scion-like Great Wall Coolbear. Below are some of the highlights from the Shanghai show and, perhaps, the very near future. In China, to paraphrase Thomas L. Friedman, not only is the world flat, but so are the roads.

1. Audi Cross Coupe Quattro

Stefan Sielaff, head of Audi Design, said the main idea behind the Audi Cross Coupe Quattro was "to combine the character of an SUV with the lifestyle of a coupe and create a sporty statement with an active feel." Sielaff's team lowered the head points of the vehicle by integrating the tailgate hinges into the roof rails, thus creating the sleek coupe-like lines. There is also a large fabric folding roof that extends from the A-pillar to near the tailgate to complete the package. Sielaff said the concept was the younger sibling to the Q5 and Q7. As Audi's first concept to début in China, the Cross Coupe Quattro features such interior touches as matte gold and polished aluminum detailing, Chinese character-like laser etching on the MMI knob and, an especially nice touch, a porcelain tea cup in the cup holder.

What We Think:

Traditionally Audi doesn't show a concept car unless they plan on making some sort of production derivative. Expect to see a Q3 based off this knockout sometime in the near future.

Audi Cross Coupe Quattro

2. BMW Concept CS

Following Mercedes-Benz and Audi's lead, BMW presented their own version of a four-door coupe, the Concept CS. At 200.8 inches long, the Concept CS with its long hood, short overhang, low-slung muscular lines and wide rear haunches – better to show off the 21-inch wheels – belies a powerful new design language from the mind of BMW designer Chris Bangle. The Concept CS looks to compete with the Mercedes-Benz CLS63 AMG, the Aston Martin Rapide and the forthcoming Porsche Panamera. When asked why BMW chose the Shanghai show to début the concept, Thomas Plucinsky, Product & Technology Communications Manager said, "We see China as a growth market long term and the launch of the Concept CS helps us build a stronger presence here." With sales of 45,000 vehicles in 2006, an increase of 27% from 2005, BMW is onto something right.

What We Think:

With its dazzling good looks and strong presence, Chris Bangle once again drives BMW down a futuristic and eye-catching road. Simply Stunning.

BMW Concept CS

3. Buick Riviera Concept

Take a drive down any street in Shanghai and you'll see numerous Buicks - which makes sense - China is Buick's largest market in the world. The Shanghai show presents a perfect place for Buick to showcase their new international design language with the Riviera concept. Developed in tandem with the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center in China, Ed Wellburn, vice president of GM Global Design said, "Developing and launching the Riviera in China underscores the diversity, strength and depth of the GM global design network." With its tautly wrapped carbon fiber skin, gullwing doors, large greenhouse, 21-inch wheels pushed to the corners and hybrid drivetrain, the Rivera takes a classic American – and now Chinese – nameplate into the future.

What We Think:

Buick, which has a long history of concepts dating back to the classic Harley Earl designed 1938 Y-Job, shows with the futuristic-leaning Riviera that the nameplate still has a lot of mileage left in the tank.

Buick Riviera Concept

4. Chery Shooting Sport

Chery has a long 'are they or aren't they' history of coming to the states. As one of China's largest automotive manufacturers, Chery could soon be in a position to make that leap across the Pacific. The Shooting Sport concept, which takes its design cues from Audi's Shooting Brake concept from the 2005 Tokyo Motor Show, looks like a winner to us, design homage aside. While the 1.6-liter, 87 horsepower engine lacks in power, this concept is a good start.

What We Think:

As the saying goes, if you steal, steal from the best. With the looks of the never-to-be-made Shooting Brake and a price that would be cheap-as-sin if ever made, the Shooting Sport could do for Chery what the Excel did for Hyundai in 1986 – launch a brand name.

Chery Shooting Sport

5. BYD F8

BYD – Build Your Dream – is another of China's up and coming nameplates. Their F8, which looks like a Mercedes-Benz CLK from the front and a Chrysler Sebring from the side and rear, presents an interesting quandary: we know it looks like a mash-up of two cars, but can we still like it? The answer is yes. As China's first convertible with a glass hardtop, retractable no less, the F8 has a winning underdog feel to it.

What We Think:

So this is what would happen if Daimler and Chrysler actually designed cars together. With room for four, it looks like fun to us.

BYD F8