With Americans set to buying more cars this year, the 2012 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) closed on a thunderous note with the largest public turnout since 2005. Almost 771,000 car enthusiast attendees attested to the popularity of this event, the biggest annual car show in the U.S.

Not to be outdone were the 5,196 media representatives from 61 countries who attended the Press Preview on Jan 9 and 10, 2012, snapping and filming away the more than 40 new vehicle introductions which ranged from new models to refreshes to concept vehicles that titillated the audience.

The 500 cars on the show floor generated much excitement and international review during the 14-day event, which ran from Jan 9 to 22, 2012. More than 22,000 auto suppliers, designers, engineers and other auto professionals from more than 2,000 companies were at the Industry Preview and 12,000 people raised US$3 million for children's' charities at the Charity Preview.

It is predicted that a total of 13.6 million vehicles will be sold in the U.S. in 2012, and therefore not surprisingly, the emphasis of automakers at the 2012 NAIAS was on fuel efficiency. Downsized vehicles and hybrids were the choice of the day for most of the car manufacturers.

Dodge Dart

The all-new 2013 Dodge Dart drew a lot of public admirers, with an amazing cabin space, 14 colours, 6 wheel choices, the option of adding over 150 MoparŪ accessories and great fuel efficiency. The re-designed Ford Focus also won a lot of popular votes, but it was the Hyundai Elantra which impressed the 50-journalist voting panel and walked away with the North American Car of the Year award. Besides looking good on the outside and the inside and boasting impressive fuel economy numbers, the car impressed the panel with its zippy drive.

These are a few of the car highlights:

Toyota Fun-Vii Concept

Looking amazingly like a modern smartphone, on which the concept is modelled, the Fun-Vii is a hi-tech chameleon that has an exterior which functions as a display screen for messages and images. The interior can be customised and personalised, akin to "skins", dependent on the driver's mood. It is also equipped with highly intelligent technology which can detect hazardous cars and communicate with other vehicles.

BMW i8 Concept

Driven by Tom Cruise in the new Mission Impossible movie, the BMW i8 concept car utilises plastics and aluminimum to help deliver speed and fuel economy. It is a plug-in hybrid that combines the acceleration of a sports car (0 to 100 km/h in under 5 seconds) with great fuel efficiency (14 to 20 km per litre).

Sporting Laser Light headlights that are much smaller, more intense and more energy efficient, the concept strikes a dashing appearance with its gull-wing doors and colour-layered exterior. The body work has silver, black and blue highlights while the interior shines with transparent panels.

Falcon F7 Supercar

Falcon Motorsports, a small sports car company based in Michigan, presented its first production version of its F7 supercar. It has 620 Horsepower under the hood capable of reaching 0 to 100 km per hour in 3.3 to 3.6 seconds and a top speed of 320 km per hour. The F7 dazzles in metallic orange and stands out with its 1980s look and a hand-crafted interior decked out in Venzano Leather.

Smart-for-us

With Smart pickups, a petrol station is no longer needed. It re-invents urban pickups - small on the outside, large on the inside. Smart introduced this all-electric, urban pick-up truck which accommodates two people in front and has a cargo bed behind that can carry two electric bikes (also produced by Smart). These ebikes are constantly charged while they remain in the dock. The purpose for these bikes is to enable passengers to travel in areas that are not accessible by car, for instance, in parks and restricted zones in cities.