2015 Detroit motor show highlights

America's automotive powerhouses may have turned their back on Australia as a manufacturing base, but this week they embraced our best and brightest designers at the Detroit motor show.

Australian designers played a starring role in the Motown showcase, with Holden building two concept cars — a limousine for Buick and an electric car for Chevrolet — and a Ford Australia designer penning a reborn GT40 supercar.

But in a cruel twist, none of them has any real significance to Australian car buyers.

On that score, the show car that could create the most waves Down Under was Hyundai's Santa Cruz ute — or pick-up as the Americans call them.

The Santa Cruz is the forerunner to a Hyundai ute that will look to take a slice of the booming Australian ute market, which accounts for one in six new vehicle sales.

Elsewhere at the show, it was all glitz and glamour, with Honda revealing a new NSX supercar and Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen unveiling sporty SUVs.

Here are CarsGuide's show highlights.

Honda NSX

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After more than three years of very public development work, including a disastrous fire at the Nurburgring, the born-again Honda NSX is ready to roll.

Almost exactly 25 years after the birth of the original NSX, the new hybrid supercar has broken cover and is being fast-tracked to Australia.

Some of the final detail is missing, including power and performance figures, but the NSX has a twin-turbocharged V6 engine, a double-clutch gearbox and twin electric motors to boost acceleration.

The output is believed to be more than 400kW and the engine, which is set north-south behind the two-seater cabin, is believed to be 3.5-litres in capacity.

The car has a body that combines lightweight alloys with carbon fibre, a step on from the original all-alloy NSX that was pitched against Ferrari in the 1990s.

The price is likely to be more than $250,000 in Australia, but despite the price tag, there is considerable interest in the car in Australia.

NSX deliveries in the US will begin later this year, pointing to an on-sale date in Australia in the first half of 2016. Less than 250 of the originals were sold down under, although it was a massive hit with car enthusiasts.

Ford GT

Ford GT Supercar unveiled at 2015 Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford GT supercar was unveiled at the Detroit motor show.

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Ford's latest Ferrari fighter, the new GT supercar, was designed by Australian Todd Willing, who was seconded from Ford Australia two years ago to work on the top secret project.

He has since returned to Ford's design studios in Broadmeadows, where he is now the head of design for Ford in the Asia-Pacific region. How long he stays there is anyone's guess, as the GT40 is an impressive boast on a CV. At Detroit, the chief engineer for the Corvette, Tadje Juechter, the head of Jaguar design Ian Callum and former Volvo chief designer Peter Horbury all queued with the masses to get a closer look at the car.

The Ford GT has special significance to Ford, having one the Le Mans 24-hour race four consecutive times from 1966 to 1969.

In a controversial move, the latest iteration of the GT40 comes with a twin-turbo V6 rather than a V8, but Ford says it makes more power than its predecessor without burning as much fuel.

There are no plans to sell the new Ford GT supercar in Australia because it will not be built in right-hand-drive.

Chevrolet Bolt

The Chevrolet Bolt concept unveiled at Detroit motor show 2015.

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The Chevrolet Bolt concept unveiled at Detroit motor show 2015.

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The Chevrolet Bolt concept unveiled at Detroit motor show 2015.

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The Chevrolet Bolt concept unveiled at Detroit motor show 2015.

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The Chevrolet Bolt concept unveiled at Detroit motor show 2015.

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The Chevrolet Bolt concept unveiled at Detroit motor show 2015.

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Holden designer Richard Ferlazzo with the Chevrolet Bolt concept car in Detroit.

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The Chevrolet Bolt concept car, which was built in Port Melbourne, can travel 320km on battery power alone and is expected to cost just $US30,000 when it eventually goes on sale.

The vehicle was also unveiled by a former Holden boss, Alan Batey, who now runs Chevrolet.

Mr Batey would not say when the Chevrolet Bolt would go into production but indications are that it will.

"We're going to gauge the reaction from today … but we're pretty convinced this is the right vehicle at the right time," said Mr Batey.

It may not make it to Australia, though.

Just 132 electric cars were sold here last year and Holden is unlikely to take the second generation Volt plug-in hybrid because of slow sales.

Hyundai Santa Cruz

Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept

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Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept

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Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept

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Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept

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Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept

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Hyundai Santa Cruz ute concept

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The Santa Cruz pick-up was Hyundai's hero and it's clearly headed for production, with a timeline that could put it into Australian showrooms within three years (see separate story on page 8).

Based on the next-generation ix35 SUV, the Santa Cruz Crossover Truck Concept was styled at Hyundai's design centre in Los Angeles and is aimed in the US at the 20-something "millenials" who are the second-biggest group of car buyers.

The Santa Cruz is a four-door five-seater that's smaller than mainstream American pick-ups, which have become true trucks.

It has "clamshell" doors and an expandable tray bed, with Tonka-style centre-lock wheels that won't make production.

Hyundai says the Santa Cruz is for people who don't need a full-size truck. The company says "towing, payload and ground clearance were not primary goals".

Volkswagen Cross Coupe

Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept

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Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept

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Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept

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Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept

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Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept

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Volkswagen Cross Coupe GTE concept

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The SUV rush continues apace, with Volkswagen taking the covers off yet another softroader concept.

This one is a pointer to a seven-seater that in size and philosophy will fit somewhere between the baby Tiguan and the family-sized Touareg. The show car had a plug-in hybrid system (a 3.6-litre V6 paired with two electric motors) but the showroom version is expected to be much more conventional.

It is due to go into production in late 2016 ahead of a 2017 showroom arrival.

So far it's not confirmed for Australia but Volkswagen locally has expressed interest in the vehicle.

GAC GS4

Guangzhou Automobile Group GS4

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Guangzhou Automobile Group GS4

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Guangzhou Automobile Group GS4

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Guangzhou Automobile Group GS4

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Guangzhou Automobile Group GS4

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The only Chinese car maker at the Detroit show is also coming to Australia.

The world debut of the GS4, a compact SUV, is proof that Guangzhou Automobile Group has aspirations beyond China. An Australian import deal for GAC is believed to be in the works at Auto Distributors AsiaPacific, a company established by Ateco boss Neville Crichton and the former head of Fiat Chrysler Australia, Clyde Campbell.

Crichton was the first to bring Chinese cars to Australia, with Great Wall and Chery, and has been looking for extra brands to distribute.

The big stumbling block at the moment is that GAC's cars are only built in left-hand drive.