Autoblog UK

The Wiesmann MF5 Roadster has been well received by visitors to the IAA in Frankfurt. This little beauty is powered by a 5-litre V10 BMW engine pumping out 507bhp. The 4.2-metre-long two-seater will sprint from 0 to 62mph in 3.9 seconds. Top speed is around 195mph (310kph). As Wiesmann intends building only 55 models of the MF5, exclusivity is guaranteed. If required, the MF5 is available in right-hand drive form. It costs in the region of 189,500 euros (£173,500).

The quest for the stars of the IAA in Frankfurt continues from the selection of fabulous cars on display. Plus, there are the models of a different kind...

No fewer than 53 press conferences were held on the first day of the Frankfurt Motor Show, one of which proved so popular that they almost had to lock the doors of the Frankfurt Festival Hall. Fifty camera teams were on hand at the Mercedes-Benz press gathering to record the moment when the latest supercar from Affalterbach would be driven onto the stage – the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. For AMG boss Volker Mornhinweg, it was an emotional moment which left him struggling for words: "The whole team has been working really hard on this project for the past three years, so it's just a fantastic feeling to be presenting the vehicle to a worldwide audience here at the Frankfurt Motor Show. I won't try to hide just how proud we are of what we have achieved."

Since 11am on Tuesday, the red SLS AMG has been the centre of attention in the Mercedes hall. Camera crews have been queuing up to film the car from inside and outside, while photographers have been prostrating themselves to capture the full visual effect of the distinctive front end or chunky rear. The SLS is a real beauty. So much so that even Daimler CEO Dieter got a little carried away when the supercar rolled onto the stage shrouded in mist and illuminated by flashing cameras: "For someone like me who has petrol flowing in their veins, the fascination of a vehicle such as this is quite irresistible. It's a fantastic new product that obviously fills me with immense pleasure and pride: I also think it has been attractively presented." If you're one of those people for whom the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG is a must-have, you're in for a long wait: the first SLS isn't due for delivery until 27th March 2010.

If Saab is survive under the unlikely control of new owner, Koeniggsegg, this car needs to succeed. First impressions are mixed. On the plus side, the new car will be a huge improvement to drive compared to the old model, whose chassis dates back to the 1990s Vauxhall Vectra (which was stretched to accommodate the body of the larger Saab).

On the minus side , the styling is proving controversial. A straw poll of observers suggested the exceptionally large and heavy-looking C-pillar, behind the rear passenger door, is a problem . "It seems to come from a car two sizes bigger " was a typical comment.

The front half of the car and the interior are clearly Saab, albeit considerably modernized. Time will tell if the new car can tempt new customers away from Audi, BMW and Mercedes, which it needs to do. As Bob Lutz, former product development boss at GM said, "There are not enough college professors with leather elbow patches to keep Saab going".

This is the follow up to the Lotus Elise-based Roadster. It is a four seater luxury saloon that is intended to take Tesla closer to the mainstream car market using an improved version of the drivetrain used in the Tesla Roadster. The lithium-ion batteries are said to give a range of 300 miles and a 0-60 mph time of just six seconds. The range is claimed to be around 300 miles and the price is predicted to be just $57,000 (£39,000).

Apart from the clever technology , the Model S is also astonishingly good looking. Normally brand-new car companies (especially ones making electric cars) have designs that look a bit amateurish compared to the big boys, but that is emphatically not the case here. The Model S is easily better looking than, say, an S-Class or a 7 Series, thanks to styling by Franz von Halzhausen, a former senior Mazda designer.

Obviously, the cars are the real stars of the Frankfurt Motor Show. The visitors have already chosen their favourite in the shapely form of the Mercedes SLS AMG. But what's at Number Two? We'll find out in the next few days. Until then, we have the opportunity to eye up the models that many visitors are secretly more interested in – the glamorous girls whose charm and looks enhance the beauty of the vehicles on display.

BMW has launched yet another SUV to join the X3 and the X5. At first glance you might not know it is the new BMW, as it looks so like the X3. In fact, the X1 has a wheelbase just 3.5 cm shorter than the "larger" car. The plan is that the next X3 will grow in size to give the X3 a bit more room but, in the meantime, the X1 and X3 look like they are competing with each other. However the X1 18d is a rather tempting £4,000 less than the X3 18d.
The other issue with the X1 is perceived quality. A few people had already questioned the interior, so we took a close look. As well as a rather spartan dashboard, it was noticeable that some of the interior plastics felt a bit thin. Around the centre console, a moderate press with a finger produced rather more movement than you would expect.

Autoblog's Will Powell reports from the Frankfurt Motor Show

The recently revealed Jaguar XJ has received a positive reception from punters here at the Frankfurt motor show. One static XJ show car takes pride of place on British brand's stand in the central hall, but Jaguar has cleverly been exposing its new luxury large saloon to the public, by ferrying executives around on the road in pre-production prototypes.

Last night, a chauffeur driven XJ was spotted parked proudly outside a well known centre-of-town hotel (the bar of which happened to be full of car hacks), while Jag boss Mike O'Driscoll popped in for a drink.

A Jaguar insider revealed that the prototype fleet of XJs that have been rolled into executive taxi service are actually on their way to the Nurburgring for final testing before the flagship saloon goes on sale next year.

No one was left in any doubt that the Ian Callum styled XJ - with its sleek, long and elegant shape - makes a more positive, eyeball-attracting impression in context on the road than it did on any motorshow stand. We can't wait to see it in showrooms in February next year.

Speaking at the launch of the new Astra, the head of Opel/Vauxhall, Carl Peter Forster, went out of his way to praise Vauxhall. He said that, while the focus in Frankfurt was naturally on the German market, he wanted to point out that Vauxhall is actually the most successful part of the company with the highest domestic market share of any group company. He said Vauxhall was "fighting for market leadership". That is putting it a bit strongly, but at least he is publicly stressing the importance of Vauxhall to "New Opel" as the company is becoming known in Germany.

In an exclusive briefing, at which Autoblog was the only UK representative, Ford gave a warning that prospects for the whole European industry depended on continuing the scrappage incentive programme in Germany.

There have been independent forecasts that sales in Germany could fall by almost 1 million units a year if the scrappage programme is not extended, and Ford said such a decline would kill off the prospects of recovery for all European manufacturers, as well as bankrupting many German dealers.

Conversely, Ford reckons the economic prospects in the rest of Europe are pretty positive for 2010 and there should be a recovery in most markets – but that will count for nothing if the German market falls off a cliff.