Geneva Motor Show: Extreme Machines

The 71st Geneva Motor Show is the car industry's most important European event. This year there were a record number of exhibitors and model launches.

They again came in all shapes and sizes. Gull-wings made a come back, speed is still king for some and while four wheels was standard, an eight-wheeler appeared too.

Concept cars always form an important part of the show indicating the latest trends in styling, engineering and design.

The cabrio Smart Crossblade variant on the Smart car with 3-cylinder turbo engine, also get their first outings.

Porsche shows off the most powerful production car it has ever built, the 911 GT2.

The Opel Astra coupe OPC X-treme, a two-seater based on the Astra V8, also has gull-wings. It has a 4-litre engine and comes in a convertible form too.

The Pininfarina Osee, which means "daring", is a research prototype making its debut for Citroen.

After the takeover by Renault, Nissan presents a new concept in Franco-Japanese in the form of a car called Chappo.

Japan's Keio University researchers turned up with one of the most unusual cars at the show. This is the concept car called KAZ, with eight wheels, room for eight passengers and is powered by an electric motor.

The Peugeot 206 Cabriolet, in a choice of 1.6 or 2.0-litre engines, won the awarded for Cabriolet of the Year.

Ford develops the Ka car range with a roadster version called Street Ka.

The Ford Mondeo ST220 is a high performance version of its predecessors and shares quite a few shared components under the bonnet with the Baby Jag.