Detroit: Muscle cars in action

The Consumer Electronics Show last week in Las Vegas focused on autonomous driving, connected and electric cars. By contrast, Detroit remains attached to other features - cars which are big and heavy. No matter whether they are gas guzzlers or not. The picture above shows a 6-liter GMC Sierra Terrain.

General Motors' Chevrolet brand is known above all for its Corvette - see the 2017 Grand Sport model in the picture. Detroit touts the ZR1, a 700-PS car with an 8-cylinder turbocharger. By the way, not all US carmakers are revealing new products at the auto show. Most conspicuously, the country's fourth-largest automaker, Fiat Chrysler, will not be presenting anything new.

Known in Europe for its midrange and compact cars, Ford keeps banking on light trucks at home, for instance the F150 Raptor. According to the Center of Automotive Research, 60 percent of newly registered vehicles in the US are light trucks.

What the Corvette is for Chevrolet, the Mustang is for Ford. Ford, the second-biggest US carmaker after GM, presents a face-lifted classic. By the way, many of the cars sold in the US are produced in neighboring Mexico. VW, Audi, Hyundai/Kia, Toyota and Mazda also have factories there. If Donald Trump slaps import tariffs on cars, sales may be severely impacted.

Sports car producer Porsche is not at the show as its share in the US market is small. Nevertheless, its SUV models have been selling well there. BMW for its part is presenting its 5-series novelty and the big and heavy Concept X2.

Daimler's subsidiary Mercedes-Benz boasts the biggest US market share among German carmakers. In Detroit, the Swabians are hopig to score with their E-class coupé. Nonetheless, Mercedes' success in the US is first and foremost based on one of its SUV models, the GLC.

Mercedes can think big, too. The X-class pickup is still a concept car which should hit the market in Europe toward the end of this year and Latin America and Australia later on. It can be taken for granted that a bigger version of this midsize vehicle will be made available for the American market.

And what about Volkswagen? Each appearance in the US is a fresh start for the Wolfsburg-based automaker. The Tiguan Allspace (pictured) is meant to help the firm win new customers. It's a longer version of the European Tiguan which will first be available in North America and later on in China and Europe.

There was a time when the Toyota Camry could be foud regularly on European roads, too, but nowadays it's a rather rare appearance as exports to the Continent were stopped back in 2004. In the US, the Camry is among the best-selling cars. Toyota is showing the latest version of the model in Detroit.