• by Karl Greenberg , January 10, 2011

During the first day of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit's Cobo Hall, automakers showed vehicles that were matchbox-sized and bigger, although the focus was on the more diminutive end of the car and crossover world.

General Motors' Buick division unveiled the Verano, a car designed to fit into the segment just below the barely mid-sized Regal, and aimed at Audi and Lexus.

John Schwegman, VP of Buick marketing, said the new car is evidence of the division's "moving quickly from niche player to full-line premium brand in all core luxury segments. With Verano, we are poised to play hard in one of the largest segments of the luxury markets." He said the compact luxury region of the market comprises sales of 2 million vehicles per year in the U.S., "and that is expected to grow over the next few years." Schwegman says Verano will hit a sweet spot in a portion of the market a size below the new Regal sedan.

Both Ford and Toyota used the show to explicate their electric and hybrid car programs. Toyota's General Manager Bob Carter took the stage to unveil the automaker's plans for electric and hybrids. The company is introducing 11 new models to its global lineup in the next 23 months, seven of which will be entirely new, per Carter.

"Customers said they wanted the benefit of the Prius in a wider line of vehicles," he said. They include the third-generation Prius, of which some 230,000 have been sold, according to Carter. "It is the benchmark, the patriarch of the family." He said December was the best month for Prius sales since Cash-for-Clunkers supercharged sales in 2009.

Toyota is also preparing to introduce the Prius Plug-In, which will get 13 miles on battery alone at up to 60 mph, according to Carter -- who added that the car will first be sold in 14 East and West Coast states, where 60% of Priuses are sold. Then Toyota will begin selling the vehicle in remaining states after about a year.

The automaker also unveiled the Prius V (for versatility), the first crossover version of Prius and a vehicle that Toyota has been teasing through social-media campaigns. Carter said the vehicle will have 66% fewer emissions than the average car, with almost the same footprint as the traditional Prius and 60% more cargo space. The vehicle, which Carter said would get 42 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway, will also be the first Toyota vehicle to get the Ntune entertainment system, which the automaker unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show last week.

Finally, Toyota hinted at a fourth vehicle, Prius C -- which will be the smallest vehicle in the lineup and, per Carter, the highest mileage of any hybrid available in the U.S.

Ford said it will add more than 7,000 new hourly and salaried jobs between this year and next in the United States and will begin recruiting engineers specializing in electrification. The automaker showed three new electrified products: the Ford Focus Electric, Ford's first full-electric passenger car; Ford C-Max Energi, its first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) and the new Ford C-Max Hybrid.

Honda's EVP of sales, John Mendel, said the company -- after placing a lot of its attention on Acura last year -- is focusing this year on Honda, and particularly on its core Civic brand.

Mendel said the company's Honda and Acura brands -- the latter will be 25 years old this March -- increased sales last year by 7.6% to 1.23 million vehicles. "It's more significant that we did it one customer at a time," he said, adding that Honda is "virtually the only full-line manufacturer that increased sales without bulking up on fleet sales."

Honda showed two Civic concepts that Mendel said will be in showrooms in a few months. The focus is on younger buyers, although he said the car appeals to all demographics, "from the Greatest Generation to Gen Y."

Hyundai is also thinking small. The automaker has finally rolled out a coupe to replace the Tiburon, which was discontinued in 2008. The car, which will be a 2012 model, has a single door on the left side and both a front door and small rear door on the right -- plus a hatch in the back. The new vehicle also reflects Hyundai's "fluidic sculpture" design mantra evinced most recently by the new Sonata, the Genesis and Equus. The company said the new coupe is designed to suggest a high-performance motorcycle.