You can bank on the Swiss to show us some great cars

A SERIES of stunning cars destined to land in your local showroom over the next year are being showcased in Geneva this week.

The Swiss city's annual motorshow is always a hot tip for spotting the machines which will be impressing motorists in the near future, with everything from supercars to superminis - and a touch of the weird and wonderful - on on offer.

Almost every manufacturer is striving to show off something exciting at the event, and one motor that's been making waves this week is Toyota's FT-86, the Japanese giant's riposte to the 370Z, the latest in Nissan's reinvigorated range of sports coupes.

Following in the footsteps of the Celica and Supra, it's a welcome return to sports car territory, and a great way to revive interest in the carmaker after the scandal surrounding safety recalls on some of its other models earlier this year. With rear-wheel-drive, a rev-happy two litre lump and a six speed gearbox, it's definitely a GT from the old school.

But where Toyota are going back to basics, Ferrari are looking to the future, and have embraced the world of hybrid technology by fitting an electric motor to the 599 GTB supercar.

It's not quite the shock you'd expect; rather than chasing economy or trying to save the planet, the Italian company have taken a few tips from their F1 colleagues and used the system, dubbed Hy-Kers, to generate more than 100bhp on top of what the 599 GTB already generates, meaning it'll be a formidable motor if it ever makes production.

After the sucess of the DS3 hatchback, Citroen are continuing their move upmarket by naming a slinky saloon after a mens' magazine, called simply the GQbyCITROEN. I look forward to test driving the NUTSbyCITROEN and the FHMbyCITROEN sometime next year.

Yet you'll find the real star of the show hidden away on the Opel - that's Vauxhall to you and me - stand, where the tiny Meriva is being launched. Building on the success of the slightly cubist original, the firm's smallest MPV brings cuter styling and some neat touches (check out the clever rear doors) to what's bound to be a big hit for Vauxhall.

They'll be everywhere this time next year, and you can't say that about most motorshow stars.