The 2012 Paris Mondial de l'Automobile will not be remembered as a classic. When the Big Book of the Paris Motor Show is published, 2012 may be consigned to no more than a side note as the show that marked what a dire situation the European car industry was once in.

The most worrying aspect of the Paris show was the general lack of progression. The number of old concept cars clearly drafted in to fill the spaces left by abandoned plans that fell foul of their finance departments' red pens added to the effect. But even many of the new cars on show had a sense of déjà-vu.