The Concept A-Star previews a new 109g/km C02 model from Suzuki that is based on the Suzuki Splash/Opel Agila launched last year. Significantly, it will form a key part of their commitment to lower C02 emissions and will be built by Maruti Suzuki in India. For the Concept A-Star, designers from Maruti Suzuki joined with the Japanese design team to bring a unique Indian aesthetic to this project.

Perhaps most obvious is the use of a bright magenta accent that's used throughout the design, including the cheater panel housing the rear view cameras, inserts in the wheels and the upper eyebrow area of the headlamps. Up close, this eyebrow comprises an arabesque pattern that becomes back-illuminated at night by LEDs. The rear features two boomerang-shaped rear lamps with the magenta-colored DI lamps hidden behind the tailgate glass, a trend we first spotted last year on the VW Up! and Seat Tribu. Other features include the sharp crease on the rear fender that curls down onto the bumper and the Suzuki diamond-shaped logo which pushes up into the tailgate glass.

The Concept A-Star is particularly notable for its interesting bodyside section, despite the inevitable width restrictions of an A-Segment car. A small overhanging shoulder below the windows dives into a softly-sculptured surface with a deep lightcatcher low down near the rocker panel that flicks up into the wheelarch and successfully breaks up the depth of the bodyside. We also noted the two sharply recessed slots for door handles that puncture the surface, a theme repeated for the exhaust outlets at the rear.

The interior is finished in black and light beige suede. Most interestingly, the IP is completely split into a pair of upper and lower wings, with a magenta-illuminated cavity between them and a high-mounted gearshift lever.

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VW Up! concept - Frankfurt 2007

Previewed as a concept in Detroit 2007, the XC60 is Volvo's bid to compete with compact SUVs such as the BMW X3 and Land-Rover Freelander. More sculptural than the XC90, the new XC60 is the first full project overseen by Design Director Steve Mattin and very much reflects his taste in design, according to former colleagues from Mercedes. The front face features the new bolder look that Mattin will introduce across the range. This comprises a 6-sided grille with satin silver frame, black egg-crate mesh and much larger Volvo ‘Iron Mark' emblem. Slim running lamps are mounted between the headlamps and grille, to provide a new night-time signature for Volvo. The rear view is also unmistakably Volvo, with the swoop-down bevel in the rear bumper echoing the striking lamp graphic and its blade of red light down the center.

The most notable achievement on this car has to be the fine quality of the surfacing, particularly the way the soft shoulderline cones wider towards the tail lamp - the exact opposite of most cars - and the way that adjacent undercut feature line fades out by the rear door handle. Indeed, the overall fluidity of the design is exemplary, with a great combination of soft surfaces and beveled edges right around the car to keep the eye moving and to add interest wherever one looks. The two launch colors - ‘Terra Bronze' and ‘Lime Grass Green' suit the car well and are said to be inspired by the fashion industry.

Safety is taken to new levels with the world premiere of ‘City Safety' low speed auto brake, where the car itself brakes if it detects a collision with the vehicle in front. This supports other innovative safety aids pioneered by Volvo including ACC, BLIS, Lane Departure and Distance Alert. Overall, this is a very handsome new Volvo.

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Volvo XC60 concept - Detroit 2007

Toyota showed the Urban Cruiser concept at Geneva in 2006, but that time the car was clearly an SUV crossover. The new production Urban Cruiser debuting in Geneva this week has hints of SUV in its DNA, but is essentially a slightly tall and boxy small hatchback. This is because it is very closely based on the recently-announced Ist for the Japanese-market, a car identical to the US-market Scion Xd. The differences appear to be only in the front and rear bumpers which are black at their bases to give the impression of greater ground clearance.

The Urban Cruiser was displayed with no access to the interior, but the exterior appears to be well resolved, albeit without many points of real interest. The front and rear lights are notable for sitting on a different plane to the surfaces around them - a growing trend it seems - and the door handles sit within subtle oval recesses within the door panels. The slight concave surface below the shoulder line and the subtle feature line running diagonally up the C-pillar are the few innovative elements we found on this well-resolved, but sober design.

Overall the Urban Cruiser is handsome, but rather too conservative a design for Europe.

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Toyota Urban Cruiser concept - Geneva 2006