The motoring press is descending on Frankfurt for what is widely acknowledged as the largest automotive marketing exercise in the world. The show, which throws its doors open to the public on Thursday, is one of the main opportunities for international car makers to show off.
And as such, few of the attendants have good reasons to be cheery.
The motoring industry is in trouble. Few companies are making serious money from making and selling cars at the moment. Indeed, most are losing large amounts instead.
New Volvo
Nevertheless, on the eve of the press day everyone seemed pretty happy.
 The wraps come off on Tuesday |
Pre-launches abounded across Frankfurt on Monday night, ahead of the main show where 125 new models will be launched for the first time anywhere in the world. They range from family-friendly saloons like the new Golf from Volkswagen or the new Astra from Opel (Vauxhall), to fancier models like Porsche's new 911 Turbo convertible or Aston Martin�s DB9 four seat Grand Tourer.
Crucial among them was Volvo's glitzy launch of its new S40 medium sized car, an upmarket number which the car maker insists will take on the likes of Audi, Mercedes and BMW.
The success of this car is vital to Volvo, acknowledged Hans-Olov Olsson, president and chief executive of the Volvo Car Corporation.
"We are going to sell 150,000 units per annum," he told BBC News Online, noting that the car will make up a third of Volvo's total sales.
But beyond its importance for Volvo, the car also marks a trend.
A host of car makers traditionally making large cars for buyers with luxurious tastes are suddenly making smaller models - without cutting back too far on the accessories.
Another launch which gels with this trend is BMW�s new X3 Baby sports utility vehicle which will take on Land Rover's Freelander and Toyota�s Rav 4.
Critical cars
Volkswagen, meanwhile, is pinning hopes on the Golf, which has sold more than 20 million Golfs since the first model was first launched three decades ago.
But although it defined the medium car segment, the Golf has since slipped from its position as Europe's best selling car.
 Volkswagen is one vendor hoping new models will kickstart sales |
Volkswagen's hope is that its new, fifth generation Golf will reclaim the top position from French manufacturers Renault and Peugeot. But the going is tough, not least in the face of the challenge from Vauxhall's new Astra, also on show for the first time here in Frankfurt.
Another vital car at the show is Fiat's latest Panda.
Some observers say this car could provide the troubled Italian car maker with a lifeline after months and years of falling sales.
Big Cat estate
Jaguar is also making a splash at the show.
But not the way it used to.
This time the news from the British marque comes in the form of the car maker's first production estate, kitted out with front wheel drive and a diesel engine to boot.
Big Cat traditionalists may bemoan Jaguar's latest development, but the money men insist it makes sense.
One in four company cars sold are estates, apparently, and demand for diesel is booming in Europe with even sharper demand increases expected globally.
So it seems the car maker is merely responding to customer demand.
Weak markets
Beyond all the smiling faces and flowing bubbly at the pre-show parties, there is no masking the increasingly desperate plight of the car industry.
For the reality is harsh, with red ink all over the balance sheets of many of the business's biggest names.
Yet industry executives insist they are feeling brave.
"I don't think we can anticipate too much growth in the European market this year, but in the North American we'll definitely see that the market is growing," said Volvo's Mr Olsson.
"At the beginning of next year, I think even the European market will start to move upwards."
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