This year is no different, and though we've already had quite a few new models launched in the last few months, there's still a long list to go.

They are cars for all seasons, so to speak, and for everyone in the audience, to use another speak. Small, medium, large, sporty, specialist.

With small car sales up on the back of fuel costs and the arrival of a number of new contenders in the segment, the Toyota Aygo/Citroen C1/Peugeoy 107, there aren't very many more scheduled for the near future.

But one, which will debut at the British Motor Show in the summer, is really important. Opel's next generation Corsa has a very successful predecessor to build on, and will be heavily marketed to add further success. It shares its architecture with the Fiat Grande Punto and will therefore be considerably bigger than the current car. Reckon on the latter half of the year before it gets here.

A replacement for the VW Lupo will be the Brazilianbuilt Fox, with a range of petrol and diesel engines.

Very much in the style of the current Volkswagen family, it will target the business which Toyota's Aygo has successfully grown in the past six months.

Still in the VW range, a variant of the Polo has been revealed, for production this time next year in RHD: the Dune will be styled for the 'urban warrior' market, with a 4x4 appearance and raised suspension.

Further into next year we can also expect to see the next generation of the Mazda2, likely to be a much more stylish car than the current one, with cues from the concept car Sassou.

Meantime, while Daihatsu already has two small cars on sale in the Irish market, it may well be that another is on the way, the Trevis which was shown at the recent Geneva show and is powered by a 1litre engine. It comes to Europe in August, but there's no word as to whether there are plans to bring it to Ireland Then there's a new Renault Twingo on the stocks, this time likely to make it to Ireland because it will be engineered to be adapted to RHD, unlike the long-favoured current one in its native France The small family car segment is one of the most fiercely competed in Ireland , and though dominated by three or four models at the top end of sales, there's a lot of room for others to fight for significant share.

There have been some recent upgrades to the Renault Megane, and these have now filtered into the Irish market. Volkswagen's Jetta has also arrived, and is exciting considerable interest.

Towards the end of the year, a wagon version of the Altea is planned, which will add another flavour to the SEAT family based around that car, and its siblings the Leon and the Toledo. Around the same time we will see first signs of a new Kia model which will be built in eastern Europe, and which is scheduled for production early next year.

There's also likely to be a production version of Volvo's new C30 coupe, based on the platform of the C40, and much-wished for by the brand's dealers, who want another model for the trendy set.

There are a number of interesting things happening in the executive car segment. The new Cadillac BLS is imminent, in a sharp design based on the same platform as the Opel Vectra and the Saab 9-3. It will be the entry level to a range of Cadillac models which will be on sale in Ireland over the next year.

Chevrolet will bring in a large car to Ireland for the first time since the establishment of the brand here.

The Epica is a stylish and good-sized car which will be aimed at providing decent specification and space for reasonable money.

It's still a long way out, but by this time next year we should be seeing what the next generation of Ford's Mondeo is looking like. The current model has served the brand well, but the next one is likely to be more adventurous in style.

We should be also looking at the next version of the Saab 9-5 around then. It will have a new distinctive face, teased out in the Aero-X concept coupe shown at Geneva.

Citroen's new C6 has suffered delays in its production schedule as the company dealt with some NVH issues.

These resolved, we're waiting for a new arrival date, and it should be sometime in the summer.

The new generation of Volvo's S80 saloon has just recently debuted, keeping substantially the style theme of the previous model version but bristling with new technology and new engines.

It is expected to have a 70 percent conquest rate to the brand.

Due before summer, the new Dodge Caliber will be a largish hatchback and a flagship for mass-market assault by the American brand on Europe. In addition to the standard specification levels, expect to see highly dressed sporty versions.

The MPV market is set for a shakeup in several areas, notably by the upcoming arrival of two Ford models:

the new generation Galaxy and the new S-MAX multiactivity vehicle which sits between the Galaxy and the C-MAX. Both will share most powertrains, both will be 7seat.

There will also be a new Kia Carens by the end of the year, and the Skoda Roomster which is to many eyes a smarter style than the Golf Plus that is its VW sibling.

A Mitsubishi Outlanderwe're never sure whether it is a true SUV or MPV -- celebrates a new generation next year. It will have as a power option the 2-litre diesel engine from VW which is already boosting the sales of the Grandis here.

Down the sporty car road, expect a new Audi TT at the end of the year. And the Alfa Romeo Spider debuted at Geneva will also make its way to these shores, providing at least a halo boost to the image of the brand here.

Towards the end of the year we'll see something new from Alfa Romeo in the SUV stakes, with the Kamal, which will be targeting the premium AWDs like the Range Rover Sport and the BMW X5. It is a new departure from the brand, and a reflection of how the booming SUV sector is attracting new entrants.

Also in the SUV segment, the Audi Q7 is already attracting orders well in advance of its summer launch here, and because of European demand the manufacturer has had to pump up production capacity ahead of what it expected.

Audi is also planning to launch its second generation Allroad this year, which will provide some significant offroad capability in a bodystyle that is more estate than SUV.

The Chevrolet Captiva pitches that relatively new brand to Ireland into the 4x4 car park, and we'll see it in summer here in both 5- and 7seat formats, powered by a 2litre diesel engine which will also be made available gradually through other cars in the brand.

The next model of the Daihatsu Terios has been given its public debut at the recent Geneva Motor Show and is a larger and model than the outgoing one. It arrives in the summer with a new 100hp 1.5-litre petrol engine.

Also imminent here is the new Fiat Sedici, Fiat's first compact SUV. It is built by Suzuki, and will have a choice of power that includes a 107hp 1.6-litre petrol unit and a 120hp 1.9-litre diesel.

Ford doesn't currently have an SUV for the European market, but just appearing on the concept horizon is one based on the Focus. We won't have definite news on it for a while, but it will come. And when they make it, customers will come too.

The all-new Hyundai Santa Fe has literally arrived in Ireland as I write, and is a larger and more refined car than its predecessor. The primary engine is brand new, a 2.2litre diesel with 153hp on tap.

In style and finish terms it has leapfrogged its way into the 21st century, and will without doubt be very popular.

Kia has refreshed its Sedona SUV and we'll see the revised versions soon.

Land Rover has really been rolling out impressive new machinery in the last few years, and they're far from finished -- a new Freelander due to market towards the end of the year promises to lift that model right up to match its larger Discovery II and Range Rover siblings in technology and capability, not to mention high style.

It's getting hard to differentiate between 'crossover' and SUV, but one of these 'hybrid' vehicles coming soon is the Mercedes-Benz GLClass, to further fill out that brand's ever-burgeoning range. It is more like a large station wagon than anything else, but will have SUV capabilities.

To be debuted in the autumn, and with no Irish launch date yet revealed, the Antara from GM Opel is also an SUV crossover, with what looks to be very attractive style. It will be built in Korea , and will have that so-important diesel engine, probably in a couple of power outputs. In footprint it is more Astra than Vectra, and so will compete against Chevy's new Captiva. Something larger may arrive later, to fill the gap left by the unlamented Frontera.

Meanwhile, Renault is coming into the compact SUV market in the next 12 months with a vehicle based on companion company Nissan's excellent X-TRail. It will be Korean built, which shows the growing importance of that part of the world in global automotive production.

Saab, which needs to extend its model range in order to achieve more than a niche label, is planning a compact SUV too, to be called the 9-4X. In market terms, it will target the BMW X3.

Now that Skoda has finally produced its real Roomster, though we don't yet have a date for it in Ireland, don't discount a 4x4 version for this compact MPV-style car, as it has the looks for a small SUV.

One of the masters in the SUV business is Suzuki, and the SX-4 debuted at Geneva which will be rolling to a showroom here soon has the same underpinnings and most of the metal as the Fiat Sedici; not surprising as Suzuki is building both vehicles . . . but it is selling its version as a crossover, probably because it already markets a rake of SUVs, from its diminutive Jimny to the Grand Vitara XL7.

Toyota already has its hands full producing its new generation RAV 4, the best selling SUV in Europe. But with no 3-door version now, expect word towards the end of the year for a brand-new 3door SUV which will likely bear a similarity to the new Terios from Daihatsu, in which Toyota has a controlling interest.

Subaru will also be entering the full SUV area with a 7seater Tribeca slated for launch in time for next year's buying season.

And there's Dodge, which will be in Ireland shortly with a hatchback and its new Nitro compact SUV. A butch look will make it attractive to quite a few buyers, who will also appreciate its very American heritage.

A whole new range from Hyundai

Hyundai has a whole new range of cars coming to forecourts this week. The most important is the all new Accent which is longer, wider and taller than the outgoing model.

The wheelbase is also longer which gives a better drive an d lots more legroom for rear seat passengers.

The new model arrives with a 1.4 litre 97 bhp petrol engine and there are two levels of trim GL and GLS with prices of 16,950 and 17,450.

Later there will be a three-door version and also expect a 1.5 litre turbodiesel engine giving 110 bhp. The new model is stronger and safer than the outgoing model.

Also totally new is the Santa Fe, the leader in its SUV class for many years. It now has much cleaner lines and the inside space has been increased so that seven seats are now standard.

Hyundai boast that the Santa Fe is a SUV with car-like qualities in handling and ride. It comes with dualzone climate control, coolbox in the centre armrest, roof-rails and twin exhausts. There are now six airbags.

The Santa Fe will be aiming to take sales from the VW Tourag and BMW X3. Prices start at 39,495 for the two -wheel-drive version, 41,490 for the 4X4 version and 44,495 for the upmarket leather seats and automatic transmission option.

Power comes from a 2.2 litre turbodiesel engine which puts out 150 bhp.

This will be popular with the big SUV following.

The new Sonata executive model which was stuck with a 2.4 litre engine now gets a two-litre turboddiesel and a two-litre petrol engine which is priced at 28,450. The diesel, which will be the best seller, puts out 130 bhp and is priced at 30,450. Ta rgets here arethe VW Passat and the Toyota Avensis.

The small car of the family on sale here, the Getz, has a new facelift and the 1.1 litre petrol offering has a price tag of 12,995.

Also just arrived is the Grandeur, a car to target the E-Class Mercedes Benz and BMW 5-Series. It is a big car , very executive looking, with a 3.3 V6 235 bhp petrol engine and a 2.2 litre turbo-diesel engine which is also used in the Santa Fe will follow.

The petrol engine version is priced at 41,000.