In pictures: all the best new cars at the Shanghai motor show

Officially known as the 20th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition, but branded as Auto Shanghai, the scale of the event is hard to fathom: 320,000 square metres of exhibition space featuring more than 1000 exhibitors, and 150 press conferences showcasing more than 100 new cars - here are some of the highlights from our team at the event:

Audi will enter Formula 1 in 2026 together with Sauber, and given the growing importance of the Chinese market for F1, it's now previewing its racer for the first time in Shanghai. The move towards new sustainable fuels and the welcomed cost cap for each team were key motivators for the German brand to join F1.

This new 650 650bhp i7 variant is the new top-of-the-range luxury limousine with amazing performance: It will do 0-62mph quicker than the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 - but the company claims can still crack up to 348 miles between charges.

The XM Red Label is the most powerful hybrid SUV on the market; with radical styling and 738bhp SUV, it’ll do 0-62mph in 3.8sec. The £170,860 Red Label builds takes the regular XM's 644bhp PHEV powertrain with an upgrade for its V8, which now produces 94bhp more. Its electric-only range is now 47-52 miles, and will reach a top speed, in electric mode, of 87mph. Derestricted and with the optional M Driver’s Package, it will reach a top speed of 180mph.

Is this China's answer to the Audi R8? The Yangwang is a £122,100 sports coupé with an electric motor on each wheel to deliver a 0-62mph time of less than 2.0sec. While not much has been disclosed about the Yangwang U9, we can confirm that it uses EV technology developed by BYD itself and was styled by Wolfgang Egger, the former Alfa Romeo and Audi design boss.

The BYD Seagull is a tiny four-seat city car that uses innovative sodium-ion battery technology to offer a 170-mile range keep the list price below £8000. There's a choice of 74bhp and 100bhp motors, but there's also a 252-mile version and the cabin gets the same trick swivelling touchscreen as BYD's larger cars.

HiPhi is a fast evolving Chinese premium EV manufacturer that currently offers the X SUV and the Z grand tourer. Sitting below them will be the entry-level Y, a slightly smaller but no less outlandish electric SUV that will begin HiPhi's expansion into Europe. Arriving at the end of the year, it chases a lower price point and higher sales volumes than the £75,000 X and Z. 

Posed as the more upmarket alternative to the Toyota Alphard, this new Lexus MPV focuses on space and comfort in both its seven- and four-seat guises. Those seats use Adaptipedic memory foam, recline and offer a choice of seven massage functions. Privacy for passengers is provided by a glass panel that can raise in between the first and second row of seats. Powering it is a 291bhp 3.5-litre petrol V6 for a 0-62mph time of 7.0sec. But most excitingly? It's coming to most major markets including the UK and US.

This is the new top-of-the-range Mercedes EV SUV. Maybach's hope with the model is that it will position the brand ahead of arch rivals Bentley and Rolls-Royce, neither of which offer a luxury electric SUV as yet. It has Maybach's signature two-tone paintwork and a raft of bespoke interior upgrades to make it worthy of “first class” accommodation. Power comes from two electric motors producing 659bhp and 701lb ft and it will offer a range of 373 miles. 

On show in concept guise, the Aceman will be Mini's first bespoke EV and its most important model when it arrives in 2025 to fill the gap between the Mini Cooper hatchback and the Mini Countryman SUV. Using Mini's first new name since Paceman in 2012, the Aceman is said to be the car that "ticks all the boxes" and the firm says it will be largely similar to the concept when it enters production. 

Limited to just 150 models in the UK and 999 in Europe, the Mini Electric Convertible makes its public debut in China. The soft-top sits on the same platform as the regular hatchback, so expect a 181bhp single-motor set-up, an 8.2sec 0-62mph time and 125-mile range. 

This new facelifted version of Nio's popular electric SUV is the first car the Chinese company has launched at a motor show. It sits on the firm's second-generation platform, which should give it slight improvements in range and performance - but details remain to be established. The outgoing ES6 uses the same platform as the seven-seat ES8, using an electric motor on each axle which, in Performance trim, features a 322bhp motor at the front and 215bhp motor at the rear. The Standard version has two 215bhp motors at the front and rear. Each achieves a range of 319 miles and 256 miles respectively. 

This Rugged SUV gets a virtual assistant with facial recognition tech as Nissan aims to make life easier for owners in the digital age. It rides on the familiar CMF-EV platform and will evolve into a production car closely related to the rakish-roofed Ariya. 

This new Nissan electric two-seat drop-top makes its Chinese debut in Shanghai, and comes as part of the Japanese firm's drive to develop sustainability and "innovative mobility", the Max-Out will likely make use of solid-state battery technology should it head into production.

It's a clean-sheet design with a unique set of alloy wheels, a large, squared-off open-air intake at the front and lightbar at the rear whose shape mimicks that of the front grille. It promises to deliver a "new driving experience with its superlative stability and comfort, tight handling and limited body roll”. 

The Polestar 4 is a sporting crossover to rival the upcoming Porsche Macan EV. It fills the gap between the Polestar 2 saloon and Polestar 3 SUV, priced between £50,000 and £65,000 and with the choice of single- or twin-motor power. 

Stuttgart's facelifted flagship SUV goes sale this spring. It gets a totally redesigned Porsche Taycan-inspired cabin, small changes to the exterior and chassis changes honed over 200,000 test kilometres to create "one of the most extensive product upgrades in the history of Porsche". Plus, the Cayenne S has swapped its V6 for a V8 and the Turbo GT is now faster to 62mph than the 911 GT3... but this model won’t be coming to some ,major markets including the UK.

The #3, Smart's biggest model yet, has been designed to give the Geely-Mercedes brand a foothold in the popular electric SUV market. While  specifications for the #3 remain unavailable to the general public, information leaked out of China has revealed that the coupé-SUV is 4400mm long, 1800mm wide and 1600mm tall with a wheelbase of 2785mm – a similar size to the Volkswagen ID 5. Basic models will feature a single motor with 268bhp and 252lb ft, and a high-performance Brabus variant is likely to join the line-up. 

Two new electric cars are inbound from Toyota, previewed in concept form at the Shanghai show. The handsome yellow car is the bZ Sports Crossover - aimed at younger buyers and likely based on the bZ4X – and the larger SUV is a family-focused proposition called the bZ Flexspace. Neither has yet been confirmed for a European launch, but it hasn't been ruled out...

Toyota's Tesla Model 3 rival uses Chinese giant BYD's Blade battery technology to offer a near-400-mile range and promises "responsive" performance. It will be built in China and, for now, only sold there. But when Autocar asked the firm's European product boss if it could come here eventually, he told us to "stay tuned". 

The German giant's MEB-based rival to the Tesla Model 3 made its debut on 17 April and was unveiled in production-ready guise at Shanghai. It's the sixth EV in Volkswagen's ID range and, in time, will become the firm's only model in Europe's ever-shrinking D-segment. Volkswagen said it was designed specifically "for long distances" and will become available in Pro and Pro S trims. It's set to enter showrooms by the end of 2023 with a WLTP range of 435 miles, a price tag of around £50,000, 282bhp and a 0-62mph time of 6.0sec. An estate version is due to arrive later.

Xpeng's fifth production car was originally leaked as part of a batch of Chinese government registry filings, and is a mid-size electric crossover earmarked for sale in selected European countries from 2024. Featuring a minimalist design, the G6 is expected to go on sale in front- and four-wheel drive guises, with outputs ranging between 208bhp and 292bhp. 

Starting what Zeekr officials have said will be an "aggressive global marketing push", the X is the Geely-owned Chinese firm's third production model, an electric crossover that aims to double Zeekr sales to more than 140,000 this year. It's likely to share the single-motor, rear-wheel-drive and dual-motor, four-wheel-drive powertrains used by the related Smart #1 and forthcoming Volvo EX30. The fastest version is confirmed to have a 0-62mph time of less than 4.0sec.