(FORTUNE Magazine) – General Motors' woes took a lot of the usual sparkle out of this year's Detroit auto show. Short of cash, GM canceled its corporate display and showed far fewer special-concept cars than in the past. The company's faltering Oldsmobile division tried to prove it had a future by unveiling a new luxury sedan, the Aurora, but it doesn't carry an Olds emblem and won't go on sale until mid-1994. The highest-profile GM reps at press events were a pair of recent retirees: former chairman and CEO Robert Stempel and former president Lloyd Reuss. They walked the floor of Cobo Center and shook hands with well- wishers. Japanese automakers also showed few new cars, and Toyota, Nissan, and Mazda did without press briefings entirely. The Japanese are lying low in hopes of dodging anti-import proposals by the new Clinton Administration. High on their worry list are tougher domestic content rules and the threat of stiff 25% tariffs on minivans and four-door sport-utility vehicles made overseas. Into the vacuum surged Chrysler. It displayed a trio of concept cars -- the Chrysler Thunderbolt (see photo), Jeep Ecco, and Plymouth Prowler. All are from Detroit's hottest talent, design vice president Tom Gale. One or more of these cars might follow on the succes d'estime of Chrysler's Dodge Viper, which first saw life as a 1989 show car and went into production in 1992. So far, 122 Vipers have been sold, at about $55,000 apiece. Chrysler's first new full-size pickup truck in 22 years, the 1994 Dodge Ram, also got good reviews. It should generate more than $1 billion in gross profits annually when sales start later this year. Ford Motor tooted its horn loudly when the Taurus passed the Honda Accord late in December to become America's No. 1-selling car. Ford paid dearly for the honor, however, with price cuts, subsidized leases, and fleet sales. But bragging rights in the car business are worth plenty: Ford can now claim that it makes the best-selling U.S. car and truck, the F series pickup. You can safely bet that the company's advertising copywriters will be reminding you of this over the next 11 months.