Yesterday I posted about the Small and Mighty cars that caught my eye at the Canadian International Auto Show, which is in Toronto until February 27th.

Today, I thought I'd show off just some of the beautiful performance machines there.

Oddly, right next to the new electric Nissan Leaf was the Nissan GT-R.

I also got to see the new Lexus LFA. Pricing starts at $375,000, but only 500 will be made. Only 10 of those 500 will end up in Canadian hands. Paris Hilton just got one for her 30th birthday. That's just so incredibly bizarre to me.

What surprised me about this car was how many people I heard commenting on how "plain" or "boring" it looked despite the engineering that went into it. I agree.

Honda had an F1 car on display. I've never seen one so close and the cockpit was tinier than I imagined it.

The Toronto Star had small exhibition of 5 cars in the running for the Most Beautiful Car Sold in Canada. You can vote for your choice on computers there and possibly win $25,000 towards a new car of your own. In the running are:

The Aston Martin DB9

The Audi R8

The Mercedes McLaren SLR

The Ferrari F430

And, finally, the Lamborghini Gallardo

Before Sunday, I didn't really understand the lure of Lamborghini. They always seemed overly flashy, angular, and aggressive to me, like they were screaming. But soon as I saw the Gallardo, something clicked in my brain and I couldn't stop looking at it. Meanwhile, the guy next to me dismissed it quickly as being "too orange." Everyone's a critic!

I'm still not sure what I would pick as most beautiful. It's a toss-up between the Gallardo, F430, and the McLaren SLR, which makes me think of a shark. Everyone I was with, however, unanimously agreed that if we could only have one and had to use it for a daily driver, we'd choose the DB9.

The Star's exhibit was a nice appetizer to the Concorso Exotica in the lower level of the North Hall. I'd recommend going to the show early and then heading straight down to the concorso, because by the time we got there, it was packed.

As soon as you walk in a Masarati GranCabrio greets you.

At Ferrari, I fell in love with the Daytona and wanted to find a way to bring it home with me.

The F458 Italia can come, too.

Over in Lamborghini land, this Countach seemed to catch everyone's eye. I tried to imagine how awesome it would have been to see one of those roaring down the road in '76.

They also had a Concept S on a huge Callaway platform to help highlight the partnership between Lamborghini and Callaway.

I'm sure the guy who thought the Gallardo was too orange didn't like this Gallardo LP570-4 Spyder Performante or Murciélago, either. More for me and you, right?

Pfaff/Porsche had an interesting GT3 Cup and GT2RS with lots of naked carbon fiber.

My very own mother fell in love with this here Lotus Elise. I'm thinking a family vacation to the Nürburgring is in order.

A real treat was getting to see the new Canadian HTT Pléthore, conceived and produced in Quebec. For those of you who haven't heard of it, it's Canada's new supercar. The company recently made a deal on Dragons' Den for $1.5 million for 20% of the company.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6YdRCC2HzU]

HTT's CEO, Sébastien Forest, was there answering questions. It has a supercharged V8, 750 hp, and 655 ft-lb of torque. He said the Dragons haven't ordered any yet and the first 15 sold will be $495,000. After that, the price skyrockets to $795,000.

The raised center driving position makes it really unique. It's meant to provide an F1-style driving experience and perspective. It also means that your two best buddies can sit on either side of you.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0YebraNwgo]

I overheard a woman talking to her husband about the Pléthore. She said it looked like a muscle car for supercar enthusiasts. I can kind of see that. It does look mean, lean, and muscular.

What do you think?

I have a few more photos from the Firebird/Camaro evolution exhibit and some of the Cruise Nationals room, which is just across the hall from the Concorso Exotica, but my internet connection isn't cooperating and I think I might be inundating you a bit. I'll just leave you with a few of my favorites and say that both sections are definitely worth a visit.

So, there you have it. A couple of quick posts and lots of pictures from the Toronto Auto Show. This is really just a fraction of everything you can see there, especially if you're in the market for a new car.