The North American International Auto Show been a January tradition for decades but, in the face of declining participation, the event is changing dates.
An official announcement is scheduled for July 24th but the Detroit News is reporting the Detroit Auto Dealers Association has decided to move the event to either June or October. The change will take place in 2020 and the DADA released a promotional video showing what fans can expect.
The clip doesn’t reveal much but it suggests the show will offer a handful of new outdoor activities. As you can see, there’s an off-road driving course near the entrance of Cobo Center and a larger track located on top of the center’s parking garage.
A new date hasn’t been officially announced but it appears Cobo Center may have let the cat out of the bag early. According to WXYZ, they released a statement saying “With our recent $279 million renovation, we are confident that we can accommodate the requirements needed for outdoor exhibit spaces for an October show.”
It remains unclear if the show will actually take place in the fall but the Detroit News says General Motors was pushing for a switch to June. The company reportedly envisioned turning the event into a “massive festival” which would include everything from the traditional auto show to new events such as concerts. The show would also drop its media focus and become more consumer oriented.
Besides the change in dates, the show could also adopt a new name that reflects its Detroit heritage. However, that doesn’t seem necessary as most people simply refer to it as the Detroit Auto Show anyways.
A more likely reason for the name change would be that it’s becoming less of an international event. Audi, BMW and Mercedes have already announced plans to skip next year’s show and number of other brands have also skipped previous events.