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Detroit Auto Show Opens as Industry Pares Splashy Debuts
Automakers Take Audiences for a Spin on Test Tracks
DETROIT — TheDetroit Auto Showreturns this week, offering an opportunity to take a peek at the cars of today and tomorrow and also go for a spin.
The annual car-fest at a Detroit convention hall features a lineup of 40-plus vehicle brands. At last year’s show, organizers say attendees took more than 100,000 rides in them.
“That’s what makes the Detroit Auto Show different,” show chairman Todd Szott said. “You can get up close, talk to the people behind the brands and actually experience the vehicles.”
The Detroit Auto Show once was the place for new model debuts, glitzy displays and scores of journalists from across the globe.
Automakers since have determined that new models can make a bigger splash when they’re unveiled to a digital audience on a day when they don’t have to share the spotlight with rivals.
Madam Mayor Mary Sheffield came by Huntington Place for an early tour of the show floor! Thrilled to have you 🚀 — Detroit Auto Show (@detautoshow)
While it has scaled back dramatically from its heyday, it still drew 275,000 attendees a year ago. And it is leaning into interactivity.
Two tracks offer attendees ride-along experiences in internal combustion engine, hybrid and electric vehicles, while the Camp Jeep and Ford Bronco Built Wild Experience give visitors a chance to climb into the vehicles and tackle some makeshift “mountains.”
The show gets underway Jan. 13 with vehicle announcements fromFord Motor Co.as part of the media and industry preview days. On Jan. 14, the annualNorth American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Yearwill be revealed. The show opens to the public Jan. 17 and runs through Jan. 25.
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Visitors can check out displays under the Alfa Romeo, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Ford, GMC, Jeep, Kia, Lincoln, Ram, Subaru and Toyota nameplates.
Speakers include RepublicanU.S. Sen. Bernie Morenofrom Ohio, and a pair of Democrats — MichiganGov. Gretchen WhitmerandPete Buttigieg, the Transportation Secretary under President Joe Biden.
