Category: Show Business
Posted by David Phillips on Thu, Jan 10, 2008 at 6:53 PMThe watered-down show of 2008
Just days from unfolding, the 2008 North American International Auto Show seems a little underwhelming in my mind.
No doubt, there will be plenty of new hardware to admire - a new F-150 pickup, another brash Ram truck, horsepower galore, a new Toyota in a new segment, even more crossovers, more Chinese, etc. But I can't recall a show in which so many automakers - big and small - decided not to hold press conferences and unveil some new metal.
Lexus, Acura, Nissan, Infiniti and Suzuki are taking a pass this year. Porsche is gone altogether. Aston Martin has quietly vanished from the Ford stand for obvious reasons. Sure, there are new faces - Fisker, among them. There are numerous reasons for the lack of pressers this year - the cost of doing business inside Cobo Center, an automaker's product cadence, the growth in overseas markets, other opportunities, venues and auto shows to showcase new product, etc.
In the past, the Detroit show has managed without effort to pack three full days of new car and truck introductions. This year's edition is scheduled to essentially wind down Monday afternoon with Chinese automakers BYD and Geely. No matter the reason some automakers are taking a pass, show organizers should be worried.
