DETROIT MOTOR SHOW: Premier US auto show to return

If you thought COVID-19 had killed the motor show forever, think again.

The Detroit motor show – or North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) – has taken a beating from the global pandemic but is now slated to take place over September 14-25, 2022.

Last held in January 2019, the NAIAS is North America’s most important motor show because it’s held in the hometown of the USA’s Big Three car-makers (Ford, General Motors and Stellantis/Chrysler).

Motown’s auto show dates back to 1899 and was held every January for three decades since 1989. It has been used as a springboard to launch countless high-profile models for not only for US car-makers but Asian and European brands too.

Now confident the show will return after several date changes and delays, organisers say the 2022 Detroit motor show will showcase “a wide range of vehicles” at Huntington Place in downtown Detroit.

That suggests several car-makers have already committed to revealing all-new models and you can expect to see plenty of ground-breaking EVs as the auto brands of all sizes continue to pour billions of dollars into EV research and development.

As the spectre of COVID continues to wreak havoc with large indoor events, the show will include several outdoor exhibits and several city-wide activations across downtown Detroit, according to show organisers.

“We are proud to return to downtown Detroit,” said Rod Alberts, executive director of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association and the NAIAS.

“Capitalising on everything we’ve learned over the past two and a half years, we are uniquely positioned to bring a dynamic, engaging, experiential show to Detroit in 2022,” he declared.

Several other high-profile motor shows have been postponed or cancelled over the past two years, including the Geneva motor show. However, there are green shoots in the motor show sphere, with another major US auto show, New York, set to be a litmus test when it returns on April 15, 2022 – a week before the Beijing show.

A number of motor shows took place in China in 2021 and Australia’s premiere motor show, Motorclassica, is set to return on October 7, 2022. Following a four-year hiatus, the Paris motor show is also set to kick off on October 17.

Next up is the Tokyo Auto Salon, which will open this Friday (January 14), following the cancellation of the biennial Tokyo motor show in 2021.