Huhness
9th October 2008, 09:54 AM
Car makers have stayed away from this year’s Sydney motor show in droves as softening car sales force a review of marketing budgets. By RICHARD BLACKBURN.
http://images.drive.com.au/drive_images/Editorial/2008/10/09/story1_m_m.jpg
The gloom and doom surrounding the global economy has taken its toll on the Sydney motor show, which opened today minus a record 18 brands who stayed away to cut costs.
But it didn't stop American brand Cadillac from making a return to Australia.
The list of non-attendees at the 2008 Sydney motor show would easily fill a hall at the Sydney Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour, venue for the show.
They include traditional exotic drawcards Porsche, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Bentley and Rolls-Royce.
But of more concern to show organisers is the absence of leading luxury brands Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, who have boycotted the show in an attempt to pressure the Sydney and Melbourne motor shows to alternate their annual events.
Second-tier European brands including Citroen, Fiat and Alfa Romeo are also no-shows.
The Europeans argue that if it’s good enough for Frankfurt and Paris to hold their car shows bi-annually, it’s good enough for the rival Australian cities.
The managing director of Audi, Joerg Hofmann, indicated the German brands had come to a gentleman’s agreement not to attend the show.
“The positive thing this time is that … we all sit in the same boat and we all have an agreement that it is wrong and that we should do something against it,” he says.
He says he has been in close contact with organisers of both shows to convince them that it makes sense to have just one Australian show a year.
“We have Paris this year and next year we have Frankfurt again. This works for 250 million Europeans and here we have 20 million Australians and we have two shows a year … it’s not feasible really,” he says.
But a deal is problematic because the two events are run by different organisations. The Sydney motor show is run by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, while Melbourne is run by the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce.
The chief executive of the FCAI Andrew McKellar confirmed the two organisations were working towards a solution but wouldn’t be drawn on what that solution was.
He also wouldn’t commit to there being a Sydney motor show next year.
“We need to develop a sustainable model for future shows and we’re committed to making that happen,” he says.
“I think it’s desirable to have an event that showcases the industry in Sydney but what shape that takes is still to be decided,” he says.
He disputed claims that brands had taken an ideological position in not attending this year’s show.
“I think it has more to do with economics and current market circumstances,” he says. But Hofmann says Audi won’t commit to attending Melbourne until a deal is done.
“Nobody wants to miss out first, that’s the thing. Somebody has to start. This is the biggest obstacle still,” he says.
“A show costs at least $1.5 million. You can do a lot of stuff with that money,” he says.
“It’s just an economic decision. It’s too much money twice a year for the limited benefit you get out of it,” he says.
“In these difficult days where the economy is and everybody is more conscious of how money is spent I believe that even the volume brands will be more cost conscious.”
In an attempt to fill the empty spaces in Sydney, organisers have created their own stand called Supercar Central, which includes Australian-built kit cars and a couple of exotic, low volume supercars.
http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=57565&vf=12
http://images.drive.com.au/drive_images/Editorial/2008/10/09/story1_m_m.jpg
The gloom and doom surrounding the global economy has taken its toll on the Sydney motor show, which opened today minus a record 18 brands who stayed away to cut costs.
But it didn't stop American brand Cadillac from making a return to Australia.
The list of non-attendees at the 2008 Sydney motor show would easily fill a hall at the Sydney Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour, venue for the show.
They include traditional exotic drawcards Porsche, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Bentley and Rolls-Royce.
But of more concern to show organisers is the absence of leading luxury brands Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, who have boycotted the show in an attempt to pressure the Sydney and Melbourne motor shows to alternate their annual events.
Second-tier European brands including Citroen, Fiat and Alfa Romeo are also no-shows.
The Europeans argue that if it’s good enough for Frankfurt and Paris to hold their car shows bi-annually, it’s good enough for the rival Australian cities.
The managing director of Audi, Joerg Hofmann, indicated the German brands had come to a gentleman’s agreement not to attend the show.
“The positive thing this time is that … we all sit in the same boat and we all have an agreement that it is wrong and that we should do something against it,” he says.
He says he has been in close contact with organisers of both shows to convince them that it makes sense to have just one Australian show a year.
“We have Paris this year and next year we have Frankfurt again. This works for 250 million Europeans and here we have 20 million Australians and we have two shows a year … it’s not feasible really,” he says.
But a deal is problematic because the two events are run by different organisations. The Sydney motor show is run by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, while Melbourne is run by the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce.
The chief executive of the FCAI Andrew McKellar confirmed the two organisations were working towards a solution but wouldn’t be drawn on what that solution was.
He also wouldn’t commit to there being a Sydney motor show next year.
“We need to develop a sustainable model for future shows and we’re committed to making that happen,” he says.
“I think it’s desirable to have an event that showcases the industry in Sydney but what shape that takes is still to be decided,” he says.
He disputed claims that brands had taken an ideological position in not attending this year’s show.
“I think it has more to do with economics and current market circumstances,” he says. But Hofmann says Audi won’t commit to attending Melbourne until a deal is done.
“Nobody wants to miss out first, that’s the thing. Somebody has to start. This is the biggest obstacle still,” he says.
“A show costs at least $1.5 million. You can do a lot of stuff with that money,” he says.
“It’s just an economic decision. It’s too much money twice a year for the limited benefit you get out of it,” he says.
“In these difficult days where the economy is and everybody is more conscious of how money is spent I believe that even the volume brands will be more cost conscious.”
In an attempt to fill the empty spaces in Sydney, organisers have created their own stand called Supercar Central, which includes Australian-built kit cars and a couple of exotic, low volume supercars.
http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=57565&vf=12