AIMS Melbourne 2013 cancelled!

[poita]

AIMS (Australian International Motorshow) due to be held in Melbourne June this year has been canned!

Apparently car manufacturers don't have the budget to do it this year.

PDF with the info here -> http://www.motorshow.com.au/Portals/0/AIMS-Cancellation.pdf


Thoughts?

[hazrd]

ahem..


WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :incazzato:

[eddysdaman]

Secondededed. WTF. Get your sh*t together 'manufacturers' lol I was looking forward to this one.

[hazrd]

Looks like they don't wanna show off their best of the best models to bring in new clients :facepalm2:

[adam_92]

What!!! I was looking forward to coming down for the weekend with the missus for it!! Bummer!

[gman]

I suppose Australia is just too small a market..Couple that with the Labor govt giving Ford and GM "subsidies" is it any wonder car makers just shrug and say "No thanks...."

It's pathetic really....

[Blip]

would be interesting to know who actually said no or was it a general consensus?

I can't believe that setting up a stand and showing off a few cars would break the bank. Ok maybe cut down on the super dooper light show and maybe the laser show and smoke, cut down on the girls - Im sure you can find a few strippers at goldfingers (or insert the name of a strip joint in your state here) that will do it for less than the models they get. BUT c'mon!!!

This has a trickle down effect as people in the exhibition design industry, the riggers and staging companies will also miss out on yet another job.

[JohnBu]

I haven't been for about 10 years.

The consumer gets all the info from the net these days and then visits the car dealer for a test drive if they are interested.

I can't see what benefits the motor show has for me, especially as all the exciting cars are not there anymore. I'm fortunate to work in Richmond as Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Lotus etc. are in Richmond or next to Richmond. I occasionally hear Ferrari's and Lambo's at work too.

So does the high end car importer spend $$$$ on showing their cars to 99.9% of people who can't afford it anyway, or use the marketing $$$ perhaps on track days/demos to show potential customers who may buy a car.

[sooty]

Just in terms of how much these things cost, I went to a dodgy Australian construction expo at sandown racecourse a few weeks back, for a three day stint it cost one supplier $150,000 in transport etc. Seems the costs add up very quickly, their stand was outside on Tambark and only about 5 x 10m. No rotating stands, no digital displays or anything.
I don't know where the money goes but they are quite expensive

[Jen]

I can't remember what it costs but I'm pretty sure it's more then that just for the stand for the 2 weeks plus all those extra costs so I can understand it's expensive but what I hate is that it wouldn't have started off like the motor show we know today so it's sad it had to be cancelled when companies were so focused on outdoing each other every year. I vaguely remember going to the motor show in Sydney with my Dad and brother when I was about 13 and I don't remember it being as "flashy" as what its now become

[poita]

AIMS is in the millions for most of the manufacturers afaik.

[Vectracious]

I suppose Australia is just too small a market..Couple that with the Labor govt giving Ford and GM "subsidies" is it any wonder car makers just shrug and say "No thanks...."

It's pathetic really....

This.

Not surprised as per reasons that everyone has mentioned. It is a shame though, it was good having most manufacturers in the one place, you could compare some aspects between different models directly.

[ChrisMaz]

When you think about it. A manufacturer has little to gain from these events.
As said previously you can jump online and look at a car. Even have a 360 degree sweep of the interior.
Yes it's good for getting the brand out to a broader audience (Posters for the kids) and trying to win them over.
But ultimately the decision to buy a car these days for the majority of the population is initial cost and servicing costs. Both of which you can find online.

Why would they honestly bother?

[poita]

When you think about it. A manufacturer has little to gain from these events.
As said previously you can jump online and look at a car. Even have a 360 degree sweep of the interior.
Yes it's good for getting the brand out to a broader audience (Posters for the kids) and trying to win them over.
But ultimately the decision to buy a car these days for the majority of the population is initial cost and servicing costs. Both of which you can find online.

Why would they honestly bother?

Because a VX Calais is 'new and exciting' in this backwards hicksville I live in.

Was good to see a large array of different makes and models under one roof.

Also sitting in a car and getting the feel for it is very different to seeing it on the net.
hazrd will agree with me after Top Gear weekend

[hazrd]

Yes, yes, and yes

[Vectracious]

Also sitting in a car and getting the feel for it is very different to seeing it on the net.
hazrd will agree with me after Top Gear weekend

Stav had her heart set on getting a tiguan years ago until she went to the motor show and found it inadequate for what we wanted. Then we could go around and look at all the other mummy wagons to decide which one we wanted. A couple of months later we went and got the crv.

[Wraith]

Damn, was really looking forward to going as I always have for myself I love it purely as a day out seeing so many new vehicles from across the board all in the one place at the one time...

It's a shame but it's been this way since the GFC for the AIMS events...