The Detroit Auto Show can’t be happy that several big name automakers have pulled out next January’s show, but, as the saying goes, there is always a silver lining. Due to the vacancies on the main floor, two Chinese automakers will be presenting in Cobo’s main hall for the first time.
China’s BYD Auto Co. and Brilliance Jinbei Automotive Co. will be setting up shop for the first time in Cobo’s main hall come January. Chinese automakers have been attending the Detroit show for years, but have only presented in Cobo’s lower – and often overlooked — Michigan Hall.
“They’ve been waiting, all the exhibitors in Michigan Hall, so it’s a wonderful opportunity for them,” Joe Serra, show co-chairman, told Automotive News.
BYD and Brilliance have been allotted 11,000 square feet on the main show floor.
So far Nissan , Infiniti , Land Rover , Ferrari , Rolls-Royce , Mitsubishi , Suzuki and Porsche have pulled out of the Detroit show, with several other automakers rumored to be mulling the trip to the Motor City.
