FCA sits out 2018 Paris show

Maserati is the exception to the rule, surprisingly.

The Paris auto show is turning into a nail-biter of an event. Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) has joined the growing list of auto-makers who have confirmed their absence from this year's edition of the biennial gathering.

The decision applies to nearly all of FCA's brands including Fiat, Jeep, and Alfa Romeo. Maserati will attend, surprisingly. The rest of the group (Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, and Lancia) would have sat out the show anyways.

The decision represents another blow to the auto show as we know it. Volkswagen, Ford, Opel, Mazda, Lamborghini, Porsche, and Volvo have all announced plans to skip the upcoming Paris show for reasons centering around the high costs of participating, the difficulty of competing for attention, and the lack of new models to present.

Car companies from both sides of the pond have found it's easier, cheaper, and more effective to engage prospective buyers on the internet -- on social media, notably. They're increasingly turning to standalone, Apple-style events to show new products to members of the media.

Fiat stressed the decision isn't permanent, according to French magazine Auto Plus. The publication learned that, from now on, Fiat's many brands will decide whether to participate in an auto show on a case-by-case basis. They'll join when they have a new model to introduce, and they'll sit on the sidelines when they don't. Purists beware: that means we'll likely never see the Lancia brand at an auto show ever again.

Stay tuned; Leftlane will be live in Paris to cover the action -- or what's left of it -- from this year's show starting on October 2nd.

Photo by Ronan Glon.