The organizers of the New York International Auto Show had said in March that instead of April, the show would be moving to August this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Now those dates are off, too.
Instead, there will be no auto show this year. The Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association, which puts on the show, put out a grim statement today.
As of today, the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center continues to be closed for all expo business due to its role as a field hospital for COVID-19 cases. Although it currently has no patients, the facility remains set-up as an active hospital and is in standby mode for the foreseeable future. Because of this, organizers of the New York International Auto Show have decided the next Show will take place April 2 – 11, 2021.
“Since the beginning of this pandemic, we have worked closely with the Governor’s office and with Javits officials to protect our attendees,” said Mark Schienberg, president of the Greater New York Automobile Dealers Association, the organization that owns and operates the New York Auto Show. “We are extremely proud of the role the Javits Center has played during this difficult time, and we understand the need for it to remain ready to serve.”
“We also understand the immense planning needed for the automakers and their exhibit partners to construct a show of this magnitude. Because of the uncertainty caused by the virus, we feel it would not be prudent to continue with the 2020 Show and instead are preparing for an even greater 2021.”
Auto shows have assumed lesser and lesser importance in recent years, as manufacturers move more to a model of showing off their new wares on their own terms. Still, organizers say the show attracts over one million people, and it always has its share of debuts. This year the new Ford Bronco Sport was supposed to debut, but that got pushed to September. Volkswagen’s electric ID.4, some kind of electric crossover from Cadillac, and the first production model from Lucid Motors were also supposed to show up.
Instead, we’ll likely be seeing those cars debut in less dramatic fashion over the next few months, with April 2021 being a completely different menu.