The Munich International Motor Show - or as they call it, Munich IAA Mobility 2023 - took place recently.
As one would expect, all the German car brands supported the home show, and the Chinese electric automotive revolution was also very well represented.
Other than this, there were many major brands absent from throughout Europe, Japan, South Korea, and the USA.
The IAA Mobility 2023 website boasted of this being the world’s largest mobility event. If this is so, motor shows have changed much from the hundreds I have visited in the past decades. However, it is not the organisers who should be blamed for the change.
Even before Covid 19, many car manufacturers were rebelling against motor shows that were not in major population centres. Detroit, Geneva, and even the metropolis of Paris were disappearing from carmakers’ budgeting schedules. They were considered to be giving a poor return value for the massive investments in giant stands.
The figures for public attendances added up for New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, but very few other destinations. Even before the switch from Frankfurt to Munich of this once great exhibition, this was the case.
Add in the Covid-19 pandemic, and many European carmakers opting to start direct selling as opposed to the traditional way through dealerships, and the waters were muddied further. But for the nationalistic attitude of the German brands to their own show and the hunger of all the new Chinese electric car brands to woo European buyers, this mobility event would be searching for a rebrand, or at least would be of even less interest to the car buying public.
This is in contrast with the big aftermarket trade shows such as Automechanika Frankfurt and AutoPromotec in Bologna, which serve the aftermarket and attract the international trade distributors and buyers - similarly with the national events, such as Automechanika Birmingham and Ireland’s Auto Trade EXPO, which bring together the big and smaller brands to deal with all the auto aftermarket requirements. Another key factor is that all these major events now take place every second year and are not in conflict for the great loyalty of attendees and exhibitors alike.
Brands that exhibited in Munich recently and many of their major launches are listed here.
BRAND REVEALS
Audi - New Q6 e-tron SUV / Q8 & RS-Q8 / Possibly new-generation A4
BMW - Vision Nrue Klasse concepts ( - New 3-Series concept; New 7-Series + i7 ). New armoured 7-Series Protection model / and the new production 5-Series (petrol & hybrid ) + i5 models + M5.
BYD - New Dolphin hatchback, Seal saloon + Seal U SUV, in addition to the previously launched in some European markets - the Han saloon and Tang SUV. BYD could also unveil the Seagull city car. Also word of a Denza (upmarket brand developed in a joint venture with Mercedes-Benz ) D9 seven-seater electric mpv.
Cupra - Cupra DarkRebel Showcar / Tarascan EV crossover
Ford - Open space stand - Mustang Mach-E GT and Explorer EV
Mercedes Benz - New CLA concept / New E Class Estate All-Terrain / New CLE /
(+ AMG ) - All-electric C Class concept. New AMG GT.
MG - New Cyberster electric roadster / New MG4 XPower electric hot hatch / New Marvel R replacement concept.
Mini - New Mini Cooper / New Countryman crossover (petrol and electric versions of both )
Opel/ Vauxhall - Experimental concept / Corsa Electric / Astra Sports Tourer Electric,
Porsche - Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid / Mission X electric hypercarconcept.
Renault - New Scenic E-Tech electric / New Grand Kangoo / Latest Renault 5 electric supermini concept.
Smart - The new and biggest Smart yet - the new Smart #3
Tesla - Model 3 facelift / Latest Model S (including the wild Plaid model ) / The Tesla Cybertruck Patrol should also be there.
Volkswagen - New ID.7 GTX / New Passat estate / Possible 1D.2 concept
Others exhibiting in Munich included some established brands in Europe such as Honda and Lotus. However, it is primarily several Chinese marques, most of which (except Polestar ) are new to Europe: Avatr, Dongfeng, Leapmotor, Lucid, Vinfast, and XPeng.
Brands it seems that did not exhibit at the Munich International Motor Show 2023 included: Alfa Romeo, Citroen, Dacia, DS, Fiat, Hyundai, Jaguar, Jeep, Kia, Land Rover/ RangeRover, Lexus, Peugeot, Seat, Skoda, Suzuki, Toyota, and Volvo.
Also the following luxury brands appear to have been absent - Aston Martin; Bentley; Bugatti; Ferrari; Lamborgini; Masserati; McLaren; and Rolls Royce.
On a positive note, some of the biggest brands that supply the auto industry worldwide were there showing off their contributions to their future of the original equipment supply-chain to car manufactuers. Of course many of these are very familiar to us all as major suppliers to the auto aftermarket here in Ireland. They includes Bosch, Continental, Schaeffler, ZF Automotive, Hella - Forvia, Valeo, Denso, Varta - Clarios, Mahle and Autel.
