The Detroit Auto Show returns this week, offering an opportunity to take a peek at cars of today and tomorrow and also go for a spin.
The annual event at a Detroit convention hall features a lineup of 40-plus vehicle brands. Organizers said attendees took more than 100,000 rides in vehicles at last year’s show.
“That’s what makes the Detroit Auto Show different,” show chairman Todd Szott said. “You can get up close, talk to the people behind the brands and actually experience the vehicles.”
The show once was the place for new model debuts, glitzy displays and large numbers of journalists from across the globe. Automakers have increasingly decided that new models can make a bigger splash when they are unveiled to a digital audience on a day when they do not have to share the spotlight with rivals.
While the Detroit Auto Show has scaled back dramatically from its heyday, it still drew 275,000 attendees a year ago, and it is leaning into interactivity this year. Two tracks offer attendees ride-along experiences in internal combustion engine, hybrid and electric vehicles.
The event also includes hands-on attractions such as Camp Jeep and the Ford Bronco Built Wild Experience, which give visitors a chance to climb into the vehicles and tackle some makeshift “mountains.”
The show gets underway Tuesday evening with vehicle announcements from Ford Motor Co. as part of the media and industry preview days. On Wednesday, the annual North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year will be revealed.
The show opens to the public Saturday and runs through Jan. 25. Visitors can check out displays under Alfa Romeo, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Fiat, Ford, GMC, Jeep, Kia, Lincoln, Ram, Subaru and Toyota nameplates.
Speakers include Republican U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno from Ohio, and a pair of Democrats — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Pete Buttigieg, the Transportation Secretary under President Joe Biden.
Earlier on Tuesday, President Donald Trump visited the Detroit area. He toured a Ford plant in Dearborn that makes the ultra-popular F-150 pickup truck before delivering remarks during a meeting of the Detroit Economic Club.
Trump touted his tariff policy to business leaders, telling them “our workers are thriving.” He also said, “And our auto industry is returning to the country where we all began, and where it all began.”