Chicago Auto Show Delayed Until 'Spring'
The 2021 Chicago Auto Show will be delayed until sometime in the spring of 2021 because of the COVID-19 epidemic that has forced the entire world to pretty much cancel everything. Of course, we didn’t need to tell you that because the pandemic has been the default reason or excuse (depending on the situation) for literally every decision that has taken place in 2020.
Originally scheduled to be held between February 13th and 21st, the event will now be held sometime in the spring. The Chicago Auto Show’s official website has been updated to represent the change but lacks any specifics that might help people actually plan a trip to the venue. It only reads “Spring 2021” before listing the address and ticket prices, requiring some clarification from organizers.
The reasoning is often the same. Organizers and vendors don’t know if states will end up enforcing strict lockdown protocols and are understandably wary of commitment.
“At this point, with the recent increase in [COVID-19] cases, it doesn’t look like February is realistic,” Mark Bilek, senior director of communications and technology for the Chicago Auto Show, to Automotive News in a statement. “So we wanted to make sure that we let people know that we’re still very excited about trying to have a show in spring of 2021, at some point, be it in March, April or May.”
“We didn’t want to throw a date out there and then have to move it again,” he continued. “So we’re just, at this point, kind of in a holding pattern. And of course, being respectful of other major shows like New York and L.A. that have already announced dates. We obviously wouldn’t want to conflict with those. So we’ll work to make sure that we find an open spot on the calendar to host a safe and responsible Chicago Auto Show.”
When we reached out for clarification, organizers wanted to make doubly sure that we understood nothing had been established yet. The spring date is simply a placeholder while they work with the city of Chicago and state of Illinois to determine when it might be able to hold the public event without running into trouble. A proposal has been submitted, however, and they’re reportedly waiting on approvals.
[Images: Chicago Auto Show]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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In the future, you can test-drive all the vehicles at the auto show indoors, either on the road course or the off-road course. (With little noise and no fumes.)
Yesterday, organizers cancelled the Paris Air Show that had been planned for June 21-27. The event ("the largest air show and aerospace-industry exhibition event in the world" - Wikipedia) takes place mostly outdoors and dwarfs any auto show by several orders of magnitude in the amount of money on the ground. We'll be lucky if any sizable in-person trade event occurs before August. What an utter CF.