I’ve long argued that the Internet and 21st century business practices have made auto shows all but irrelevant. High-quality images of new models pop up online days before they are “unveiled” on stage. Worse, shows have lost their fantasy element because automakers have stopped creating concept cars that never make it out of the design studio, preferring instead to display lightly disguised versions of upcoming production models.
The New York International Auto Show, which opened to the public Monday at Manhattan’s Javits Center, has seemed even more irrelevant than most. It comes at the tail end of the model year when both manufacturers and dealers are more concerned with trying to sell down this year’s models than they are about planning for the future. Although the industry is paying more attention to the New York show, it is more about moving the metal than bending it.
And yet there is lots to be learned by wandering around the show floor, eavesdropping on conversations, and following the flow of the crowd. Here are 10 things I learned at the 2014 show: