Judging by the photos, comments of participants and reports, this year 's Brno motor show belongs somewhere between disappointment, anger and farce. But Brno was not always this weak. Just go back 10 years …
The year 2003 brought Brno the status of the third largest European motor show, a place in the prestigious calendar of OICA exhibitions and also the huge favor of visitors. Although it seems almost impossible today, in 2003 visitors could admire the world premiere of the new BMW 5 Series E60 and the modernized Ford Mondeo. Luxury brands were also represented – Porsche brought the super sports Carrera GT to the Central European premiere, and Ferrari showed the then most expensive car on the planet – the Enzo model. Of the world's leading brands, only Honda was missing, and the entire area of the exhibition center was filled with cars.
Two years later (you probably know that Autosalon alternates regularly with Autotec) another car festival was held in Brno. Although it was no longer 2003, there was still something to look at. I would point out, for example, the Fenomenon Stratos concept, the Central European premiere of the Audi Allroad concept or the new Cologne mini. The cars themselves were spread over five pavilions, and Fiat, Ferrari, Maserati and Toyota were absent from the larger brands. Otherwise, complete participation again. Among the accompanying events, we should mention the exhibition for Skoda's hundredth birthday or the exhibition of American cars. All in all – 2005 was also worth it.
Even the year 2007 can claim the status of success. The organizers from Brno attracted four world premieres – Seat Altea FreeTrack, Peugeot 207 SW, Ultima CanAm and the domestic Brisk RS01 WRC. The list of brands was again not complete – Jeep, Lexus, Mazda or Toyota were missing, but there was still something to stand for. In addition to the world premieres, for example, Alfa Romeo imported an open version of the 8C Competizione model , Audi sports R8 and Porsche model Cayenne in several forms. As in the previous three years, the visit to the car show was worth it.
However, in 2009 , after the three previous years, there was a hard sobering up. Thanks to the global financial crisis, the organizers from Brno immediately lost several large producers, who were not even attracted by the newly built P pavilion . The area of the car show was reduced to two pavilions, the list of world premieres was filled only by the new versions of the modernized Octavia (RS and Scout) and the Radical SR3 RS, and most of the brands were represented only by Brno dealers. Despite these shortcomings, however, Brno still deserved favor and attention.
Another car show was held just one year later. The organizers came up with a salutary idea during the small participation at Autotec – to combine Autosalon and Autotec . It's almost genius in itself – two trade fairs with different, yet the same focus in one place, so everyone gets something to do. But the thought hit hard. Only five brands applied for the passenger car exhibition – Hyundai, Skoda, Renault, Dacia and Ford, and there was only slightly more interest in the exhibition of trucks and commercial vehicles and buses. So farce as it should be.
After the fiasco in 2010, nobody expected much from the Autosalon 2011 . That's why I was pleasantly surprised by this exhibition. Yes, the representation of the brands was not as abundant as in the years of greatest glory, but the modern expositions of the brands of the Volkswagen concern, Citroen, Peugeot, Opel, Kia or Hyundai balanced it. In addition to these brands, models from Suzuki, Lotus, Jaguar, Land Rover, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Lancia and Jeep could also be found at the fair. In short, it seemed that the Autosalon Brno was returning to its heyday and that it could be an interesting springboard for years to come.
The organizers canceled 2012 due to lack of interest (the lack of interest most likely resulted from very expensive exhibition areas) and all attention shifted to this year. The organizers moved it from the traditional June to the beginning of April , allegedly because of the closer proximity to the Geneva Motor Show. Result? One pavilion and that's still half empty, participation of only Hyundai, Skoda, Ford, Mini, Suzuki, Mazda, Jaguar, Land Rover, Volvo and Mitsubishi… This is not what an attempt at a modern car exhibition looks like. However, there is one excuse. According to available information, there were supposed to be 30 brands on display in Brno this year, but at the last moment the vast majority refused, because the Czech market has already declined for the umpteenth time.
And what to say at the end of this probe into the history of what was once the largest Central European car show? I think nothing. One can only hope that the car market will pick up , the organizers will come to their senses and not increase the rent of exhibition spaces, and the Brno exhibition will once again rise to the forefront of interest and not end up like Autotec , which in its original form ended completely after 2010…
