52 car brands with more than 600 models in seven halls – including at least five European premieres! Plus the Valkyrie and exotic hypercars from Pagani, Koenigsegg or Aston Martin. With this great banner, from 10-13 November 2022, the 35th Auto Zurich will again attract more than 50,000 visitors to the Zurich exhibition halls.
It’s incredible when you know how international auto shows are begging for exhibitors today or how calmly they started in Zurich 35 years ago. «The first Auto Zürich took place in 1987 in just one salon. It had the charm of a garage exhibition: seven brands, 60 cars,” recalls Karl Bieri, President of Auto Zurich (71): “At the time it was a real hype that Zurich suddenly had its own car show. 27,000 visitors in the first year!»
Unforgettable encounters
The race car exhibits, in particular, were initially crowded. At that time, most of the cars had to be brought by the organizers themselves from half of Europe. “Everyone was there with great passion,” he gets excited, as he does with former F1 driver Jarno Trulli (48) Christoph Blocher (82) and moderator Rainer-Maria Salzgeber (53) with his own grown wine. poked. “Such informal encounters make Auto Zürich very special.”
A member of the trade fair committee from the very beginning and President for nearly 25 years, Bieri, together with Ms. Doris, transformed Auto Zürich from state fair to Switzerland’s largest German-speaking auto show. Auto Zürich is currently the largest auto show in Switzerland. Because the Geneva Motor Show is still grappling with the consequences of the corona pandemic and had to be canceled again for 2023. This upsets Bieri, because he never saw the Geneva Motor Show as competition, but as an addition to “his” Auto Zurich.
Affordable for everyone
The secret to the success of the Auto Zürich organizers? Always an open ear to attendees’ concerns and a good feeling for trends. For example, when the “Consumer Electronics Show” CES in Las Vegas was very popular with automakers, Auto Zürich also integrated consumer electronics into the trade show. For two years, vintage cars have also been an integral part of the “Auto Zürich Classic”, and accompanying test drives of electric cars were presented for the first time last year. This “EV Experience” has been fully booked by the public in a very short time and is therefore happening again this year.
But Auto Zürich remains true to itself in one respect, says Karl Bieri. «We want to remain an affordable trade fair for visitors and exhibitors!» This is ensured by the uniform stands provided by Auto Zürich. As a result, there are still many small participants besides the big ones. This is another reason why the auto show has lost nothing of its appeal to the public, even after 35 years.