Summary of the D.C. Auto Show

   Detroit, Chicago, and the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) provide automotive enthusiasts the best opportunity to see exotic and concepts vehicles through their auto shows. Other major cities, such as Washington, D.C., also hosts auto shows.  My love of automobiles drives me to the Washington, D.C. Auto Show ever year. Unfortunately, this year, the auto show was not aimed towards automotive enthusiasts, but interested buyers.   

            There were a lot of vehicles there, over 700 provided by over 42 automakers. The Washington, D.C. Auto Show always has a lot of vehicles, but they’re not the exotic or rare vehicles that the other major auto shows have. The majority of the vehicles are everyday cars, vehicles that you have seen in your neighborhood or local dealership. Some exotic vehicles included; SRT Viper, Corvette Stingray, Audi R8, Audi RS7. It’s hard to call some of these vehicles exotic since Washington, D.C. is home to some very rich people. In fact, on my way home, I saw a Rolls Royce Phantom Coupé. 

 

     The Corvette Stingray, Mercedes S Class, and Subaru WRX STI were the stars of the show. Most of the people who came to the show didn’t now what the Chevrolet SS was, and kept stating that it was a bigger Chevrolet Impala. They were also perplexed as to why the Audi S3 was so expensive. The 2015 Ford Mustang didn’t attract that many people, because Ford decided to stuff it in an awkward corner of their area. Other than that, the Washington, D.C. Auto Show didn’t have much else to write home about. 

   

      The Camaro Z/28, Lexus RC-F, 2015 Ford F-150, Porsche 911, and Infiniti Q50 were absent at the auto show. Forget about Ferraris and Lamborghinis, the most exotic brand was Lotus. I’ve been going to the Washington, D.C. Auto Show for a couple of years now. At previous years there have been Ferraris, Lexus LFAs, Corvette ZR1s, and racecars. This year’s auto show was more of a glorified dealership. People came to car shop, not to meet their automotive heroes. 

   

To say the least, I’m very disappointed by this year’s auto show. It used to be where I fell in love with different automakers, where I found other people who shared my passion for cars. This year, the auto show attracted people in search of a new vehicle. Maybe it was the abundance of affordable cars, or the lack of supercars, either way they made the D.C. Auto Show easily forgettable.