Dismay At Show Attendance

Disappointing. That's the official word on the number of visitors to this year's British Motor Show. Despite a rise over the 2002 event of more than 13,000, organiser the Society of Motor Manu-facturers and Traders had hoped for more than the 461,000 who passed through the Birmingham NEC's doors.

Auto Express Car Reviews

By Ross Pinnock

05th July 2004

And now it has admitted it may cut prices to boost visitor numbers. A spokesman said: "We haven't reached the aggressive targets we set for the the show. However, we have reversed the downward trend of previous years." The SMMT wanted to attract 600,000 visitors to the 13-day car expo.

The attendance was reflected in the number of customer details taken by the car makers. Eight out of the 10 companies polled by Auto Express saw a fall compared to 2002. Vauxhall logged 9,600 this year - down 3,000.

However, a spokesman for the firm remained upbeat. "The response to the event's launch of the VXR range has been huge," he said. "We will work with the SMMT on what the future holds."

Despite having its new Modus mini-MPV on display, Renault logged 2,600 fewer names. But one firm seemingly bucking the trend was Ford, whose Thunderbirds-themed stand was one of the show's highlights. A spokeswoman said: "There was a higher proportion of serious car buyers. During the last event, one-in-four asked for further details, this year it was one-in-three."

The SMMT spokesman admitted that despite the 'live' show features, more changes may be needed for the next expo in 2006. The successful 'live' format would remain, though. "We will look again at prices, ancillary costs and parking charges," he added.