Ford cancels all appearances at Canadian auto shows for 2023

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All of the new-car auto shows had to close during the pandemic, and we expected they’d come back even better than before once they were able to reopen, but it looks like that might not be the case. According to a report from Automotive News Canada (ANC), Ford of Canada will not have exhibits at any Canadian auto shows in 2023. In an email to ANC, a Ford spokesperson said that it will “discontinue corporate support” of the shows “for both the Ford and Lincoln brands.”

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The email went on to say that as the automaker moves ahead with electric vehicles (EVs) it is “learning how to connect with consumers in new ways,” and that “these challenges mean making some tough choices,” including the decision to avoid auto shows.

“Corporate support” refers to the large and often flashy displays we’re used to seeing at auto shows. Automakers will put their newest and recently-unveiled models front and centre, but will also have examples of everything else they make, so consumers can have a look and sit inside them to help with their buying decisions

It’s possible that Ford’s franchised dealers could set up their own displays at Canadian shows – which often happens at smaller shows – but there’s no word yet on if they plan to do so at the larger events.

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Ford’s departure will undoubtedly be a major blow for the Canadian International Auto Show, which is scheduled for February 17 to 26, 2023 after a two-year shutdown due to the pandemic. It tried to hold a virtual event in 2021, but that got shelved when it couldn’t interest enough auto companies to make it happen. Prior to the closures, Ford and Lincoln occupied a large portion of the show’s lower building.

The Montreal Auto Show remains on track for January 20 to 29, 2023, put on by the Montreal Automobile Dealers Association. As well, the Vancouver International Auto Show is still on schedule for March 22 to 26. As with the Toronto show, both of those will be presented for the first time since the pandemic, as both were cancelled in 2021 and 2022.

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However, the Calgary International Auto and Truck Show announced it would cancel its planned 2023 comeback, which would have been held March 8 to 12. The show is presented by the Calgary Motor Dealers Association (CMDA), which said global supply-chain issues were still enough of a problem for auto manufacturers that it was unable to get enough of them to participate to create the show. Jim Gillespie, executive manager of CMDA, said he’d already been told Ford would not participate in any Canadian shows and would be in only a few major U.S. ones.

Major shows in the U.S. did return, including the Los Angeles Auto Show in mid-November this year, although it was much more low-key than usual; the New York Auto Show in April; and the North American International Auto Show – better known to most as the Detroit Auto Show – last September.

The Detroit event was also a shadow of its former self, and while it was formerly held at the beginning of the year and traditionally kicked off the auto show season across the U.S. and Canada, it reopened with fall dates after its pandemic shutdown. That was likely due to an increasing number of automakers making their new-vehicle debuts at the massive Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, which is scheduled for January 5 to 8, 2023. There’s no word yet if Ford will display there, but we’re guessing it’s likely.