North American International Auto Show 2017: U.S. OEMs
U.S. automakers conservative in reveals, focus on popular segments
2017/01/30
- Summary
- GM focuses on growing SUV market with Traverse, Equinox and Terrain
- Ford highlights model refreshes with F-150 and Mustang
- No FCA debuts in Detroit, key models from other shows featured
Summary
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The 2017 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) was held from January 9 through January 22, 2017, with the show being open to the public starting January 14. The 2017 show recorded a total attendance of 806,554 visitors, surpassing the 800,000 visitor milestone for the fourth consecutive year. The primary concern surrounding the 2017 North American International Auto Show was seeing how the industry would interact with the new U.S. president. With President Trump’s comments on Twitter criticizing companies that imported vehicles from Mexico, many automakers spent time highlighting both previous and possible future investments in the U.S. Prior to the show, Ford announced the assembly of several future electrified vehicles at its Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan. During its press conference, Ford announced that the upcoming Ford Bronco and Ranger would be assembled in the U.S. Both GM and FCA announced that they would each invest USD 1 billion in U.S. manufacturing plants. In addition, shortly after the show, CEOs of the Detroit 3 all visited the White House to discuss various issues with President Trump. As such, the unveilings by U.S. automakers were decidedly more conservative, focusing more on capitalizing the growth of the local SUV market and previous models. While technological and stylistic concepts and systems were shown, there was a greater emphasis on models with projected success or a history of success. GM unveiled the new Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Terrain SUVs, while Ford displayed refreshes of the F-150 and Mustang. FCA went one step further by having no model debuts and only showing models from previous exhibitions. This report is the first of three reports which will focus on the vehicles displayed at the 2017 North American International Auto Show. This report will focus on vehicles showcased by U.S. OEMs, specifically GM, Ford, and FCA. Future reports will be released featuring models developed by European and Asian automakers. Related reports: |
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| View of Ford’s exhibit area | |
 Chevrolet Traverse |
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