Auto Show Blues - 2026 Edition

I haven't made a final decision, but I might not go to the New York auto show in a couple of weeks.

It should be easy for me to firmly decide not to go.  After all, Chevrolet and Ford have only one non-SUV passenger vehicle each - the Corvette and the Mustang, respectively.  Lincoln has nothing but SUVs.  So does Buick, and that brand won't even be there.  Honda - which still sells real cars, including an all-new Prelude that retuned that nameplate to the Honda lineup after a quarter-century absence - wont be there, either, and neither will be Mazda.  Sure, Volkswagen will be there - but I can see the latest VW models at my dealer when I take my own VW for service every June. 

So what's making hesitate before ruling out another auto show trip altogether?  BMW and Cadillac - two of my favorite luxury brands - are returning to the New York auto show for the first time in nearly a decade.  BMW always has great cars on display, having refused to give up on sedans and even coupes, and Cadillac, in addition to having traditional sports sedans, has introduced two new EVs with old-school land-yacht flair combined with sporty fastback styling.  So I'm intrigued.

I'm also suspicious.  I remember the Mercedes-Benz and Audi displays from last year.  Each brand had only two or three cars each behind velvet ropes.  Naturally, the cars were locked so you couldn't get in them.    I have a sneaky feeling that the BMW and Cadillac displays will be similarly token exhibits.   I won't know for certain until I see the 2026 New York auto shows floor plan, which hasn't been released yet.

Then again, even it BMW and Cadillac do have real displays that are worth the trip, would the rest of the show be worth it?  Having to skip the Ford display owing to lack of an interesting car to look at (sad to say, the current Mustang doesn't thrill me).  More exhibits aimed at amusement, like the indoor EV test-drive track, that makes the show more like a limpid world's fair?  Besides, after seeing Autostadt in Wolfsburg, Germany, I don't know why I would go to an American auto shoe to see even Volkswagen. 

I've always looked forward to the Easter season with the knowledge that the New York auto show was opening ever since the show's organizers moved it to the Jacob Javits Center and started scheduling it for Easter Week beginning in 1987.  But whether or not I go this year, I'm aware that it won't be the same as the shows of yore.  The nature of the product has changed, and they are changes I do not like.