Top brands give S'pore Motorshow a miss

With only 5 car exhibitors for singapore premier motor event, will you give the show a miss? This year exhibitors is less than half that in 2006! What will you be missing this time? Ferrari, Astin Martin, Mesarati, Lambolampings, BMW, Audi, Mercedes and Volkswagen etc.. Might as well visit showrooms better!

Two years after major European brands pulled out of the Singapore Motorshow, the event is set to shrink further. Only five car brands - Honda, Subaru, Nissan, Alfa Romeo and Fiat - have signed up for the show, long recognised as the premier automotive event here. This is less than half the number at the 2006 show, which top European car brands such as BMW, Audi, Mercedes and Volkswagen chose to miss.

Of this year's exhibitors, only Honda, Nissan and Subaru are among the top 10 brands here in terms of sales. Despite this, the show will go on, said the Motor Traders Association (MTA), which has been organising the biennial event since it began in 1992. This year's show will also be held earlier - from Sept 26 to Oct 5 instead of its usual November slot - to coincide with the SingTel Singapore Grand Prix.

The race takes place on Sept 28 and the organisers hope the buzz it creates will lead to heightened interest in the show despite the smaller number of exhibitors. Companies which are giving the show a miss say the returns from it are not worth the investment.

Exhibitors are banking on new elements to draw petrolheads this year. MotorImage, for instance, is doubling the pleasure for fans of a perennial favourite at the show, stunt driver Russ Swift. This year, Mr Swift will perform with his son Paul. Another star at this year's show will be the Rinspeed sQuba, the world's first working submarine car, inspired by James Bond's submersible Lotus in the 1977 movie The Spy Who Loved Me.

This year's show will be held at Suntec Singapore, but will occupy just one floor, down from the usual two.