As 2024 quickly progresses, two of Australasia’s largest automotive trade shows, the Australian Automotive Aftermarket Expo (AAAExpo) and the Collision Repair Expo (CRE) make their welcome return.
These two major trade fairs are being held concurrently 11-13 April 2024 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. They are without a doubt the largest showcase of everything that the Australian automotive aftermarket industry has to offer, providing mechanics, automotive and collision repair workshop owners and reseller product buyers with the ability to look, touch, feel and learn across three busy days in one central location. These are Australia’s only comprehensive trade exhibitions for the country’s $25 billion automotive aftermarket industry.
This year heralds the return of the AAAExpo as a truly global industry event with the return of the International Pavilion. This allows AAAExpo visitors to connect with suppliers not only from across the country, but from across the world, as was the case prior to the pandemic disruption.
The theme of the 2024 AAAExpo is “The Future is Here”. In line with this, it will be showcasing the latest vehicle repair and servicing equipment, parts, tools, accessories, new technologies and trends. The 2024 AAAExpo will also include a comprehensive training and education program, featuring several free training opportunities for attendees. This training program will be led by international diagnostic superstars Danny Versluis from the “Diagnose Dan” YouTube channel, and Sean Tipping, host of the Automotive Diagnostic Podcast in the USA.
An exciting new AAAExpo innovation for 2024 is the Expo Electrified Zone, which offers unique opportunities to learn about electric vehicle (EV) and hybrid service and repair with hands-on and practical demonstrations including live testing of EV motors and generators, all delivered by industry-leading experts. The Expo Electrified Zone will also feature the latest in EV tools, workshop equipment and EV Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) along with a Ford F-150 Lightning EV on display from the Auto Innovation Centre (AIC).
In total, 2024 AAAExpo and CRE visitors will have access to more than 400 local and world-leading automotive aftermarket product brands covering the latest in vehicle/ collision repair, servicing and diagnostic technology, hard parts, workshop equipment and accessories. Visit autoaftermarketexpo.com.au and collisionrepair.com.au for more information.
In addition to these major trade shows, there is another Australian and New Zealand collision repairer-focused event that has gained major industry traction over the past three years: the National Collision Repairer (NCR) Symposium This year’s event, referred to as Symposium24, will be held on 19 June 2024 at the Novotel at Sydney Olympic Park. Designed to be interactive, the event features panel sessions designed to engage with attendees in a Q&A format, covering topical issues facing the collision repair industry. More information can be found at ncrsymposium.com.au.
New Zealand’s auto trade welcomed the Autorama Industry Show at the Mystery Creek Events Centre in Hamilton across three days last November. This successful event will be returning to the same venue 8-10 November 2024, bringing together a wide range of businesses that supply machinery, tools and parts to the automotive sector. Visit the expo’s website at autoramacarshow.co.nz for updates.
For those who are more involved in new and used car sales, the 2024 Australian Automotive Dealer Association (AADA) Convention and Expo will take place 24-25 July 2024 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. This well-established annual event covers all in the world of new and used car sales and associated services, including major industry keynote speakers and related industry association meetings. Find out more at aadaconvention.com.au.
Major automotive events that are not trade exclusive this year include the 2024 4X4 Outdoor Shows being held across the country. These are Australia’s longest-running and biggest 4X4, offroad, touring, camping and caravanning expo events. They showcase all the outstanding innovations in four-wheel drive/ recreational vehicles and the myriad of accessories available for them. The first of these shows took place in Brisbane back in March, with more being held in Sydney from 14 to 16 June 2024 and in Melbourne from 23 to 25 August 2024. More details are available at 4x4show.com.au.
The four-wheel drive sector is very well catered for when it comes to big expo events, with the Australian 4WD and Adventure Shows taking place 6-8 September 2024 in Sydney, 25-27 October 2024 in Adelaide and 8-10 November 2024 in Perth. These bumper 4X4 events have been staged by the same organisers for three decades, so if you are a four-wheel drive enthusiast, you won’t be disappointed by the breadth of the vehicles and accessories on display. More details are available at 4wdshow.com.au.
The trucking industry also has its own major shows, with last year’s incredibly successful HVIA Brisbane Truck Show not due to return until 2025. In the interim, the same organisers present the debut of a new heavy transport industry expo, TruckShowX. This show caters for the huge interest in emerging truck technologies for production-ready vehicles powered by renewable diesel and batteries, all the way to hydrogen fuel cell prototypes. This inaugural industry event takes place 13-14 May 2024 at the Cape Schanck Resort located on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. More information can be found at truckshowx.com.au.
In both Australia and New Zealand, the major auto trade parts suppliers conduct their own smaller and more localised trade shows in major cities and regional centres. To find out about the schedule of trade shows taking place in your city or state, contact your parts supplier representative.
Most importantly for all Capricorn Members, the Capricorn Gala Dinner & Tradeshow events across Australia and New Zealand will take place during the final half of 2024. Be sure to visit any one of these outstandingly successful Capricorn Member exclusive trade shows and social events for special offers, one-on-one supplier meetings and a famously entertaining night out afterwards. More information on these fantastic 2024 business and social events will be advertised soon.
Last but certainly not least, the largest automotive aftermarket trade show on the planet, Automechanika Frankfurt, takes place 10-14 September 2024 in Germany. This is a must-see-to-believe biennial global industry event. Visit automechanika.messefrankfurt.com for more information.
