The Amsterdam International Motor Show or AutoRAI was a motor show that took place every two years in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. The history of the AutoRAI goes back to 1893, when the association of Bicycle Industry (RI) was established. The first bicycle exhibition was organised in 1895. In 1900, the Dutch auto trade industry joined the RI organization and the association Bicycle & Automotive Industry (RAI) was born.

History

In 1899, a year before RAI was established, the first automobiles were already officially on display during the bicycle exhibition that opened on 16 March at the

Palace of Industry A palace is a large residence, often serving as a royal residence or the home for a head of state or another high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome whi ...

. In fact, they stole the show and the public lined up in big numbers. Until 1913, the automobile, motorcycle and bicycle exhibition took place regularly, but because the organisation found the palace rent too high, it stopped the shows. Only in 1922, when they had built their own, yet temporary building at Ferdinand Bolstraat in Amsterdam (the 'Oude RAI'), the exhibition resumed again and would stay there for some forty years. In 1961, the first AutoRAI took place in the new building at Europaplein, still its current location, which has grown into a big exhibition and conference center. In the 1970s through the 1990s, AutoRAI served an important function as a European event in a country with very little car industry of its own. Japanese manufacturers thus had a neutral ground (away from the spotlights of

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

) where they could be expected to make their European premieres of cars already shown at home. The AutoRAI was usually held in February, giving the Japanese four months to develop European market models after the common October (

Tokyo Motor Show The , called (TMS) until 2023, is a biennial auto show held in October–November at the Tokyo Big Sight, Tokyo, Japan for cars, motorcycles and commercial vehicles. Hosted by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA), it is a recog ...

) premieres of Japanese automobiles. AutoRAI 2013, which was scheduled to take place in April 2013, was cancelled. The organisers made the decision after consultation with the RAI Association and major car brand importers. The economic developments in the automotive sector had made it impossible to organise a fully-fledged event. The aforementioned parties said they would now focus on possible new setups of the event in the future. In addition to AutoRAI, the AutovakRAI 2013 was also cancelled for the same reasons. After a 2015 edition was organized, it was announced on August 31 2015 that the 2017 edition would be cancelled again due to insufficient space reservation by manufacturers. According to the RAI press release, it seems that they do not plan to organize any more AutoRAI events.

2011

Audi Q3 The Audi Q3 is a subcompact luxury crossover SUV made by Audi. The Q3 has a Transverse engine, transverse-mounted front engine, and entered production in 2011. __TOC__ First generation (Typ 8U; 2011) Concept Vehicle: Audi Cross Coupé quat ...

* Burton Electric * Donkervoort D8 GT 24H of Dubai * ECE Qbee * Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi ECOnetic * Isis AM01 * Jaguar XF (facelift) * Landwind CV9 *

Opel Astra The Opel Astra is a compact car/ small family car ( C-segment) developed and produced by the German automaker Opel since 1991, currently at its sixth generation. It was first launched in September 1991 as a direct replacement to the Opel Kade ...

GT *

Škoda Octavia The Škoda Octavia is a small family car (C-segment) produced by the Czech Republic, Czech Automotive industry, car manufacturer Škoda Auto since the end of 1996. It shares its name with an Škoda Octavia (1959–71), earlier model produced b ...

1.4 TSI Greentech

2009

Alfa Romeo MiTo The Alfa Romeo MiTo (Type 955) is a front-wheel drive, three-door B-segment, supermini designed by Centro Stile Alfa Romeo and first presented in 2008 at Castello Sforzesco in Milan with an international introduction at the British Motor Show in ...

Linea Rossa * Ford Focus X Road * Savage Rivale Roadyacht GTS * Westfield 1600 Sport Turbo

2007

* C,mm,n 2.0 Concept * Fiat Scudo Panorama Executive B2B Concept * Mercedes-Benz CL 65 AMG * Suzuki Grand Vitara Bandit Concept

2005

* Donkervoort D8 270 RS * Renault Laguna II Hatchback (facelift) * Wiesmann GT * MG TF * MG TF GT (Coupe) * MG SV

2003

* Mercedes-Benz E-Class Combi * Mercedes-Benz SL 600 *

1.3 CDTi * Smart City Coupe facelift *

Toyota Yaris The is a supermini/subcompact car sold by Toyota since 1999, replacing the Starlet and Tercel. Up to 2019, Toyota had used the Yaris nameplate on export versions of various Japanese-market models, with some markets receiving the same vehicl ...

facelift * Toyota Yaris Verso facelift * Volkswagen Touran * Volvo S80 facelift

2001

* Mercedes-Benz C-Klasse Combi * Mercedes-Benz C-Klasse C 32 AMG * Mercedes-Benz SLK 32 AMG * Spyker C8 Laviolette * Suzuki Grand Vitara XL-7

1999

* Alfa Romeo 145 and 146 facelift * Audi S3 * Chevrolet Alero * Daihatsu Gran Move *

Opel Vectra The Opel Vectra is a mid-size car (large family car) that was engineered and produced by the German automaker Opel from 1988 until 2010. Available in Sedan (automobile), saloon, hatchback and Station wagon, estate (from model year 1997 onwards ...

* Porsche 911 GT2 * Renault Megane Break

1997

* BMW 5 Series Touring * Jeep Cherokee 2.5 TD * Jösse Car Indigo 3000 * Mazda 323P * Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class (C208) * Mitsubishi Galant

1995

Daihatsu Cuore ''Cuore'', , the Italian-language word for "heart", may refer to: * CUORE Experiment The Cryogenic Underground Observatory for Rare Events (CUORE) – also ; ) – is a particle physics experiment located underground at the Laboratori Nazional ...

(export model premiere) * Daihatsu Valera * Ford Escort facelift * Ford Galaxy * Mitsubishi Carisma * Rover 100 facelift * Rover 600 620 Di * Suzuki Baleno 3-door * Volkswagen Sharan

1993

1993 was the largest Amsterdam show to date, with the original single hall now being the centre of a much bigger exhibition. There were also more new car presentations than usual for Amsterdam, headlined by the all new Peugeot 306. * Jaguar XJ12 (XJ81) * Mitsubishi Galant Hatchback * Peugeot 306 * Toyota Carina E * Volvo 850 Estate

1991

Audi 100 The Audi 100 and Audi 200 (and sometimes called Audi 5000 in North America) are primarily mid-size/executive cars manufactured and marketed by the Audi division of the Volkswagen Group. The car was made from 1968 to 1997 across four generations (C ...

* De Tomaso Pantera facelift * Fiat Croma facelift * Hyundai Lantra * Lancia Dedra Turbo * Lancia Dedra Integrale * Maserati 222 SR * MAX Pick-Up * Škoda Favorit Estate (Forman) * Yue Loong Feeling

1989

* MAX Roadster 205

1987

* Ford Sierra Sedan * Hyundai Pony 3-door * Opel Omega 3000 * Mazda 929 * Nissan Micra 5-door

1985

BMW M5 The BMW M5 is a super high-performance variant of the BMW 5 Series marketed under the BMW M sub-brand. It is considered an iconic vehicle in the sports saloon category. The M5 has always been produced in the saloon (sedan, US English) body s ...

* MAX Roadster * Renault Alpine GTA

1983

* Opel Tech 1 concept car * Honda Prelude

1981

* Suzuki Alto SS80 (European premiere)

1979

* Honda Prelude (world premiere) * Datsun Cherry (variant of the earlier "Nissan Pulsar") * Suzuki SC100 (bigger-engined export variant of the "Suzuki Cervo")

1967

* Ford Cortina Estate * Pontiac Firebird

1965

* Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint GTA

1963

* DAF 33 Combi

1958

DAF 600 The DAF 600 is a small family car produced by Dutch automaker DAF Trucks, DAF from 1959 until 1963. It was DAF's first production passenger car. The 600 was first presented at the Amsterdam Motor Show in February 1958 and was in production by 1959, ...

1948

* Gatso 4000 Aero Coupé * Land Rover Series 1

References

External links

* {{Automotive industry in the Netherlands, state=autocollapse Auto shows Automotive industry in the Netherlands