[GTO]

It was absolute mayhem at the 2010 & 2012 editions of the Auto Expo. Then held at Pragati Maidan, its media day appeared to be a public day! The crowds far exceeded journalists who were, honestly, a minority on a day dedicated to the press. The event was very poorly organised and the venue was showing its age too. This is the environment in which we were shooting pictures the last time around:


When it was announced that the Auto Expo was moving out of the main city to India Expo Mart @ Noida, we were optimistic. For one, the 1+ hour commute from Delhi to Noida would ensure only the serious folk make it. Second, the India Expo Mart is newer & has a superior layout compared to the aged Pragati Maidan, even if it's smaller. Then, the fact that tickets were being sold on bookmyshow.com for Rs. 200 - 500 means tighter security (always the case when $$$ is involved). Lastly, the 1000+ component manufacturer stalls remain at Pragati Maidan. The new venue is only open to car & bike manufacturers.

The media day on 5th Feb was bliss! This was truly a world-class event. Mr. Pawan Goenka (Mahindra) commented how it's much better organised now, while Mr. Mayank Pareek (Maruti) stated that the event is 'nearly up' to international standards. The President of Nissan says that he was impressed. Notably, Mr. Anand Mahindra who called the 2012 show a "tamasha" tweeted "world class facilities and so far, world class ambience & management".

Equally, it must be added that the 6th of Feb (open to car dealers) did see a lot of the not-so-serious crowd. We know of at least 1 Toyota dealer who had 20 passes and happily distributed them to friends, family & neighbours.

Just 5 minutes off the Noida expressway. Parking lot is properly categorised:


Loads of parking:


A Volvo shuttle to take us to the main entrance, 10 minutes away:


Clear signboards everywhere:


Was pleasantly surprised to see no lines or waiting at the entrance. We just walked right in:


Empty everywhere. It took some time to get used to an Auto Expo where you don't have to jostle for space:






Story continues inside the halls:


The scene at Maruti:


Mahindra:


Fiat:


Nissan:


Food court with lots of tables & chairs. Subway, Punjab Grille, Dominos, Pizza Hut, Dunkin Donuts...take your pick:

[GTO]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line!

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

So finally they seem to have got their act together. But the big question in my mind- being so far away from the city and with a higher ticket rate, do you expect the crowds to pick up over the weekend, similar to Pragati Maidan?

The buzz created by the expo this time has also been interesting. Many of my non-enthusiast friends are fully aware of the expo, including my wife who was following the threads and pics very closely in the morning. Looks like the 'world class' effect has been echoed in the pics as well.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

So finally they seem to have got their act together. But the big question in my mind- being so far away from the city and with a higher ticket rate, do you expect the crowds to pick up over the weekend, similar to Pragati Maidan?

The buzz created by the expo this time has also been interesting. Many of my non-enthusiast friends are fully aware of the expo, including my wife who was following the threads and pics very closely in the morning. Looks like the 'world class' effect has been echoed in the pics as well.

The second day was open only for media and dealers and it was choc o block. Crowds had picked up by noon and it was not as easy going as on day 1. We had a tough time shooting pics with the crowds around some of the cars.

The buzz is indeed a lot compared to earlier times. On day 1 there were celebrities unveiling cars which created a lot of buzz in news channels.

Even my mom knew about the BMW i8 supercar since Sachin Tendulkar came to unveil it.

Similarly, Kareena Kapoor at the DC stall drew a mad crowd.

[Soumyajit9]

Wow !! I had heard of Auto Expo only. Never lived it. Being a T-Bhpian now, I am closely following each report.
The vastness of the venue amazes me ! And the various pavillions are so well designed and decorated, its hard to believe that the set up is in an open space !!
My hearfelt thanks to all the mods and members who walked us (people who couldn't make it to Delhi/Noida) thru the Expo !!

[Coolman]

Wow !!! this is amazing to the zzzeeeee... Thank you so much GTO and Team.

This is why Team-BHP is unique. Unlike all other reports that have been published across different motoring websites, Team-BHP stands out for 3 reasons amongst others:

1. Novel idea to present in detail as to how the event is faring. Superb post! Most of the other sites' articles are focusing only on the stalls and the products.
   
   
2. The attention to detail and the collection of pictures followed by the highlighting and the notes is found only here on Team-BHP.
   
   
3. The fact that one almost gets a feel that he is witnessing the event in person when it is presented here on this forum. Do I say a VD? Virtual Dimension a la 4D !!!

Keep up the good work - Team-BHP.

Really glad to know that the Auto Expo was better organized this time round with acclaim from the motoring bosses.

Thanks,
C_

[amtak]

This is the begining of bigger and better things. Btw, did anyone notice the Etios Cab in the parking lot? It has LCLC Spotted!

[Gannu_1]

Originally Posted by amtak

Btw, did anyone notice the Etios Cab in the parking lot? It has LCLC Spotted!

Already spotted and acknowledged by GTO in the other thread.

Originally Posted by GTO

Etios was our self-drive rental for 4 days while the XUV is Anshuman's daily driver.

[sourabhzen]

Must be a good Media day but it was unimpressive start for me today.
Few of the points worth listing down are:
1. It took me 45 minutes from main express way to finally park my car.
2. Parking gate had fallen with only "media" standing up creating confusion. I had to take the complete round again to reach that gate. Policemen on duty had no idea about the 2nd parking.
3. The distance from the parking lot to gate 11 was too much to walk. By the time I reached the gate I had no energy left to explore the halls.
4. Apparently there is a bus from parking to the gates, it was not there when I reached.
5. It was most 'dusty' parking I have ever seen. (I thought Gurgaon is worst). There were layers of dust on the car when I came back.
6. There is no identification on the parking bays. I counted the number of bays I crossed to reach the ticket counter so that I can find my car easily. I saw a few men pressing their remotes and trying to locate their car from the sound.
7. Exit route was changed in the evening.

I hope they take some cue from today and improve it for the coming days.

However, the exhibition halls were well placed and spacious; and were interconnected. There were enough washrooms and drinking water facilities. Once inside, I forgot about the initial miseries.

[asr245]

Lucky you!

Not so good today. Just back from Auto Expo (my first). Audi/BMW/Merc halls were crowded and by that I mean, jostling to even get a look at their cars. There was a hugeee queue to get a chance to look at the BMW I8 concept car. I gave up on seeing the queue & moved to a different hall. Rest were better but again Maruti's was crowded. Then there were some chocked passages between halls. After going through halls 8-14, I had had enough and came back.

Parking facility is huge but then so were the number of visitors. Got parking at the extreme end of the lot from where it was a km+ of walk. There was buses put into service but don't know how often they pickup/drop-off.

Overall, next time I want a media pass or else I am not going.

[satyamkaushik]

I managed to get a chance to visit the Expo on 6th (the media day).

It was overall a very nice experience. The event was well managed and I found it better than the last time.

Here are some pictures I managed to capture :

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/auto-e...ml#post3364710

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/auto-e...ml#post3364714

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/auto-e...ml#post3364723

[Rehaan]

Phew, I'm just glad we got to see the show on the media days (5th & 6th), and not later on!



cya
R

[akshay4587]

I made the mistake of attending the expo on 8th February,and ended up with a lost wallet.It was a mess near the maruti/chevrolet halls,this is where my pocket got picked.When i went to file a complaint,i could see a long queue of people who had lost their cellphones.It was totally unorganized on the weekends and chaos would be an understatement.

[sinharishi]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

It was a mess near the maruti/chevrolet halls.It was totally unorganized on the weekends and chaos would be an understatement.

+ 1

I was there on the 9th. Entered at 10:30 AM, started with the Audi/BMW/Merc (Hall 15) followed by TATA then the rest. By the time I came out of Hall 9 - Honda/Toyota at around 1:30 PM it was a mess. Was to see the no. of people lined up to enter Hall 15. Unbelievable! Post lunch started with Ford followed by Hyundai.Hyundai/Chevrolet/Maruti was like a FISH market. Did not even bother to enter Maruti's hall. Till 1 PM it was OK, after that it was horrible!

By 3 PM exited ,took the shuttle to P1. While exiting, noticed that the no. of cars entering the parking was more as compared to the no. of cars exiting.

[zavegur]

And I went on the worst day.. 09 Feb 14. Awful experience it was. Yes it was fun to see all cars under one roof but the organizers could have done a lot better I think.

But what buggered me big time was I did not get CHEESE!!

Let me explain. For food, you gotta get coupons (you can get this in multiples of Rs.500- dont know why ). Now for those who didnt want to queue up for coupons, there were 2-3 outlets who accepted cash. Note, I am talking about stalls selling meals not snacks.

Now I found that subway accepted cash and the guy says- if you want fresh sub you gotta wait- queue 15+!!! Or if I want an already prepared one I could get immediately. To avoid waiting I asked for a sub- the guy confirmed all veggies+ cheese; i bought it albeit it being massively priced.

Was starving so ran to a shade and opened up to my surprise there was only lettuce and lo and behold no cheese

Went to that idiot of gentleman and he refused to take it back as I had already opened it up. All fighting and shouting went to deaf ears.

So there we are my story of no Cheese in my sandwich.

Sorry for all this blahblahblah but all I wanted after so much of walking and haggling to take pictures, I couldnt eat my sandwich with Cheese.