A poster for the Seoul Motor Show 2019, which gets under way through April 7 at KINTEX. (Photo:Organizing Committee for Seoul Motor Show)

The Seoul Motor Show 2019 will take place under the theme “Sustainable/Connected/Mobility” at the KINTEX in Goyang, north of Seoul, from March 29 to April 7. A combined 20 automaker brands – six Korean car brands like Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, Korea GM, Renault Samsung Motors, SsangYong Motor and Genesis and 14 non-Korean automaker brands, including Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Maserati, and Tesla – will participate the motor show. It is the first time Tesla will take part in a Seoul Motor Show.

The exhibitors of the fair will premiere a combined 24 car models – four globally, nine in Asia and 11 others in Korea. They will put 142 kinds of cars on display, numbering about units in total. Seven automaker brands will showcase 17 kinds of electronic vehicles, including 13 kinds, which will make their debut globally. The EV brand exhibitors include CammSys, Power Plaza, Semisysco, DaeChang Motors, Master, and SKMOTORS.

Companies participating in the Seoul Motor Show 2019, including automaker and EV brands, number 223 as of March 13, representing about 10 percent jump compared to the Seoul Motor Show 2017.

Reflecting on sustainable energy, connected technology and mobility like the expanded ecosystem of the automobile industry, exhibitors are in a variety of categories ranging from IT companies like SK Telecom, to energy companies like KEPCO and EWP, and to parts makers such as Hyundai Mobis and Yura Corp. The move will likely revamp the conception of the Seoul Motor Show into that of a mobility show.

 
One more country is joining among participants in the national pavilion zone. In the past, countries such as Germany, Mexico and the Czech Republic participated as national pavilion exhibitors. The UK is a new-comer of the Seoul Motor Show 2019. Each national pavilion is composed of the central government and automotive parts makers, so in particular, major VIPs of organizations and companies wanting to tap the Korean market are expected to come there.

Departing from the conventional exhibition patterns, the Seoul Motor Show 2019 will consist of seven theme pavilions, including ones tailored to reflect three core themes – sustainable, connected and mobility.

 
The theme pavilions are “Auto Makers World, a space for exhibiting automaker brands, “Sustainable World,” a space for experiencing the evolvement of eco-friendliness through sustainable energy like hydrogen-powered EVs, and “Connected World,” a space to look into future change of super-connected society like self-driving, connected technology and car-sharing technology,; and “Mobility World,” a space for looking into and experiencing EVs, drones, robots and new mobility services, “Auto Parts World,” a space to exhibit parts technologies and products related to internal combustion engine cars, eco-friendly cars and self-driving vehicles, “International Pavilion,” a space to display and introduce foreign parts makers and organizations, and “Food-tainment World,” a space for eateries, things to see, and relax. The revamping of the Seoul Motor Show 2019 is designed to reshape into a mobility show, attracted related companies and allow spectators to look at the fair at a three-dimensional way and storytelling.

Spectators will be also given an opportunity to have a hands-on experience on sustainable energy and connected technologies in person. First, spectators will be allowed to drive eco-friendly cars around a road surrounding the second exhibition center of KINTEX in connection with the opening of “Sustainable World.” A combined 18 vehicles are made available, including Hyundai Motor Kona Electric & Ioniq Electric; Kia Motors Niro EV & Soul EV; Nissan LEAF; and Semisysco D2.

International conferences and seminars will take place on “Connected,” one of the three themes. An international conference will be held on April 2 under the theme “Thinking Automobiles: The Future of Innovation.” Winfried Weber, director of Mannheim Institute of Applied Management Research at Mannheim University of Applied Sciences, will give a key-note speech, while six prominent experts, including Stephen Zoepf, Executive Director of the Center for Automotive Research at Stanford; Koomin University President Yoo Ji-soo, Houssem Abdellatif, Global Head Autonomous Driving & ADAS at TUV SUD, and Remco Verwoerd, vice president of business development in Asia Pacific at PAL-V, will participate.

A seminar will take place on April 3 on the theme of the innovation of the automobile industry the mobility revolution will bring about. Under the theme “Mobility Revolution and Automobile Industry,” the seminar will introduce the technology status of companies such as Hyundai Motor, SK Telecom, and KT and future industry trends.