Qatar Motor Show 2017 at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center, yesterday. Photos by Salim Matramkot / The Peninsula
Thousands of car enthusiasts are expected to throng the seventh edition of Qatar Motor Show which opened yesterday at Doha Exhibition and Convention Center (DECC), said organisers.
“We expect thousands of people to visit the show which runs until Saturday. Twenty-seven brands and 110 cars are being displayed at this exciting edition which has a special section for classic cars and another for Ferrari car lovers,” Saif Al Kuwari, Director of PR & Communication at Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) told The Peninsula at yesterday’s opening event.
Minister of Transport and Communications H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti and Minister of Municipality and Environment H E Mohamed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi officially opened the exhibition which witnessed the attendance of a number of heads of missions and other dignitaries.
Speaking to reporters, Al Sulaiti expressed satisfaction on the brands and newly launched exclusive models on show which are of international level as well as underlined the significance of the event towards helping the private sector in particular and the economy in general.
On the progress of road and other infrastructure projects, he said that projects are progressing as planned. He highlighted government efforts to further enhance public transport with more buses, taxis and the soon-to-be launched water taxis as part of efforts towards an integrated transport system to enable seamless mobility among the population.
Eight cars revealed for the first time in the region and 14 launched locally are among the vehicles displayed on an 12,000sqm exhibition space.
Leading international carmakers introduced top sports, luxury and mid-range automotive models and branded lifestyle goods. The show saw the launch of the BAIC brand for the first time in Qatar, in addition the launch of Mercedes’s E-Coupe, E43 and SLC 43, Lexus’s Lexus LC 500, Chevrolet’s Tahoe Midnight Edition, Trailblazer Z71, Camaro ZL1, Malibu Turbo, and Silverado Midnight Edition. The show also featured the launch of Ford’s Fiso Raptor, Lincoln’s Lincoln Continental, Ram’s 1200 and 1500 limited editions, Hyundai’s IONIQ Hybrid, and Genesis’s Genesis G90 and Genesis G80.
Twenty classic cars are displayed in a 5,000sqm showroom. These cars are some of the rarest and most iconic pieces in the world presented by the Sheikh Faisal Museum, Mawater and Al Fardan.
“After months of preparation, we are pleased to raise the curtain on the 2017 edition of the show, an event that is proudly led by local talents and is contributing to cementing Qatar’s position as a premium destination for business events and shedding light on what our nation has to offer within the technology and automotive sector,”said Ahmed AlObaidli, Director of Exhibitions Department at QTA.
Mawater is holding daily parades at 3pm from the DECC VIP parking including sedan classic cars parade today, sport muscle cars parade tomorrow, GCC mixed classics on Friday and pick-up classic trucks parade on Saturday.
Batabit will host a speed bikes parade this afternoon as well as a series of biking parades including a choppers parade, and a spiders parade, wrapping the show on Saturday with a stellar performance on the Doha Corniche.
The show is also running five social media competitions every day with many valuable prizes for visitors to win by following the show’s social media channels.
