http://www.knoxnews.com/business/knoxville-auto-show-rolls-in-this-friday-through-sunday-2c8822cc-a19a-0ae2-e053-0100007fa55c-370025591.html Knoxville auto show rolls in this Friday through Sunday [20160224]
[image http://media.jrn.com/images/660*435/K0012869161--298773.JPG Honda employees polish vehicles while setting up for the 2016 Knoxville News Sentinel Auto Show at the Knoxville Convention Center on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016. (ADAM LAU/NEWS SENTINEL) ] The auto show is back in town. This Friday through Sunday, more than 200 new cars, trucks, SUVs and crossovers will be on display at the 28th annual News Sentinel Auto Show at the Knoxville Convention Center, representing 23 vehicle brands. The show will be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and from noon until 6 p.m. on Sunday. "The coolest thing about it is that people can see all of these cars in one place, under one roof, when otherwise it could take you days going all over town to see them," said Mike Hatmaker, a sales manager with Jim Cogdill Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram in Knoxville, one of the participating dealers. About 120,000 square feet of floor space will be covered with new vehicles for show visitors to see, and there will even be an opportunity for licensed drivers over 18 to test some of Toyota's new vehicles, such as the Camry, Highlander, Prius and Tacoma, outside the Convention Center, said show coordinator Nicole Taylor. "It's going to be a great show this year," Taylor said. "Last year, we had to survive the ice storm, but the weather looks to be much better this time. It's also the first year Toyota has done the ride and drive event." Most of the cars, trucks and sport utilities on the market for model year 2016 will be on display at the show, along with a few 2017 models that aren't even available at dealerships yet, Taylor said. The participating brands are BMW, Mini, Subaru, Cadillac, Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram, Ford, Lincoln, Fiat, Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Honda, Hyundai, Lexus, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Smart, Nissan, Toyota and Scion. The Knoxville Electric Vehicle Association also will have a booth, showing off a Tesla electric car and a kit-built custom electric vehicle, Taylor said. Booths will also be set up to represent a variety of local businesses, including home improvement, chiropractic, travel, storage and health care. "It's just a great way to get all of our cars out there and for a different, diverse group to come and see our automobiles," said Gary Hughes, general sales manager at Lexus of Knoxville. "They can see the luxury lines along with all of the other brands collectively in one building." And for visitors, one of the best features is that no sales are allowed on the show floor, so they can browse the vehicles at their leisure, Hughes noted. "Based on the environment, there is no sales pressure," he said. "We do staff our area just to provide product knowledge and answer consumer questions, but no one will be trying to sell anything. It's a happy place to gather information." Manufacturers' representatives will be on hand at many of the booths to provide product information, Taylor said. There will also be some prizes for show visitors, including a $5,000 cash grand prize, Taylor said. Admission to the show is $8, but kids 12 and under are admitted free all weekend. Also, people 65 or older can get in free on Friday; students with a valid school ID can get in for no charge on Saturday; and military personnel with ID can get in free on Sunday. [© 2016 Knoxville News Sentinel] ... https://www.facebook.com/KnoxvilleConventionCenter/ Knoxville Convention Center (865) 522-5669 701 Henley St. Knoxville, Tennessee http://www.kccsmg.com/ For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/evln/ {brucedp.150m.com} -- View this message in context: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/EVent-Knoxville-EVA-Tesla-kit-EVs-auto-show-2-26-28-Knoxville-TN-tp4680638.html Sent from the Electric Vehicle Discussion List mailing list archive at Nabble.com. _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Read EVAngel's EV News at http://evdl.org/evln/ Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
