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It's the second major motoring event to set up shop at the Olympic Park.
Australia's biggest new-car showroom moves to Sydney's Olympic Park in 2014.
The new location for the annual Australian International Motor Show, which alternates between Sydney and Melbourne, is the biggest change for the event in more than a decade.
It means this year's show, from October 19-28, will be the last one at Darling Harbour for at least five years. The switch has been in the works for close to five years and is finally confirmed as the countdown to this year's event begins to pick up pace.
"We're very, very positive about this move. We see it as a huge dynamic for the show and it will give us the opportunity to significantly change the character of the event," event director, Russ Tyrie, tells Carsguide.
"It will be a lot more dynamic event in future. There is a lot more scope for new ideas."
Moving to the Sydney Showground in 2014 will bring access to 20 venues in a variety of exhibition halls and meeting rooms, as well as stand-along pavilions and more than 15,000 square metres of outdoor areas.
The total display area will be nearly double the area available at Darling Harbour. Tyrie says this will allow a major upgrade of attractions, as well as giving better access for show fans because the new site is located in the geographic centre of the greater Sydney area.
"The move will enable the motor show to grow and become a more diverse event, with the expansive outdoor areas giving exhibitors more room and the chance to host both on and off stand activities the possibilities are practically endless," he says.
The new venue for Sydney is the biggest change for the show since a similar switch in Melbourne from the Royal Exhibition Building to the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre beside the Yarra River in 1996. Before that, the then-Sydney motor show moved from the old Showgrounds in Moore Park to Darling Harbour in 1988. In total, there will have been 23 shows at the inner-Sydney location. The move is a big win for the Olympic Park management.
"Sydney Showground prides itself on attracting and promoting world class exhibitions and events - AIMS is a great example of this," says Sydney Showground General Manager, Peter Thorpe.
It's the second major motoring event to set up shop at the Olympic Park, although the Sydney 500 race meeting for V8 Supercars is expected to run its course on the street track through the precinct this year.
The show is confirmed at Olympic Park for two events, in 2014 and 2016, but Tyrie admits there is potential for a return to Darling Harbour after a planned three-year redevelopment at the site after its closure at the end of 2013.
"We look forward to seeing how the plans for the redevelopment shape up," is all he's prepared to say.
But he is more open about this year's running of the show in Sydney.
"I think it will be a cracker show. There is a heck of a lot of new stuff we know about already and I'm sure there will be lots more by October," says Tyrie.
"There is every chance we'll top the 44 reveals at Darling Harbour in Sydney in 2012."
