The 10th Bangkok Auto Salon was held
Southeast Asia is now a huge automobile market along with North America, Europe, China, and India. In Thailand, Japanese cars account for about 78% of new car sales (in 2023), and naturally, Japanese cars are also very popular in the custom scene. We report on the excitement from the scene of the Bangkok Auto Salon 2024 held at the end of June 2024.
Many Japanese automakers and after-part manufacturers also exhibited
The Bangkok Auto Salon 2024 was held at the Impact Challenger Hall in the suburbs of Bangkok, the capital of Thailand, for five days from June 26 to 30, 2024. The Bangkok International Motor Show is another hall event held in Bangkok, but while that show focuses on the display and sales of new cars, the Bangkok Auto Salon, as the name suggests, is a celebration of custom cars.
While the scale of the venue and the number of vehicles on display can hardly be compared to the Tokyo Auto Salon, the venue was crowded with booths of Toyota, Honda, Daihatsu, Isuzu, and other automakers, as well as local Thai and foreign parts brands and stores, and Japanese after-parts manufacturers.
Aside from the exhibited vehicles, there were also various other contents such as a sexy car wash on the stage and car club meetings outside the venue.
Over 400 custom cars gathered
At the Bangkok Auto Salon 2024, more than 400 cars were on display, including Top Secret and RE Amemiya vehicles invited by the event organizers. At a glance, what was different from Japan was the large number of pickup models.
In addition to the Toyota “Hilux” sold in Japan, visitors could see a wide variety of custom styles, including the “Hilux Champ,” which has just been released, and the Isuzu “D-MAX. Furthermore, the display of custom models built by local stores at the manufacturer’s booths will give you an idea of the popularity of this event.
Of course, many sports models will be on display, and at the heart of the show will be custom Japanese cars. Many cars with Japanese brand parts and stickers were on display, as if they were JDM customs with Japan respect. When Smokey Nagata of Top Secret appeared at the event, there was a long line of people waiting to get his autograph, which was a good indication of the popularity of the Japanese custom scene.
The level of vehicles on display has been increasing every year
In addition to the JDM style, there are also unique styles of Thai custom vehicles, such as vehicles with turbines sticking out of the hoods, which are not seen in Japan. Japanese cars and Japanese brands are indeed popular, but the level of local Thai custom parts and tuning stores is also getting higher, and the fact that there were many Chinese and Korean parts brands exhibiting in the booths at the event suggests that the Thai custom scene may be changing little by little in the future.
Bangkok Auto Salon offers a different atmosphere from the Tokyo Auto Salon, and since Thailand’s rainy season in June makes it relatively inexpensive to visit compared to the high season, and the venue is large enough to tour in just one day, why not make a visit in 2025 as part of your Thailand travel itinerary? In addition to a wide variety of custom cars, you will also be able to see beautiful Thai companions.