The Vancouver International Auto Show has removed U.S. electric carmaker Tesla from its event this week, saying its primary concern was the safety of attendees and exhibitors.
Tesla has faced numerous protests in Canada recently due to owner Elon Musk’s proximity to U.S. President Donald Trump, at a time when Trump has imposed 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian imports and publicly made threats of annexation towards the country.
The car manufacturer has seen protests at its dealerships, and its products have been excluded from B.C.’s electric vehicle rebate programs amid the trade war with the U.S.
The latest development comes with the annual Vancouver International Auto Show deciding to exclude Tesla after the carmaker was given multiple opportunities to withdraw voluntarily, according to a statement from the show’s executive director.
“The Vancouver Auto Show’s primary concern is the safety of attendees, exhibitors, and staff,” executive director Eric Nicholl said. “This decision will ensure all attendees can be solely focused on enjoying the many positive elements of the event.”
In a news conference, Nicholl said that Tesla was given the opportunity to voluntarily withdraw over the last week, and the carmaker was informed of the removal at 1 p.m. PT on Tuesday.
Nicholl said, in response to a question from CBC News, that the concerns prompting the removal were “all-inclusive” of the prospect of protests and vandalism against Tesla.
“[In] light of the recent escalating events throughout North America, as we’re getting closer, we’re seeing a spike,” the expo director said, referring to protests over the last six weeks.
“Making the decision at this point in time ensures that the safety of our guests and attendees is paramount.”
As a response to U.S. tariffs, B.C. is targeting one of the president’s closest allies. Starting Thursday, B.C. Hydro is removing Tesla products from its electric vehicle charger rebate program. CBC’s Yvette Brend is on this story.
The auto show is held every year at the Vancouver Convention Centre, and its website says it attracts over 100,000 attendees. It is operated by the New Car Dealers Association of B.C. It begins on Wednesday and will end on Sunday.
In a statement in February, the auto show said that it had record-setting attendance last year and had solidified itself as Western Canada’s best-attended consumer show and one of North America’s premiere automotive exhibition events.
Nicholl said that political rumblings had no bearing on the decision to remove Tesla, which he said was disappointing for the expo, as it wanted to showcase the greatest breadth of automobiles available.
“It was a hard decision to land at,” he told reporters.
Nicholl said consumer auto shows are important to every car manufacturer, and no other participants have been removed in the three years he’s been running the show.
Tesla CEO close to Trump
Musk, Tesla’s CEO, is a close confidant of Trump in his role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, which has implemented sweeping cuts to that country’s civil service.
The billionaire is a self-described “free speech absolutist” who has faced criticism from hate-speech watchdogs for allowing extremist, dangerous and antisemitic comments to flourish on X, the social media platform that he owns.
David Tindall, a University of B.C. sociology professor, said that to the extent that Trump was a threat to Canada in people’s eyes, Musk was part of the threat too.
He said the billionaire CEO and his company have become a popular target for protesters — the inverse of an earlier positive perception of Musk as a man who was advancing clean energy and electric cars.
“Tesla’s kind of the low-hanging fruit, right?” he told CBC News. “It’s kind of the low-hanging fruit in a mass protest that is going to ramp up against … this whole administration.”
The Vancouver International Auto Show has removed Tesla from its event this week. As Meera Bains reports, the show’s executive director says the electric carmaker was asked to withdraw because the expo’s “primary concern” was for the safety of workers, exhibitors and those attending the event.