In this Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019, file photo, the floor of the North American International Auto Show is shown in Detroit. The head of Detroit's big international auto show says it will return to the Motor City next year, but with smaller indoor displays, and more emphasis on experiencing vehicles and technology outside. The North American International Auto Show was canceled in 2020, due the coronavirus pandemic, and it will be replaced this year by an outdoor event at a racetrack.

DETROIT — The head of Detroit’s big international auto show says it will return to the Motor City next year, but with smaller indoor displays, and more emphasis on experiencing vehicles and technology outside.

The North American International Auto Show was canceled last year due the pandemic and will be replaced this year by an event at a racetrack north of Detroit. But Rod Alberts, executive director of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association, which runs the show, says that next year there will be an event in the city’s downtown. “That’s the place it belongs,” Alberts told the Automotive Press Association of Detroit on Thursday. But he said the show will have to change from the past, when automakers built elaborate and costly multi-story displays and unveiled their most important new models. Now car companies are finding they can get good exposure and spend less by doing virtual unveilings.