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√US President Joe Biden turns Detroit motor show into gridlock

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A visit by the US President Joe Biden to motor city for the 2022 Detroit auto show didn’t just stop traffic outside the exhibition centre, but blocked industry representatives from getting access to the main halls, after his short stop turned into a five-hour stay. 

The leader of the free world, US President Joe Biden, caused gridlock inside and outside the exhibition halls of the 2022 Detroit motor show overnight. 

The Corvette owner and car enthusiast intended to make only a brief visit to North America’s biggest automotive exhibition in the heart of motor city, but appeared to be having so much fun in the near-empty show space he stayed for five hours. 

Police, secret service officers, and The Beast – the bulletproof Cadillac limousine based on a heavy-duty SUV frame – were seen lapping the block outside the main halls while waiting for President Biden to get his high-octane fix.

At one point, President Biden got to sit in the new Corvette Z06 – with the global boss of General Motors, Mary Barra, on hand to open the door and answer any questions. 

Armed with the keys to the kingdom – and to one of the hottest vehicles on display – President Biden gave the V8-powered sports car a gentle rev. 

Perhaps he was being kind to the engine as it didn’t have enough time to warm up. Perhaps he didn’t want to give TV media crews a lung-full of fumes.

Either way, his gentle revving of the Corvette engine will likely lead to criticisms from enthusiasts, who don’t think he put his foot into it enough, and from eco-car warriors, who think he shouldn’t have done the stunt at all.

President Biden also got a closer look at a range of electric vehicles from the big US brands, including the Ford Mustang Mach-E. 

He commented that the performance was staggering, with a claimed 0-to-60mph (97km/h) time of three seconds. 

But the guess was a gaffe, with Ford royalty, William Clay Ford Junior – the great grandson of company founder Henry Ford – having to correct the President with “it’s 3.5 seconds but who’s counting?”

The US Government is ramping up its efforts to support the domestic car industry – the second largest on the planet behind China – by helping fund local semiconductor factories to avoid a reliance on overseas suppliers.

Meantime, earlier in the day, US Air Force One – the presidential Boeing 747 – was seen flying over Ford’s historical headquarters during a clear approach to Detroit airport.

Once the presidential cavalcade left, it took industry visitors about an hour to queue through metal detectors – after a pat-down by secret service agents – to be let inside the show.

Although most foreign car brands are not at the 2022 Detroit motor show, it is the biggest display under one roof of the local automakers since the beginning of the pandemic. 

Drive is at the show and we will be publishing updates on the new models as they are unveiled. 

The biggest reveal is expected to be the new Ford Mustang. The covers come off at 10:15am Sydney time and 8:15pm Detroit time. 

The post US President Joe Biden turns Detroit motor show into gridlock appeared first on Drive.

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