Like the Sydney Exhibition Centre that hosted them, Australia's motor shows have been demolished as car enthusiasts choose to spend their money in different ways.
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Petrolheads have had few opportunities to check out their favourite cars since organisers cancelled last year's Sydney motor show, months after it was cancelled in Melbourne.
But events such as this weekend's Top Gear Festival and the Ferrari Racing Days next month have opened the door to new opportunities for car makers and fans alike.
The Ferrari Racing Days will be a high-speed showcase of one of the most famous brands in motoring.
The Top Gear Festival this weekend, though, takes cars outside the showroom in a new way: brands including Porsche, Holden, Subaru and Toyota have offered car lovers the opportunity to either drive new cars or ride alongside professional race drivers at Sydney Motorsport Park at Eastern Creek.
Fan Sam Halpern took a ride around the track with Swedish V8 Supercar driver Robert Dahlgren in a high-performance Volvo S60 Polestar.
''It was a great experience,'' Ms Halpern said. ''It's not every day that you get to have a hot lap around an international race circuit with an international race driver for free. It's pretty special.''
She said the festival was ''much better than the motor show''.
''Seeing a static car on display is great but experiencing how they work is much better,'' she said.
Volvo spokesman Oliver Peagam said the event was about shifting perceptions of the brand.
The move away from motor shows reflected patterns seen in countries such as Britain, where the outdoor Goodwood Festival of Speed had rendered the conventional displays irrelevant.
While the motor show was a successful way of engaging with customers, outdoor events presented a better opportunity to get closer to the public, Toyota spokesman Mike Breen said.
But not all car makers welcomed the modern events.
Porsche spokesman Paul Ellis said motoring festivals could not replace traditional motor shows.
''It's a good entertainment opportunity but as far as a motor show substitute, this is not that,'' he said.
''It's a branding exercise, but not a very good branding exercise.
''Motor shows make a better statement about your company.''
