VANCOUVER — Tesla has been removed from participating in this week’s Vancouver International Auto Show over safety concerns, the event’s executive director says.

Eric Nicholl said in a statement Tuesday that the show asked the electric carmaker to withdraw because of a “primary concern” for the safety of workers, attendees and exhibitors.

Nicholl said Tesla was provided “multiple opportunities to voluntarily withdraw.”

“This decision will ensure all attendees can be solely focused on enjoying the many positive elements of the event,” the statement said.

The automaker’s removal comes after so-called “Tesla Takedown” protests on the weekend, including in Ottawa and Metro Vancouver.

Protesters were denouncing Tesla CEO Elon Musk and his role advising U.S. President Donald Trump.

The show at the Vancouver Convention Centre begins Wednesday and will end Sunday.

The auto show said in a statement in February 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.

“Showgoers will find the latest technology-leading, environmentally focused EV’s, coupled with lifestyle features and commercial vendors,” Nicholl had said in the statement “This is a celebration of the automotive culture in B.C.”

About two dozen protesters had gathered outside a Tesla dealership in Surrey, B.C., on Sunday, the day after a similar protest in Vancouver, holding signs with messages including “elbows up,” “Elon be-gone” and “democracy dies in apathy.”

Last week, BC Hydro banned Tesla products from its electric vehicle rebate program as part of the provincial government’s move to give preference to Canadian goods and exclude U.S. ones from rebates if practical amid the ongoing Canada-U.S. trade war.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 18, 2025.

The Canadian Press