By Paul Kurtz

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — It’s a tradition as old as the Mummers: the 112th Philadelphia Auto Show opens tomorrow.

“The show is growing like never before in the last two years,” notes Kevin Mazzucola, executive director of the Automobile Dealers Association of Greater Philadelphia.

And he says the expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center, in center city, has acted like a fuel injector for the show.

“We’ve always known that there was pent-up demand for this show because it’s such a large and important market,” Mazzucola tells KYW Newsradio.  “And with that expansion, we’re able to bring that.  It proved to be true.”

(A “concept car” from Lexus. Credit: Paul Kurtz)

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Plus, the Auto Show has an extra 100,000 square feet of space, allowing show producers to add indoor ride-arounds including a new feature called “Camp Jeep,” an off-road course that features a run up a steep incline (below).

(The “Camp Jeep” section of the Auto Show has a drive-through course demonstrating the vehicle’s off-road capabilities. Credit: Paul Kurtz)

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Also on tap this year: the first-ever “Auto Show Face-off.”   Local Mustang and Camaro clubs will bring their finest muscle cars, and visitors to the show can vote on what they like best.

And for you techies:  all the latest  innovations that allow you to communicate and be entertained without taking your hands off the wheel.