Six months later, in September 1951, a further motor show in Berlin attracted 290,000 visitors. After this 35th IAA the German automobile industry said farewell to its historic exhibition venue and moved to Frankfurt am Main: “Political events prevent the continuation of the old Berlin tradition”, commented "Automobil Revue".

The patron of the 36th IAA, Federal German President Theodor Heuss, considered that the large foreign presence – 43 exhibitors – made a major contribution to German reintegration into Europe. During the course of the 1950s the position of the German manufacturers versus foreign competitors was consolidated even further. In 1954 West Germany overtook France in automobile production, followed by Great Britain two years later. This trend was also reflected in the size of the fair: although the exhibition area had grown by a good 13,000 square meters to 77,700 square meters since the 1951 event, there was already insufficient space in 1953 to satisfy the requirements of the 568 exhibitors.

At the 37th IAA in 1955, which established a new record with 750,000 visitors, Daimler-Benz presented the first post-war Mercedes-Benz van in the form of the L 319. “The general development trend appears to be from the motorcycle to the small car”, the newspaper "Stuttgarter Zeitung" wrote.

In 1956, the year in which the car celebrated its 70th birthday, motor vehicle production in the Federal Republic exceeded the one-million mark for the first time. Around 302,000 people were employed in the automobile industry, and in world production terms German automobile manufacturing was in second place after the USA. Cars "Made in Germany" were in great demand: almost half the vehicles produced in Germany were sold abroad.