67 and Still Going Strong!
Having been around for 67 years, the Detroit Autorama, presented by O’Reilly Auto Parts, has become one of the country’s premier events to showcase the best of the best when it comes to rolling automotive art. Part of that prestige comes from the fact that it’s the Detroit Autorama where the Don Ridler Memorial Award is given out and, along with the $10,000 check that goes with the trophy, that makes it among the most highly coveted accolades for any hot rod builder and/or owner there is.
The Detroit Autorama has built its reputation by bringing anything and everything to the folks who roll in by the thousands over a three-day event held in downtown Detroit’s Cobo Center. At nearly 725,000 square feet, organizers do their best to fill it with nearly 1,000 custom rides, and you can bet trucks of all shapes and sizes are among those vehicles.
The show is actually split in two with an upstairs and downstairs, with the upper level reserved mostly for the glossy cars you’d expect to see at a high-end event like this. But the Autorama Extreme, held in the lower level (affectionately called “The Basement”), caters to a younger crowd whose rodding sensibilities revolves more around the attitude of their ride rather than the finish, and most assuredly these cars (unlike many found upstairs) are driven—and driven hard!
Where the lower show has rockabilly bands playing live all weekend long, legendary customizer Gene Winfield over in a corner chopping the top on an old Pontiac hardtop, and a dozen graphic artists selling their artwork in booths set around the edge of the hall, the upper show has row after row of finely finished vehicles, special displays of vintage custom cars and Funny Cars, celebrities and personalities (including TV’s Dave Kindig, NASCAR champion Tony Steward, WWE wrestling stars, and even the Hanson triplets from the Slap Shot hockey film) all set up to meet fans and sign autographs.
Downstairs you could attend the Miss Autorama Pinup Girl Contest, or upstairs bid on pieces of art at the Mavens Pinstriper Panel Jam and charity auction that has some incredible artwork, some of which was created on the spot by dozens of ’stipers who attend the annual event.
But the most excitement for the weekend is generated Sunday evening when the winner of the Don Ridler Memorial Award is announced, having been selected from a field of eight contenders called the Great 8. Any sort of vehicle is eligible (truck, race car, European, drag car, and so on); many folks come from around North America to compete for the high honor.
This year the coveted prize went to Steve Barton, a car collector and enthusiast from Las Vegas for his 1959 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham station wagon. You might not remember Cadillac building a wagon in 1959, and you’d be right. But SuperRides by Jordan, based in Escondido, California, built one of one out of only 100 of these particular vehicles produced in 1959, removed the rear doors entirely, added a pancaked roof from a Nomad, narrowed the entire body, and set it on a one-off tube chassis they made. Not enough? Then maybe the 1,000hp, twin-turbo Nelson Racing engine might have done it for you. We can’t imagine how many hours went into this ride, which was finally completed after a 16-year off-and-on build.
Now with another show in the record books, the Detroit Autorama will continue on toward its seventh decade, giving folks what they proudly call “America’s Greatest Hot Rod Show.”
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