Here’s What I Saw At Detroit’s Legendary ‘Autorama’ Hotrod Show

Last Sunday I made my yearly pilgrimage to Detroit Autorama. During the frigid winter months when everyone has their prized vehicles hibernating in the garage, it’s a great way to see some incredible cars and whet your appetite for the coming spring. In my opinion, its one of the best indoor car shows out there.

The show was started in Detroit in 1953, over 70 years ago. The newly-created Michigan Hot Rod Association held a small show of about 40 cars in the University of Detroit memorial building. After a few years, local promoter Don Ridler was hired on to help, which he did for a few years until his death in 1963. The coveted “Ridler Award” was started in his honor — it’s a hallowed prize dreamed about by the biggest names in auto customization all around the globe.

Although the show travels to 13 locations across the U.S. and Canada, the Detroit show is obviously the best one; it’s where it all started. Although old-school hotrodding is its heart and soul, a nice variety of vehicles are on display, reflecting the evolution of the enthusiast community.

[Ed Note: This is Steve Balistreri, in case you forgot. He’s a talented NVH engineer who happens to be able to write. I enjoy editing his stories, even when they aren’t nerdy like his typical pieces! -DT]. 

When you first step inside Cobo Hall (which has been renamed a few times due to its namesake’s checkered past, though I still call it Cobo out of habit), it is overwhelming — not just the hundreds upon hundreds of cars taking up the massive hall, but the insane quality and attention to detail on most of these show-cars. They are immaculate, with every surface painted and polished. The inner wheel wells on many of these cars are cleaner than any panel on any vehicle I’ve owned in my life.

Thankfully they aren’t all crazy, million dollar restorations that look like they could be displayed in a museum. There are hundreds of “normal” but still extremely cool cars built by regular joes and janes in the area. Especially downstairs, which has a more rat rod theme.

So here’s a quick tour of some of the cool stuff I saw. Of course there are plenty of significant cars that I missed; there just isn’t time to really take all the cars in unless you are there all day. Also a disclaimer: living in Detroit, I’ve become somewhat desensitized to classic muscle cars, as they’re everywhere. I often seek out stuff that is a bit more unusual, especially at this type of show. So theres a chance you’ll see some wild, historically significant muscle car in the background while I drool over something your typical muscle car guy might not think is that cool.

So with no further ado, let’s get to the cars.

The first one that caught my eye, and the only one the Autopian general staff ordered me to check out, was the Uncertain-T. After reading about this car’s wild backstory (see above), it was great to see it in person. Photos don’t do the proportions justice, which are wild in a Wacky Racers way but still look just right. Seeing this thing just like it was pulled out of that garage with its original patina was a real treat.

This gorgeous Cadillac is typical of what you’ll find at the show. Beautiful color choice, polished to perfection. I’d almost feel bad driving this down the street, thinking of the millions of dirt and dust particles sullying its steel body.

My Dad is into cars. When I was a kid he bought a cheap ’67 Eldorado off eBay. Unfortunately it was way rougher than the pics let on, and he shortly thereafter sold it to someone else who could invest the time the project needed. I still remember climbing around that car, amazed by its sleek lines. With its 7.0L V8, it’s one of my bucket list cars. It was cool to see one at the show, although personally I would’ve kept the chrome”

Living in Detroit, you never know what you’ll see driving around. When I lived off of the legendary Woodward Avenue, I’d often see this Imperial parked on the street. Pretty wild when you consider its a 10,000+ hour build where they took a 4-door 1959 Imperial Crown, cut it into over 40 pieces, and reassembled it to make this 2-door convertible. It looks stunning on the road, and I give the owner props for driving it around for the world to see.

Autorama isn’t a show just for American makes; there are plenty of European and, to a lesser extent, Japanese cars there. Here is a pretty E30 M3, complete with an LS swap. Below that is a very custom Jaguar E-Type with a chopped top and widened body on a custom frame.

Continuing with the Jaguar theme was a beautiful 1958 XK150 with a red paint job you could get lost in. The oversized wire wheels with their knock-off wheel spinners are the perfect touch:

There were also plenty of VW’s, including this immaculate Bus with a pleasing two-tone color scheme, and this Beetle whose color scheme is, well, something else entirely.

Everyone knows the “Rad” era of 80’s and 90’s cars have been getting more and more collectible. Thankfully there was a great selection of these vehicles as well. This 1992 GMC Typhoon looked bodacious with its Rotiform wheels and very 90’s color combo.

Also rolling with the retro theme was have wild Pontiac Lemans wagon with an engine that barely fits in the bay.

We also have this 88’ Dodge Shadow Pro-Street build that almost looks more like a Hot Wheels toy than a car. Below that is a minty AMC Commodore Wagon complete with “wood” paneling:

I like that the show includes some of these “newer” cars to keep the show fresh for the next generation. (There were also dozens of current model Corvettes, Chargers, and Mustangs). Maybe in a few years I can enter my ’94 Bonneville SSEI. I’d just have to powder coat and polish every underbody component, and install a twin turbo LS engine.

There were car clubs that had their own displays, like this Shelby club that had some rare cars I’d never seen before.

It wouldn’t be a Michigan show without some wild, backyard style builds that are still perfectly road-legal due to our nonexistent vehicle inspections. Like this chopped C10 with a blown 496 Chevy in the bed. And whatever the hell is going on with the S10 below that. Note the twin-turbos sticking out over the roof.

There was lots of historically significant stuff there as well. There was a whole Evel Knievel display with a bunch of battle-worn vehicles that spent a good portion of their life sailing through the air. Also there was GM’s millionth car, polished to such a degree they laid mirrors on the floor so you could see its immaculate undersides (a common thing at shows like this).

To give David something to drool over, there was this 1977 J10 extended cab factory prototype. This was built by Harold “Pete” Johnson, the supervisor of AMC’s Toledo Plant R&D division. AMC didn’t bite on sending this into production, and the truck was hidden away for several decades before Harold’s family sold it to be restored. [Ed Note: I saw this pre-restoration at the Toledo Jeep Fest a few years back! -DT].   

Also, since this is a Detroit show, there were plenty of donks and low riders, including a whole low rider bicycle section. Some people hate on these, but I think they are fun, and look cool rolling down the street [Ed Note: And they’re legitimate engineering feats! And expensive ones, at that! -DT]. There’s a point during every Dream Cruise after the sun goes down where hundreds of donks cruise up from Detroit. It always puts a big smile on my face; they are like life size versions of the Hot Wheels cars I played with as a kid.

Many of these late 70s and 80s cars were donkified at the low point in their popularity, and would’ve been sent to the crusher if they weren’t saved by these enthusiasts. So I say we owe donks a debt of gratitude. Out of everything there my son’s favorite were the “jumping cars.”

Low rider bikes weren’t the only 2-wheeled transportation on display. There was a wide range of motorcycles. Anything from this beautiful streamlined 1955 BMW R69/750 that fits in the back of a custom lead sled, to the 80’s Easy Rider LSD trip below that.

There were also several Batmobiles because, why not?

Not to leave anyone out, there was a section of Fast and Furious style cars and other imports. There really is something for everyone.

After the whirlwind of automotive excellence upstairs, you can go to the downstairs showroom which is a little more down-to-earth. Literally, most of these cars are slammed to the weeds. These are rat-rod style vehicles that are a bit more attainable. Some have rust and real patina. You can get close to the cars. There are also several artists and vendors selling their wares. A few years I’ve gone they had live top-chopping classes with some bodywork legends. These wagons caught my eye.

I also snagged a picture of this Buick that I’ve seen several times driving around town. It’s always a treat to see with its red Detroit Steel Wheels.

So I hope you’ve enjoyed this selection of fine automobilia. This is only a fraction of a percent of the cars on display at the show. As you can probably tell, I’m a fan. Check out the Autorama website to see when it’s coming near you and make every effort to check it out. You won’t regret it.