Wheels are in motion as Downtown Arlington Management Corp. revs up for its annual classic car show this summer.
The Downtown Arlington Classic Car Show is set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, June 1 at Vandergriff Town Center, 200 N. Mesquite Street.
The free event rolls into its second year bolstered by the success of the 2023 event that drew about 3,000 attendees and more than 100 vehicles from the 1920s to the 1970s. This year, organizers expect about 150 entries.
The car show originally was part of the nonprofit’s Ramblin’ Roads Music Festival, but the organization decided to break it out into a separate event.
“We really believed the car show could stand alone as a great event,” said Maggie Campbell, president and CEO of DAMC. “We hit a responsive chord with the people of Arlington.”
The show features pre-1979 vehicles, domestic and foreign, as well as live music, food vendors and Formula One race cars created and raced by students at the University of Texas at Arlington.
“When we set out to design the car show, we wanted to create an experience, for the car owners and for the people who come to the show,” Campbell said, referring to the show as “an annual signature event for downtown Arlington.”
Vehicle entry fees are $25 for each car, with 100 percent of the fees being donated to this year’s charity of choice, the Arlington Police Foundation, said Campbell, adding that show attendees can also make donations to the foundation on-site.
Car owners can qualify for 10 prizes and the People’s Choice and Mayor’s Choice awards. The owner of the top entry will win two tickets to a Texas Rangers game and a night’s stay at the new Loews Arlington Hotel and Convention Center.
The show provides aficionados plenty of opportunity to admire the classic cars, some of which have been restored by their owners to the tune of thousands of dollars.
“I’m impressed with the families that come out to the show, some of them pushing children in strollers,” Campbell said. “The fact that they’re classic cars is interesting to the younger generation.”
The vehicles aren’ t alone in drawing attention. The car owners are treated to a free breakfast and Downtown Arlington Management Corp. will have ambassadors checking in throughout the event to meet the needs of the entrants.
After last year’s inaugural show, the downtown-focused organization wanted to ensure that it could not only repeat the success, but extend it.
To that end, organizers focused on two points: whether the car owners would be willing to return; and whether the people that came to the show enjoyed it. The results were resoundingly positive, Campbell said.
“These are special cars,” she said. “They are treasures.”
For more details on the show, or to register your vehicle, visit https://downtownarlington.org/events/carshow.
