Custom Search

A Tale of Two Car Shows

July 30th, 2008 by Steve Cypher

The month of August will see the Detroit Metro area host two entirely different automotive events. And while both will celebrate the automobile, each event will be celebrated in its own inimitable way.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

This quote from Charles Dickens pretty much sums up what has been going on in Detroit for the past year, with an emphasis on the second half of the sentence. As gas prices have risen and consumers turn from trucks and sport utility vehicles to sedans and smaller cars, car manufacturers here have been scrambling to adjust their model lineups and production schedules to keep pace with the changing market. It hasn’t been easy and the light at the end of this particular tunnel is still too far away to be seen.

That being said, Detroit is still the best city to live in if you’re a fan of the automobile. In addition to the North American International Auto Show, Detroit is also home to The Henry Ford Museum, the Walter P. Chrysler Museum and the Detroit Historical Museum, three world-class venues that celebrate the birth and progress of four-wheeled transportation.

In addition to museums, the metro area is also host to dozens of yearly events celebrating everything and anything automotive from the Automotive News World Congress to the SAE World Congress and everything in between. The best of times, and two of those tweeners, will be coming up in the next two weeks.

Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance

Celebrating its 30th year, the Concours is one of the world’s most prestigious auto events. Held every year on the grounds of the Meadow Brook estate, the historic vehicles are displayed on the back “lawn” of Meadow Brook Hall, an 88,000 square-foot Tudor-revival style mansion built by John Dodge (one of the Dodge brothers) and Matilda Dodge Wilson, his wife.

This year’s featured marques will include significant Ferraris, 8 Litre Bentleys and Voisin Cars. The Concours will also celebrate the 100th anniversary of General Motors and the 100th anniversary of the Model T. Events surrounding the Concours d’Elegance started on July 17th and will culminate this weekend with historic races on Saturday, August 2nd at Waterford Hills Raceway and the event, itself, on Sunday, August 3rd.

Meadow Brook Hall

The Woodward Dream Cruise

Less than two weeks later, on Saturday August 16th, the Woodward Dream Cruise will celebrate its twelfth year. What began as a fundraiser to raise money for a soccer field in Ferndale, Michigan now attracts 40,000 muscle cars and their owners from around the country and over 1.5 million people come to watch.

As in previous years, the route follows the legendary Woodward Avenue from Ferndale, in the south, and runs through the communities of Pleasant Ridge, Huntington Woods, Royal Oak, Berkley, Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township before ending in Pontiac to the north. Billed as “the world’s largest one-day automotive event”, it runs from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and has to be seen to be believed.

Dream Cruise