DETROIT — They call it America’s Greatest Hot Rod Show and for good reason. The 65th annual Meguiar’s Detroit Autorama wrapped up on Sunday afternoon inside Detroit’s Cobo Center.
This year’s Autorama kicked off with a bang! Raymond Kohn of the Northeast Ohio Dukes performed a stunt with his General Lee car on Atwater Street. He went up a 15-foot high ramp and went flying through the air just like how the stars did on the popular TV series “The Dukes of Hazzard.”
“I love it, it’s been a really good experience for me,” said attendee Tyler Russler of Findlay, Ohio. “The General Lee is one of my favorite cars. I used to watch ‘Dukes of Hazzard‘ all the time. I’ve always wanted to have one of them.”
More than 800 custom cars, trucks and motorcycles were displayed inside Cobo Center. Several of them were in the running for the coveted Ridler Award. It goes to the best vehicle shown for the very first time at the Detroit Autorama. The 2017 Ridler Award went to the 1933 Ford Renaissance Roadster owned by Steve Frisbie and Buddy Jordan of Portland, Oregon.
“Great…fun…wow,” said attendee Erik Dworin of Madison Heights, Mich. “My last time here was 10 years ago. This is my third time here. I love that ’67 Camaro right behind me. I love Camaro’s and I have one myself. I love General Motors, I’m a GM guy all the way.”
In addition to the cars, attendees had the opportunity to meet Hollywood stars. This year’s celebrity guests included Catherine Bach (Daisy Duke) and Tom Wopat (Luke Duke) from “The Dukes of Hazzard,” WWE Superstar AJ Styles, Skai Jackson from Disney Channel’s “Jessie,” Meguiar’s, Inc. President Barry Meguiar, Rick Harrison from The History Channel’s “Pawn Stars” and musical group Danny Koker & Count’s 77’s.
His lady friend, Carrie McGuckin of Warren, Mich. added: “I’m just like wow. I’m amazed at a lot of this. It’s been so long since I’ve been here. It’s pretty neat. I haven’t found my favorite car yet.”
“I came out just to see these beautiful cars,” said Jim Osborne of Toledo, Ohio. “This is beautiful weather we’re having right now. I love this 1940 Ford right here. It’s really pretty. The old cars are special.”
For more information about the Meguiar’s Detroit Autorama, visit https://autorama.com/attend/detroit
