{"id":28855,"date":"2022-03-04T16:41:50","date_gmt":"2022-03-04T20:41:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=28855"},"modified":"2022-03-04T16:41:50","modified_gmt":"2022-03-04T20:41:50","slug":"autorama-is-back-with-hot-rods-zingers-milan-dragsters-ridler-wannabes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2022\/03\/autorama-is-back-with-hot-rods-zingers-milan-dragsters-ridler-wannabes","title":{"rendered":"Autorama is back with hot rods, Zingers, Milan dragsters, Ridler wannabes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Detroit \u2014<\/em>\u00a0The world\u2019s most outrageous, chopped, channeled, dumped\u00a0and decked hot rods are back.<\/p>\n

Sidelined last year due to the pandemic, the 69th annual Meguiar\u2019s Detroit Autorama returns to Huntington Place this weekend, Friday through Sunday. Headlining the 800 custom cars on display will be 30 competing for the prestigious Ridler Award as well as a 50th anniversary tribute to Chuck Miller\u2019s Zingers creations and 20 race cars celebrating the reopening of Milan Raceway, Michigan\u2019s only NHRA-sanctioned drag strip.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was heartbreaking to have to cancel the event last year,\u201d said Autorama president Peter Toundas, whose Championship Auto Shows produces the event. \u201cWe are delighted to bring this Motor City tradition back. Detroit Autorama is the most revered hot rod custom car show in the country, and spotlights the important, historic role Detroit has played in the world of custom cars and hot rodding.\u201d<\/p>\n

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With the relocation of the North American International Auto Show to September, Autorama is now the premier winter auto show in downtown Detroit. It roars back at a time when downtown is picking itself back up after pandemic restrictions. Autorama\u2019s family-focused crowds may bring welcome appetites to struggling restaurants and retail stores around Campus Martius near the convention\u00a0center.<\/p>\n

The Ridler, sponsored by Meguiar\u2019s, is the most coveted custom car award in the country. The bauble has been presented for 59 years to the most notable new custom car \u2014 shown for the first time anywhere. Competitors often spend millions to capture the prestigious\u00a0$10,000 prize.<\/p>\n

In 2020, the award went to a heavily modified\u00a0black, 509-cubic inch V-8, 1963 Chevy two-door station wagon created by Minnesota\u2019s Show Cars Automotive. Its slammed chassis was built in Washington state, its wheels crafted in California, and its interior screwed together in Alabama.<\/p>\n

Marking the Ridler\u2019s return will be its most prolific recipient, Chip Foose. Foose has won a record four Ridlers\u00a0and turned his fame into a gig with the Motor Trend network\u2019s \u201cOverhaulin\u2019\u201d show. He will sign autographs from noon-6 p.m.\u00a0Friday.<\/p>\n

Another hot rod legend in the house will be Chuck Miller. Miller\u2019s Fire Truck won the Ridler in 1968 and the New Boston resident went on to create such custom icons as the Red Baron, Bugs Buggy, and Sonic Cuda.<\/p>\n

For the \u201922 Autorama, Miller will be showing off his Zinger cars \u2014 grown-up version of the playful, 1\/32-scale model toys sold by MPC in the 1970s. All six super-sized Zingers will be on display: VW Bug, Dune Buggy, Dragster, Dodge van, Corvette\u00a0and semi-trailer.<\/p>\n