Although the car club cruises and exhibitions have been under lockdown for the past two years, it doesn’t mean that the builders and members have been sitting idle.
In fact, many of them are eagerly awaiting the 7th Motorama Custom Car & Motorsports Expo presented by eBay Motors Canada, in order that they may show off their latest creations. The show takes place April 29, 30 & May 1 at Toronto’s International Centre.
“Motorama prides itself on featuring a lot of ‘First-Time Shown’ vehicles,” noted Gary Challice, Show Car Coordinator. “And this year, the halls will be full of them!”
Challice continued, “The Brampton Street Rods have been named the Featured Club, and we have a lot of the traditional Hot Rod clubs coming out to join us at Motorama. And these clubs are bringing some pretty serious projects; some very high-quality pieces.”
A total of 13 recognized car clubs will be represented at the 2022 Motorama, the majority of them coming from within the Golden Horseshoe. Customized cars and Hot Rods from the past ten decades will be on display, with a special emphasis, this year, placed on the classic 1932 Ford.
“Twenty-twenty-two is the 90th anniversary of the ’32 Ford, which is the Hot Rod standard. For those entries, we will have a unique ‘32 Ford Award for the best of the bunch,” said Challice. “As far as the rest of the show cars, we have very high Canadian content – most are homegrown creations – and among those builders, we have several previous builders of Grand Champion-winning vehicles bringing their latest projects.”
For some of the invited clubs, it will be easy to identify their respective favourite makes, with clubs such as the Ontario Camaro Club, the Golden Horseshoe Mustang Club, Corvettes of Durham, the Firebird Club of Canada and the Mustang Addicts bringing top examples manufactured excellence.
The Toronto Fox Body Club also caters to the Blue Oval Mustang aficionados. They plan on bringing a six-car collection, a group that includes everything from a 1985 Mustang GT, a 1989 Saleen Mustang to a super-charged 1990 Mustang LX Coupe.
The Canadian Motorsports Enthusiasts will offer Motorama visitors a more varied line-up as they will introduce a 1948 custom-painted pickup truck to the show floor where it will be joined by projects such as an SX Rat Rod, a 1200 bhp 2008 Lexus and a show-stealing 1969 Olds 442 Convertible Resto-Mod.
Showing no brand loyalty, the Rodmasters Car Club has six cars prepared for Motorama headlined by an all-original 1956 T-Bird. Other prime examples from the Rodmasters include a 1966 Chevy II SS, a ’34 Dodge and a 1955 Chevy pickup Hot Rod.
A restoration project 20 years in the making will make its debut at Motorama as part of the Motor City Car Club exhibit.
Started by original club member Lou Balogh, his 1960 El Camino was all ready to be re-assembled with he passed away. Picking up the torch to honour his friend and club mate, Vince McCloskey searched Balogh’s property, eventually finding all of the pieces and has spent the last three years completing the effort. Rolling out at Motorama, the rich blue metallic El Camino boasting the grey interior will join a pair of Oldsmobiles, a 1950 Ford Coupe, a ’72 Boss 429 Mustang and a 1950 Plymouth on the floor.
Caledon’s Aces Wild Car Club will have a trio of vehicles at the Motorama Show, including a 1970 short-box, side-step Dodge Pickup, a ’65 Galaxie 500 and a ’49 Businessman’s Coupe, the inimitable ‘49 Shoebox.
Regarded as the longest, continually running Car Club in Ontario, the London Auto Modifiers will be showcasing Dave Cook’s 1957 White 3000 Cab Over, a truck outfitted with a 5.3L Chevy LS motor. A couple of classic street rods will also be in attendance, joined by a ’35 International Dually-powered by a Cummins Diesel.
Completing the list of Car Club guests are the Gazz Guzzlerz Gang from Bolton, Ontario. In their display they will be featuring a ’67 Chevelle, Mario Cunsolo’s 1971 Camaro RallySport and1969 Big Block C10 pickup and a 1967 Corvette.
The Majestics and the Rollerz Car Club will also be in attendance at Motorama. There are other clubs represented in the Mayhem ‘Rockabilly’ room, as well as in the Spring Fever area of Hall 2.
Concluded Challice, “To say that the exhibitors are enthusiastic and feeling extremely positive about the return of Motorama would be an understatement. After two missed years, everyone is excited to reconnect with their fellow car collectors, just to swap stories and see what everyone else has been up to.”
For show info and tickets, visit MotoramaShow.com
