By Adam Milch
It was a lively day on Point Loma Avenue for the 3rd annual Sunset Cliffs Auto Show on Saturday, September 6. 118 cars of all shapes and sizes lined the street between Ebers St and Sunset Cliffs Blvd, along with several food trucks and other booths set up in the parking lot of St. Peter’s Church.
Live music was provided by the blues swing band Juke$, a local San Diego group that played throughout the morning. At noon, there was a 3 point basketball contest, along with a bounce house provided by the San Diego Gulls.
Next there was a Roller Derby Demo provided by the SoCal Roller Derby, a competitive WFTDA roller derby league based in San Diego. Wade Buchan spoke about three different SoCal Derby teams in the area, the Kraken, the Cuttlefish, and the Tentakills. Their next free event is a double header starting at 10:45am on Saturday, September 27 at 4S Ranch Hockey Rink against the Ventura County Derby Darlins.
The San Diego Prowlers Hot Rod Club also joined in on the action, bringing in several vehicles from Lakeside to beat the heat amongst other Hot Rod enthusiasts.
Endless Projects, originally from Northern California with chapters throughout Southern California and other states also represented itself with a Hot Rod.
A member of the City Car Club introduced Mauna Toa, an impressive vehicle with Spiritual Warrior inspired hood art.
A 1974 Gran Torino Starsky and Hutch Replica was another notable entry, complete with handcuffs and Police ID cards. A pet adoption center was set up in the parking lot of Ocean Breeze laundromat as well, which remained open throughout the event.
The event was organized by Gina Patrick-West and Gavin Fleming. This year had more cars and sponsors than the last 2 years, but still felt like a friendly laid back OB event.
Raffle tickets were sold throughout the event, with multiple gift basket prizes being awarded to the winning ticket holders. After the raffle, the awards ceremony was held. Judges spent the morning inspecting all 118 cars and the first part of the afternoon debating their rankings. Once all awards had been announced, drivers entered their vehicles and took a lap down Sunset Cliffs, a picture worth to an ending to a memorable day in OB.
Some of the most notable awards categories were:
Most modern: 2024 z51 Stingray Silver
Best Muscle aka Big Surf: 1969 Chevy Blue SS Nova
Most Luxurious: 1962 Ford Thunderbird
Best Maintenance: 1966 Chevy Carryall (also awarded Best Company Vehicle)
Kids Choice: Lightning McQueen
Best Business Vehicle: Hodad’s 1979 Hodonk Chevy Impala
Best Lowrider: 1968 Chevy Impala
Best Interior: 1972 Chevy Corvette
Best Classic Vintage Vehicle: 1947 Plymouth
Best Motorcycle: 2020 Street Bike
Best Theme Vehicle: Pink Panther 2013 Kia Optima (3rd year in a row)
Best Restored Vehicle: 1969 Camaro
Best in Show: 1940 Deluxe Coop
The City Car Club is local to San Diego and has several other car shows scheduled over the next few weeks. These include:
- October’s Best Car Show on October 5 at 10am at Sycuan Casino
- Greatest Show on Turf on September 20 at 9am at South Clairemont Community Park (presented by San Diego Association of Car Clubs)
- Mustangs by the Bay on October 5 at 9am at Embarcadero Marina Park North (presented by Mustang Club of San Diego)
Really nice accounting of the event, Adam.
The 66 CHevy Carry All that won Best Maintenance. Way to Go Ed, was also the ^^66 Chevy in the Movie “Almost Famous” by Cameron Crow, about his growing up in OB.
Stu, how da heck do ya know that?
It was my car back then and they paid me In the opening seen in front of Rockys
No way, dude! That’s too incredible to be real.
This was Adam’s first post with the Rag. Welcome Adam. Good write up and superior photos.
This was a fun event. Not a big car guy, but there were some cool and unique things to see. I wish there were more photos of the Hodads car. That was by far the best thing I’ve seen in a long time. The air scoop on the hood was actually a fry basket, the doors were scissor doors which looked super cool, the ceiling was lined with license plates. All around the details were amazing and a wonderful tribute to an OB classic.