Let's go to the Crusin' Spring Hill Drive-In Car Show

Over the weekend, I found my way all the way down in Spring Hill, former home of the Saturn, for the Cruisin’ Spring Hill Drive-In Car Show. Now, the General Motors plant in Spring Hill might not build Saturns anymore, but they’re definitely alive and kicking, and still churning out Chevrolet Equinoxes. This event was held at the UAW 1953 Union Hall, and featured this car show along with GM displays, a craft show, live music, and even food trucks. It was actually quite a shindig. Here are some of the cars.

Here’s an exceptionally nice 1976 Pontiac Trans AM Special Edition. The signboard says it’s a low mileage car, and the interior is still in original condition. It was evidently painted at some point, but whoever did it did a very nice job. You don’t seem to see those gold honeycomb wheels all that often, and the Space-Saver spare is a nice touch. The black and gold Special Edition was produced to commemorate Pontiac’s 50th anniversary. They made jillions of these Trans Ams over the years, but only 2,500 Special Editions in 1976. As these cars go, this one is pretty special.

’57 Chevys. They’re everywhere. Heck, sometimes I get tired of them too. But they’re often among the best quality cars to turn up at these shows, as you can see by this Dusk Pearl example right here. This is just a nice Bel Air two-door hardtop with a 283 V8 and a Power Pack. These are relatively easy to restore to this condition, because pretty much every single part can be bought out of a catalog. But there’s a reason all these parts are so accessible. These cars are popular. They’re the poster child for iconic 1950s automobiles. And sometimes, since there are so many of them, you have to step back and realize how neat they actually are. It’s easy to take a ’57 Chevy for granted, but they really are great looking cars.

This is a 1965 Buick Skylark Gran Sport. Now the Gran Sport didn’t cause a huge stir like its sister cars the Pontiac GTO, Chevelle SS, or Oldsmobile 442. But make no mistake, they were an understated muscle car all the same. Under the hood was a high-compression, 325-hp, 401-c.i. V8 that produced a stump-pulling 445-lb/ft of torque. But they didn’t have stripes and scoops and hood tachs. Buicks were classier than that. The Gran Sport gave you that big engine, bucket seats and a console, and some understated emblems. This particular car was a nice driver, finished in Silver Cloud, and that black vinyl interior benefitted from the addition of air conditioning.

If you like your muscle cars a little more extroverted, how about this 1970 Chevelle SS convertible? This one was finished in bright Cranberry Red inside and out. And Chevy didn’t hold back on the styling here. Big double stripes down the hood and trunk lid, Goodyear Polyglas tires, and hood pins were all meant to tell you this car meant business. Powering this bad boy was a 350-hp version of the 396-c.i. big block V8. But Chevy didn’t forget the creature comforts, either. Passengers were treated to factory air conditioning and an 8-track stereo.

Since this was a largely GM-themed show, I’ll end this by taking a look at this ’75 Chevy Scottsdale step side pickup. I just like these old trucks, and since most of them were rusted hulks three years after they were built, it’s kind of nice to know that a few still exist today. This sucker was as green as they come. Green on the outside. Green on the inside. As green as the mid-seventies had to offer. This was your basic work truck, with white painted bumpers and a three-on-the-tree. I’m glad this truck wasn’t customized along the way. I even like the stock grille.

If you didn’t like it, that’s OK. There are more than 200 pictures from this event in the slideshow below, so you’re bound to find something that tickles your fancy. Or, click this link for a nicer version.