2016 O'Reilly Auto Parts Customer Appreciation Car Show

Last Saturday, the O’Reilly Auto Parts location on Lebanon Road in Mt. Juliet held a customer appreciation day that featured a car show. Well, I’ve been an O’Reilly customer many times over the years, and I definitely appreciate a good car show, so I guess they achieved their goal on this one. And for such a small parking lot, this actually was a pretty good car show. There were several very nice cars in the lot, and every spot was filled. Plus, if someone couldn’t get their car started after the show, they could walk right into the O’Reilly and grab a new battery. Everyone wins with a deal like that.

You see lots of ’57 Chevys and Fords, but ’57 Pontiacs are few-and-far-between. This Nassau Green Chieftan four-door sedan was a nice driver. It probably wasn’t a car most people would lust over in 1957, but with their 347-c.i. V8s, Pontiacs were pretty stout cars. It had some aftermarket touches, like the modern radio, the hang-on air conditioning, and the big amber lights in the front bumper. I admit that my eyes gravitated toward this car the moment I saw it. I think it’s just different enough from most of the cars you see around that it draws you in.

This ’60 Buick LeSabre sort of fits in the same category as the Pontiac. It’s another four-door sedan, which isn’t the most coveted of body styles, but it still has a strong presence in the context of today. This one looks close to the original Tampico Red/Arctic White top with a generic red pleated interior. Really, is there a better color than bright red for an old car like this? One interesting feature about these Buicks is the speedometer. It actually runs backwards down in a little cove in the instrument panel. The driver sees a mirror in front of him on which the speedometer is reflected. That’s a perfect little early ‘60s bit of fun.

From ten years later, here’s a ’70 Impala Custom Coupe. Like most of them, it’s finished in Green Mist, which is faded out to a degree that would lead you to believe it is original. This is a good old 350 with air, which makes it the prefect driver. Fender skirts were optional on one of these, but I believe rally wheels were not available in combination with them. Rally wheels look good on almost everything, so I don’t blame the owner for adding them. The ’67 centers are arguably better looking than the ’70-style sombreros as well. Old Impalas are hard to beat.

Here’s a ’66 Chevelle with plenty of curb appeal. She’s Regal Red on the outside and black on the inside. The front fenders feature the 396 big block flags, which would be an appropriate option on one of these. The air cleaner lid has a 454 decal on it. It’s not unusual for someone to put a 454 in one of these, because that engine looks like a 396, and since Chevy was still offering them in trucks well into the ‘90s, they’re plentiful. Either way, this is a pretty small car with a huge engine, so I’m sure it doesn’t have any trouble getting out of its own way. Painted American Racing Torque Thrusts are always a safe choice.

There were lots of nice cars at the O’Reilly Auto Parts Customer Appreciation Day Car Show. So many cars that I took 94 pictures of them. You can see them in the slideshow below, or click this link for a nicer version.