End of an Era
For more than 30 years, the annual Lane Automotive car show represented the kick-off of the summer motoring season in Southwest Michigan. From its small beginnings at the Red Arrow Highway facility, it grew into one of the largest car shows in the Midwest, drawing as many as 1500 cars and 15,000 spectators to the two-day event. Over the years, special attractions including NoiseFest, the Engine Builders of Tomorrow competition, the Open-Header Cruise, and most recently, the Pedal Car Challenge, all became fan and community favorites.
It is with great sadness that we announce the end of this long-standing tradition. With the uncertainty of the COVID-19 outbreak, 2020 marked the first time that we felt it necessary to cancel the car show. More recent concerns from our local authorities about a new business in the immediate area of the show site and the impact it will have on the safety of the event have been the topic of discussion for several months. They have stated, “The increased traffic flow and multiple entries and exit points will put our officers in great danger as well as create uncontrollable risk for participants and spectators entering and exiting the show site. Therefore, we do not feel it will be in the best interest of all parties concerned to continue the Lane Automotive Show in its current model and location.” As a result, 2019 was the final year for the Lane Automotive car show.
We would like to thank the many individuals and organizations who helped make the Lane Automotive car show a success over the years, starting with our amazing employees who worked countless hours before, during, and after each show. To our local law enforcement and first responders: thank you for keeping everyone safe and secure as well as controlling the massive amount of traffic throughout the day. Many thanks to our incredible vendors who have supported the show with their time and resources since the beginning, and to our wonderful community and loyal attendees who have braved every conceivable type of weather to bring out their hot rods for all to see and enjoy.
Lane Automotive will remain an active part of the community and will continue to host smaller automotive-related events, as well as participate in other activities throughout the area. It has been an honor for us to provide a venue to share our love for classic cars and hot rods with fellow fans, and while the Lane Automotive Car Show may be at an end, the fond memories will remain with us for a long time to come.
Lane Automotive Car Show – Looking Back
Over the 31 years of the Lane Automotive car show, we captured thousands of photos of the countless beautiful and unique cars, fun activities, and excited attendees. Each year since 2012, we have created an online Flickr album with the car show images for that year and provided a link on the car show page.
Below, you will find links to all of the Flickr pages from 2012 to 2019, where you can look back at nearly a decade of Lane Automotive car show history.