Ferndale, Royal Oak residents excited for 70th annual Autorama

FERNDALE/ROYAL OAK — Autorama is back for another year in Detroit, and vehicles owned by residents of Ferndale and Royal Oak will be featured.

The 70th annual Meguiar’s Detroit Autorama will be held Feb. 24-26 at Huntington Place, 1 Washington Blvd. in Detroit. Autorama expects to show 800 vintage vehicles, motorcycles and custom cars of all varieties.

Murray Pfaff, of Royal Oak, will be bringing his 2021 Ford Explorer ST with him to the show. Pfaff called the vehicle “dual purpose,” in that while it attracts attention, the car also acts as his daily driver.

“It’s a lot of fun, and it’s got purpose,” he said. “The Ford Explorer ST is a potent package from the factory, and then we’ve just taken the performance dial and turned it up from nine to 11.” He elaborated that the suspension, brakes, exhaust and other features were upgraded.

Pfaff’s Ford will be part of his own showcase called The D Lot, which will act as a fundraiser for Make-A-Wish Michigan. Last year’s event saw the show raise $27,000 for the charity, and this year, they’ll be giving away prizes in an effort to raise even more.

“Autorama is essentially an annual gathering of everything that’s cool — hot rod, performance — and this being a brand-new vehicle just shows some of the range that the new vehicles (have) to hot rods that go back to the ’30s,” he said. “It’s kind of one of the widest variety of automotive enthusiast vehicles in one building. So that’s what’s really cool about the show and going down to it every year and seeing what’s new and different.”

This year’s Autorama will have a showcase called The Rat Fink Reunion, which will feature five iconic vehicles designed by custom designer Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. They are the Mysterion, Orbitron, Tweedy Pie, the Fink Surfboard and Ed’s Unique Honda Civic.

There will be a showcase called the Cars of George Barris, “The King of the Kustomizers.” Barris is known for creating famous vehicles for Hollywood, including the 1960s Batmobile and the Munster Koach from “The Munsters.” There also will be a display of famous vehicle designs by Detroit builders the Alexander Brothers.

Celebrities whom attendees will be able to meet include Henry Winkler of “Happy Days” and “Barry” fame, and Flavor Flav of Public Enemy.

While not the first Autorama he’ll be attending, this will be the first event in which Dennis Schwartz will be bringing his own vehicle, a 1960s-style Harley-Davidson chopper.

A Ferndale resident, Schwartz’s Harley motorcycle is customized with the engine and transmission from a 1968 police special and the frame from a 1947 wishbone.

“To me, it’s just my motorcycle, but everybody looks at it and says, ‘You don’t see them anymore,’” he said. “You used to see them in the ’60s and ’70s, but then the guys got older and grew up and the frames — it’s on what they call a hardtail frame — there’s no springs on it, no suspension, and the older you get, the harder them roads are to ride with no springs and suspension.”

Schwartz said he’s excited to be participating in his first Autorama, an event he’s been attending since 1960.

“I was with my son when he had his car in there. I mean, being on the other side of the stanchions and the ropes are different from walking up and down the aisle and looking at the cars,” he said. “You’ve actually got something in it. It’s just a totally different atmosphere, you know, from show person to a spectator.”

Autorama will be held from noon to 10 p.m. Feb. 24, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Feb. 25 and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Feb 26. Tickets cost $25 for general admission and $10 for children ages 6-12. Discounted tickets of $23 and $9, respectively, are available at O’Reilly Auto Parts stores.

For more information on the event, visit www.autorama.com/attend/detroit.