2015 Daytona Turkey Run Largest Car Show in the U.S.
Dream Car Build at the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run…
DAYTONA BEACH, FL, November 29, 2015 — The tension was high here this morning at the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run as the CMMC Garage crew worked frantically to get the Dream Car Build, a 1955 Chevy Bel Air custom show car, to fire. The pressure was on Paul Newman and his crew from CMMC Garage. The promo for the Dream Car Build had promised that CMMC Garage would be able to accomplish the incredible challenge of assembling a complete show car in just four days. They were supposed to crank the car up today at noon. In fact, there stood the TV crew from Two Guys Garage filming for their April show.
Everything had been going so well up until this morning when the Hydro Booster failed. So they get a new one. That one had a broken piston. So then they took one out of an existing car which they knew was working. That one, after it was installed, had a leak. Crimped a plastic washer when they tightened it down. When they finally had it fixed the filming crew was beginning to have its doubts. But with a big sigh of relief Newman turned the crank and it fired perfectly. The crowd which had been gathered to hear it crank up let out a big roar of approval. This was a moment to remember … a moment from the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run that we will not likely ever forget. Click the video to view the action:
Here is what the 2015 Dream Build car, the 1955 Chevy Bel Air 2-Dr, looked like at the end of the day on Saturday.
All chrome trim is on the 1955 Chevy
Readers may have caught some of the photos we published of the 1955 Chevy on Thanksgiving Day, the first day of the show, and again on Friday. The CMMC Garage team had started to install the driveline to the chassis. They were working on the body, prepping it for assembly. Here are the photos of how the 1955 Chevy looked on Thursday and Friday.
If you would like to see our Periscope videos of the 2015 Dream Build you can click here to go to our Twitter page. There you will find Periscope broadcasts each day to update you on the work CMMC Garage was doing on their 1955 Chevy build.
Saturday at the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run …
It was a seller’s market on Saturday here at the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run. Some of the top cars we made offers on were already gone by this morning. Sold right out from under us. You don’t want to low ball too much or you might get cut out of the deal. Prices were certainly right, and the buyers knew it. But there were still some bargains to be had as well. Here are some of the best deals we saw here in the Car Corral area on the infield of the Daytona International Speedway.
1969 Pontiac GTO Judge Convertible tribute, asking $26,000
The Cars On Line team is here at the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run to bring our readers all the live action just as if you were here with us. We’re at the largest Swap Meet and Car Corral in the U.S. If you are looking for that rare part to finish your project car you’re likely to find it here. The swap meet vendors fill up the whole infield and pit area at the 42nd Annual Car Show and Swap Meet at Daytona International Speedway. And the car corral and car club show areas cover the rest of the grounds all the way down to Lake Lloyd at the south side back straightaway.
Operation Celebration at 2015 Daytona Turkey Run …
There is a special tribute to our troops in the Operation Celebration display on the infield of the Daytona Speedway. You can’t miss it because this 1988 Ford F-350 Monster truck is setting next to the performance stage. There will be tributes to the troops and musical groups playing today. The big Monster truck is called “Longfoot” and is covered with patriotic murals. Owner Rick Legrow from Centereach, New York told us he was so angered at how his fellow servicemen were treated after serving in Vietnam that he had to make a statement. He started the project in the 1988 but it has grown into a tribute to all great American heroes. There is a special tribute to 911 Fire Fighters on it now.
We couldn’t believe how many people were coming through the turnstiles when they opened the gates for the Friday edition of the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run. In the giant swap meet area parts hunters were milling almost shoulder to shoulder in some areas. Vendors were kept busy helping “treasure hunters” find those rare parts to finish a project. Over in the car corral area it was the same story. Some sellers were telling us they had several offers on their cars already. The prices were right for this market. They expect over 150,000 spectators to attend the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run this weekend. It seemed to us that they were all here already on Friday morning. Take a look at some of the photos.
Living Legends of Auto Racing …
On Thursday we got our first look at the Living Legends exhibit in the Yellow Garage at the Daytona Speedway. With all the great racing history here at Daytona you can imagine that they celebrate the cars and drivers of the past in a big way here. In this exhibit, race enthusiasts from all over the country show their race car tributes, recreations of legendary race cars. Here are some we noted.
One of the best races ever here at the Daytona Speedway came in 1967 when Mario Andretti drove for Andy Granatelli to win the Daytona 500. Fred Lorenzen came in second. Another car that looked like it would be the one to beat that year was owned by Smokey Yunick, a 1967 Chevelle with a 427 ci motor. (See a replica of that car in the slide show above.) Lorenzen’s backup ride was this 1967 Ford Fairlane 427 R Code (see photos below.) Lorenzen also drove it at Darlington that year, his last ride for Holman-Moody before he retired. John Kaiser now owns the car and talked to us about it. He says it has been kept almost exactly as it was when it ran at Darlington in 1967. You can see that it still has the cage and interior as it did then. It is very rare to find a real race car that is so period correct.
Fred Lorenzen's last Holman-Moody car, 1967 Ford Fairlane
For more information on attending the 2015 Daytona Turkey Run click here to go to their internet site.
The 2015 Daytona Turkey Run is the 42nd Annual car show and swap meet held here at the Daytona Speedway. The show was one of the first street rod friendly car shows in the Southeast. It was started in 1974 so that hot rodders had a car show of their own. They now draw over 6,000 cars here annually. It is one of the biggest draws of any car show in the nation with over 150,000 expected to attend.