 |
The flyer for the
Annual San Clemente Car Show, Sunday, September 20, 2026 |
So, being a car freak, I took Kathy with me and we went to the Annual San
Clemente Car Show, which was held on Sunday, September 20, 2026. The San Clemente Car Show celebrated it’s 30th
anniversary (it started in 1995), and as usual, it was a great event. The location is the historic San Clemente
downtown on Avenida Del Mar, which is in the heart of town. For this event, Del Mar street is closed off between
South El Camino Real and North Calle Seville, and it is perfect for enjoying
the cars, all the spectators, the vendors and the music. The car shows draw around 15,000 spectators
and showcases over 250 vehicles, including classic cars, hot rods, muscle cars,
exotics and rare vehicles of all sorts. The event is also judged, so the participants put forth a lot of effort in making sure their cars look their absolute best. In my opinion, this is one of the coolest events in San Clemente, and to
be able to see soooo many cool cars in one spot is awesome, and it is
free!!!! In addition, you can get some great excersise, just walking up and down Avenida Del Mar (since the cars are parked on both sides of the street, the name of the game is to go down, then go back up), with all the cool shops and restaurants! San Clemente is cool, no doubt about it!
The car show is
held on Avenida Del Mar, between South El Camino Real and North Calle Seville. In the lower left-hand corner, you can see
the San Clemente Library, one of my favorite spots in town!
So, without further ado, here are a bunch of pictures I took
at the event, enjoy!
Here is where it all starts; this picture is taken from El Camino Real, looking west down Avenida Del Mar. Keep going, and you will hit the beach and the San Clemente pier!
As you can see, tons of cool cars, all lined up. This super cool Street Rod is a 1937 Ford Roadster. How beautiful is that!
This is a gorgeous 1981 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am, complete with the hood decal.
Love that Firebird!
Plenty of old VW Beetles, this one is probably early to mid 1960.
Gorgeous old Beetle, this one is complete with a retractable soft moon roof, perfect for cruising up and down Pacific Coast Highway!
No car show in San Clemente is complete without Porsches!
Pretty cool Chevy C-10 Truck, complete with a hydralic truck bed, perfect if you are going to the dump, with a bunch of garbage in the back! (I doubt that this truck will ever see the dump, but you never know...)
A wonderfully restored Ford Bronco, people love these old Bronco's; I'm sure they will fetch good money!
1941 Ford Pickup Truck, how gorgeous is that!
1955 Chevrolet Bel Air, don't get much cooler than that!
1964? GMC Apache, soooo cool!
1968 VW Karmann-Ghia, complete with a roof rack for the surfboard! Perfect!
1969 Chevy Camaro... Oh my word, what a cool car!
Late 1950s? Ford Thunderbird, soooo nice!
And no car show would be complete without a bunch of Corvette's, San Clemente's favorite American sports car!
Oh my goodness, it is sooooo nice, late 1950s maybe...
I think this is a mid-1960 Chevy Nova, but I could be wrong!
Chevrolet Nomad (I think), late 1950ish...
1946 Ford Convertible, about as modified as they come. I wonder what that paint job costs... Gorgeous!
1932 Model B Ford, my favorite Hot Rod for sure! I love that Devil-May-Care early Hot Rod look!
Another restored Ford Bronco; in this condition, this one will fetch somewhere $75,000 to $100,000! Save your pennies!
1940? Ford Deluxe Street Rod, how cool is that!
1971 Oldsmobile Cutlass Convertible, very cool!
1966? Chevy Chevelle, super clean!
1930s something, whatever it is, it is a super clean Street Rod!
1939 Buick Series 90 Limousine, beautifully restored. Love it!
Mid-1960 Pontiac Grand Prix, soooo cool!
1950 something Chevrolet Bel Air Custom, as clean as they come!
1951 Ford Country Squire woody, complete with a couple of surfboards on top. I'm sure the Beach Boys would approve!
A super nice Hot Rod, complete with cool flames. Perfect for cruising!
 |
A giant Cadillac convertible, I'm guessing late 1940s, early 1950s. Look at the chrome bumper, it probably weighs as much as a modern compact car! Beautiful! Look at the old boys dreaming of their next car!
AS I've said before, no shortage of Corvette's in San Clemente! 1970 Stingray, how cool is that!
Plymoth Road Runner, I'm thinking 1969-1970... Meep, Meep!
Gotta love The Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, the best advertisement for ACME products ever!
A gorgeous Ford F-100 pickup truck, don't think the owner hauls a bunch of stuff in the back, it is way too nice!
Now that's a righteous Low Rider, how low can you go? 1960 Coupe De Ville, crazy cool! You can tell from the name plate in the back window that the owner(s) belongs to one of many southern California car clubs!
Look how clean that engine bay is, very impressive!
Another Lead Sled, a heavily modified and lowered 1936 Buick Coupe. Oh my word, all these cars are soooo cool!
Another Chevrolet Bel Air; look at that chrome! I miss chrome; you don't see much of it on new cars (for a good reason I'm sure, since the traditional process of chrome plating is highly toxic, but man does it look cool)...
Early 1970s (I think, but I could be wrong) Buick Riviera, the coolest car ever!
1969 Chevy Chevelle, complete with the 350 engine emblem! Love the red pinstripes on the tires!
1957 custom Cheverolet Bel Air convertible, perfect for cruise night!
1956 Miller Landau Cadillac combination ambulance-hearse, owned and operated by the England Family Mortuary in Temecula, CA. I guess if the patient (in ambulance mode) dies en route, then the Caddy automatically turns into a hearse! Perfect for Halloween! A crazy well maintained Caddy, even though it is not your usual daily driver!
A very cool Dodge Dart with the 273 cubic-inch (4.5 liter) small-block V8. I love it!
A 1967 VW Samba Bus, 21 Window (the most sought after); brand new it cost somewhere between $1,800 to $2,600, now this one can fetch $90,000 - $100,000! You should have kept yours!
We are ready for the beach!
1967ish Ford Fairlane GT, nice!
1929 Oldsmobile Landau Station Wagon, completely restored to original condition. This guy drives to car shows pretty much every week, I see him at Cars and Coffee when ever I go. A man gotta have hobbies; some are more expensive than others!
1966ish Dodge Charger, complete with the 383 cubic-inch (6.3 liters) engine. No nonsense, just speed and performance. Love it!
1972 Chevy C10 pickup Resto Mod, gorgeous! Since this is a judged car show, many of the owners stay with their cars all day, just in case it needs a bit more polish!
1938 Buick Roadmaster convertible, fully restored. Check out the license plate holder (from Google):
"While the famous Southern California auto dealer Ed James operated nearby dealerships (such as Ed James Studebaker), the specific iconic multi-story building and showroom at 1367 S. Figueroa was famously home to the Howard Automobile Company's Buick operations throughout the 1910s, 1920s, and 1930s." Some cool LA history!
Pretty darn cool!
1956 Chevy Bel Air, super nice!
1963 Chevy Corvette!
Ford Super Deluxe Woody Wagon, probably late 1940s... Love the surfboards on the rack, ready to take on the waves!
1970 Corvette, big block four speed! Wroooom!
A really nice Mustang, that's for sure!
1966 Mustang with the 283 cubic-inch (4.8 Liter) V8, plenty of power!
Nice stage set up in the middle of the car show for the musical entertainment. The San Clemente Car Show is such a great event!
The Chancers, an Irish-centric rock and cover band, came on at around 11AM. Sounded really good!
1972 Chevy K5 Blazer, heavily modifed; love that 6.2 Liter 525 hp, LS3 engine! That will smoke those tires for sure!
Early 1970s (I'm guessing) Corvette with T-Tops, what a great car!
A heavily modifed and customized Street Rod, late 1930s maybe? Love it!
1972 Citroen DS21 Pallas. A unique car for sure, love that French engineering! As long as you can find spare parts...
1965 Ford 250 truck, you can have it! As the sign says, "Original Patina"! This is a work truck for sure, no fuss, no muss!
1964 Chevy C-30 Dually pickup truck, heavily modified for sure! Don't get much lower than that!
A nicely restored Ford Bronco; people love these things!
Ford Mustang with a 427 cubic-inch (7.0 Liter) Cobra engine. How cool!
1959 VW Single Cab Transporter
1954 Chevy 3100 pickup truck, as shiny as they come!
1964 Chevy Impala Convertible. The ultimate cruising car!
1968 Chevy Camaro Super Sport (SS) with the 327 engine. An american classic for sure!
And here is its twin! Love the Camaro SS; in this pristine condition, expect to shell out at least $75,000 if you want one!
Plenty of vendors on hand for all your clothing and souvenirs!
1955 Chevy Bel Air Nomad, love that baby blue!
1961 Chevy Impala SS, now that is a cool car!
1958 Chevy Apache, a perfect example of a Resto Mod!
Check out that engine compartment, as clean as it gets! Gorgeous!
1932 Ford Deuce Coupe Hot Rod, absolutely gorgeous!
And now for something completely different! A 1960 Fiat 600 Jolly, the perfect beach car! Came with a 633 cc (38.6 cubic-inch, 0.6 Liter) engine, producing somewhere between 22 to 28 hp! Hold on to your hat!
A late 1960ish Chevy Impala, complete with the 350 engine. A great car!
A beautifully restored Ford Bronco, with the classic 302 cubic-inch (5.0 Liter) engine. really nice!
Such a nice Ford Thunderbird, late 1950s I'm guessing. Like the Beach Boys sang "And she'll have fun, fun, fun till her daddy takes the T-bird away!"
Oldsmobile 442 (four-barrel carburator, four-speed manual and dual exhausts), late 1960 I'm guessing. With that compressor, that thing should move really well!
A crazy cool T-Bucket Hot Rod, all engine!
A beautifully restored 1964 Lincoln Continental Convertible, complete with suicide doors. A great example of a bygone era when gasoline was $0.30 and driving a 5,600 lbs car was no problem!
1965 Ford Mustang convertible; let's go cruising down Pacific Coast Highway!
Another gorgeous Ford Thunderbird, 1950s. Don't get much cooler than this!
And yes, plenty of Chevy Corvettes, this one a Stingray convertible. Love that luggage rack in the back, just make sure you strap down your suitcase really good!
A crazy modified and upgraded 1964 Chevy Nova Custom.
Plenty of cool Hot Rods at the car show; love those flames!
1954 Cadillac Series 62 Hardtop. Check out the hidden gas filler in the driver's side taillight of the fin; press a button and the taillight flips up to reveal the gas filler. A pretty cool feature!
A cool old Chevy pickup truck, lots of patina, but that's what adds the charm!
2004 Corvette Convertible, not really a classic (yet), but certantly a cool car!
Plenty of nice Porsches, I think this is a 1964...
Looks like it just rolled off the showroom floor! Gorgeous!
Lots of people love their old VW Camper Busses! No need for air conditioning, just open the windshield!
1972 Chevy C10 Cheyenne pick up, love it!
1969 Plymouth Road Runner with the mighty 383 cubic-inch (6.3 Liter) V8 engine. Should move really nice!
1971 (I think) Chevrolet Monte Carlo. Nice!
And in the middle of the car show, here are the San Clemente goats! They were trucked in from their home by the San Clemente sports part, to make the public aware of their work for wildfire prevention. The goats have been grazing on the hills in our neighbourhood; they are pretty cute!
Here you go!
Second generation Chevy Camaro SS. Love that yellow!
1974 VW Bay Window Bus. Did I tell you that folks love their VW busses! At least the 1974 has over-the-shoulder seat belts, should offer you some safety (but not much, given there is no hood...)
1956 (I'm guessing from the license plate) Mercedes-Benz 190SL, very nice!
1967 Pontiac GTO (Gran Turismo Omologato, if you didn't know). Love that electric blue!
A nice Dodge Challenger, late 1960s?
1967 Plymouth Belvedere GTX Convertible, "the gentleman's muscle car"!
1968 Plymouth Road Runner, built for nothing but speed!
1957 Ford Thunderbird, only 34,000 original miles! Love it! Should easily run for another 100,000 miles! Love that air conditioning vent in the side, hopefully it will blow a lot of cold air!
1955 Chevy 3100 Series Truck. This little truck is outfitted with a 502 cubic-inch (8.2 Liter) Chevy V8, should move really nice!
And yet another VW Bus! Mid-to late 1960s something, I'm guessing... Love that big furry dog!
Here we go to the beach! Love that retractable soft-top, and the super cool roof rack! Just don't drive it on a windy day!!!
And yes, there are more of them! Seems like they are everwhere! Love that windshield air conditioning, just watch out for bugs!
And this is probably the coolest of all the VW busses, perfect for cruising the beach!
This old VW bus is set up as a photo booth, pretty cool!
1950s Chevrolet 3100 panel truck, on its way to the beach! Looks like this one has the original 216 cubic-inch (3.5 Liter) "Thrift-Master" inline six cylinder engine. This beast should give you at least 90+ horse power!
1970? Austin America, pretty cute!
1948 Ford Convertible, soooo gorgeous!
1956 Ford F-100 Truck, pretty darn nice!
Late 1960s (I think) Chevy Chevelle SS 396. Very cool!
Some Chevy station wagon, partially restored. Looks like they dropped a new motor, should move nicely!
A part Resto-Mod, part Rat Rod GMC truck. Takes a lot of hydraulics to make that thing that low...
I have a soft spot for these crazy trucks, they do make a statement "devil-may-care"!
A gorgeous 1963 Triumph, what a cool car! I'm sure it is super fun to drive (when it runs, that is...).
A really nice Triumph TR6 Convertible, mid 1970s...
A really nice Ford Mustang; don't think that engine is original, but I might be wrong...
1956 Ford Fairlane Victoria, nicely restored. Look at that chrome, love it!
1963 Ford Fairlane with the 289 cubic-inch (4.7 Liter) V8 engine. Nicely restored for sure!
1965 Ford Ranchero, love that blue!
1955 Chevrolet 210 Post ("Post" refers to the B-pillar - the vertical metal structural support post located right behind the front door).
1969 Chevrolet Camaro SS. Love that car!
A 1960s VW Transporter Kombi (Crew Cab). German utility at its finest!
Halfway up (or down, depending on where you are headed on Avenida Del Mar), there were plenty of vendors, selling all kinds of car and San Clemente related stuff. It is just a really cool event all around!
Love those San Clemente Hawaiian Shirts! Some day I will get me one (if I can find one at the thrift store)!
More cool stuff for sale!
Gibroni's Pizza, yum!!!!
The Blue Fish Bakery, that sounds very interesting! They offer salty and sweet inspired treats, yummy!
iPull-uPull Salvage yard advertising their services. Four locations in California: Pomona, Fresno, Sacramento and Stockton.
All kinds of cool stuff!
A random cool truck, I think this one belongs to one of the vendors, cool nevertheless!
No car show would be complete without a cool Dodger Viper!
A really cool old Bentley, a car fit for a Queen or a King!
Mid 1960s Pontiac Bonneville, beautiful indeed!
1950 Buick Super Estate Wagon, one of the last Woodies, beautifully restored... Love that chrome smile, looks like the car could just eat you up!
1964 Ford Galaxie 500, masterfully lowered and restored.
I think this is a Pontiac GTO, given the Tri-Power triple-carburetors.
1966 Chevrolet Suburban, four-wheel drive. Cool!
Mid-1960 Austin-Healey. Love that British Racing Green!
Another crazy lowered GMC truck, 1970 something. Just watch out for those speed bumps!
Mid-1950s Chevy Bel Air, love that yellow!
The most gorgeous Chevy Chevelle SS Custom. Look at the engine compartment, can't get much cleaner than that!
1951 Ford Coupe, customized to the max.
Look at that engine, they must have used shoe horns to get it in! Insanely detailed!
1957 Chevrolet Bel Air, as nice as they come. They don't make em like this anymore, what a shame!
People love their old Ford Broncos!
Another gorgeous Chevrolet Bel Air. They never should have stopped making these!
Well, the organizers couldn't help themselves, they had to sneak in a Ferrari! Well, we gotta love the 1979 308 GTS, a fine car indeed, and being a 1979, it is indeed a classic!
1957 Ford Thunderbird, a lovely bird indeed!
1958 GMC with wonderful patina, sporting bottle cap magnets! Looks like this old truck has seen a lot of work in it's 68 years, and still running strong!
A late 1970s Ford Ranchero, heavily customized. I can guarantee that's not the original engine!
1958 Ford Fairlane 500 Skyliner Hard Top Convertible. I see this guy at the San Clemente Cars and Coffee pretty much all the time. It takes 7 electical motors, 4 lift jacks, 10 power relays & solenoids, 10 limit switches and 610 feet of electrical wiring to make that hard top work! Obviously a well loved car!
Did I tell you that people love their old Ford Broncos?
I think this is a Firebird, but I could be wrong...
A late model Chevrolet El Camino, with a 427 cubic-inch (7 Liter) engine, if one is to believe the emblem, which would make it an engine swap. It is a lovely car, no matter what!
1956 Ford F-100 pick up truck, with a swapped-out engine. A nice Resto-Mod for sure!
|
A late 1970s Ford Bronco XLT Ranger. A Bronco nevertheless, and people love em!
1970s Mercury Cougar. A hot Cougar indeed!
A 1940s truck made into a Led Sled Low Rider, how cool is that! Takes a lot of hydraulics to make it all work!
1941 Chevrolet Special Deluxe, looks like it is beautifully restored to its original glory!
1968 Chevrolet Chevelle, apparently this one benefits from a 522 cubic-inch (8.55 Liters) V8. Hold on, here we go!
1964 VW Karmann-Ghia, a perfect little cruiser for those sultry southern Californa evenings!
1960 Austin-Healey 3000 (2.912 cubic centimeters) Mk 1 BT7 Roadster, four-seater. Nevertheless, the rear seats are a pair of small jump seats, primarily for small children (and no seat belts in the back, I'm sure). Those were the days!
1958 Austin-Healey "Bugeye" Sprite Mark 1. Love that hood!
Now that's the coolest Street Rod ice delivery truck ever! Should move really well with that swapped out engine!
Mid-1960 Buick Riviera. Darn cool!
Late 1960s Ford Mustang. You know them well, I'm sure!
Late 1960s - early 1970 Lincoln Continental with the hidden headlights. Cool car indeed!
1956 Chevrolet Nomad, beutifully restored. Such a nice car!
Another nice Ford Mustang, late 1960?
A really nicely restored and modified Chevrolet Bel Air, what a beautiful car!
I must admit I don't really know what this is, but it is super nice nevertheless!
Chevrolet El Camino with the 327 cubic-inch (5.36 Liters) engine. Nice!
No, this is not a Ford Bronco, it is an International Harvester Scout 4-wheel drive utility vehicle. Pretty cool!
And here is the Bricklin SV-1 (or Safety Vehicle One), a safety-focused sports car produced between 1974 and 1976. This one is exceptionally well taken care of!
1966 Dodge Charger, complete with a V8 engine!
A nice 1960s Ford Ranchero, looks like they will go and catch some waves after the car show!
It is about 11AM, and we finally came to the end of the show. Look at the crowd, looks like all of San Clemente is here! This is a great show for sure, can't wait for next year!
Comments
Post a Comment