Another Labor Day weekend, and another trip to Lime Rock Park for their vintage car weekend. The signage at the track made it clear that “Historic Festival 41” marks the 41^st year for this treasure. As I have related in previous posts, racing is done on Friday, Saturday, and Monday, with Sunday racing banned by local ordinance (to give the locals a break from the noise). Cleverly, this becomes an excuse for the track to host a car show known as “Sunday in the Park”. I’ve been attending for over 30 years, and Lime Rock never fails to disappoint with the uniqueness and quality of the motor vehicles on display. Along with Greenwich, I consider it one of the premier car shows in the Northeast.

There were a number of featured classes again this year, and two which stood out for me were the letter-series Chrysler 300s, and the pre-war MGs. The 300s on display were stunning, but I was disappointed in the small number of vehicles. The factory produced them from 1955 through 1965, but only a few of those model years were represented. Conversely, the display of pre-war MGs was plentiful. I had remarked in my recent New Hope post that one of the highlights was a ‘30s MG; at Lime Rock, there were close to a dozen such vehicles. Given that they were never officially imported into the States, I was pleasantly surprised at the turnout.

Other specialized classes included Chrysler concept cars, Japanese performance cars, and American station wagons (which basically duplicated the wagons on display at Greenwich in June). And as we have seen every year for the past decade or so, the “Gathering of the Marques” gives owners of interesting daily drivers a chance to park with cars of the same make and/or model around the track. Sightings included groups of Corvettes, Volvos, Miatas, BMWs, Alfas, and Fiats among others. But large swaths of the track were empty this year. Notable by their absence were large-scale representations of Shelby Mustangs, BMW 2002s, and domestic vehicles of any brand. At previous shows, the Shelby Mustangs alone numbered in the dozens, driven by strong club support. I’m not sure why the turnout was low; I’m just hoping that this is not a sign of diminished participation in car shows in general.

The entire day was sunny and it got quite warm by late morning, with the temps hovering just under 90 degrees F. The round-trip was greatly helped by my friend Tony, he of the NJ Alfa club, who assisted with the driving both directions, and was great company for the entire day. We got to the show just before 10am, and were headed home by 2pm, with the heat having gotten to both of us. Lime Rock is a Labor Day tradition which I plan to continue as long as possible!

 

CHRYSLER 300 LETTER CARS

 

CHRYSLER CONCEPT CARS

 

 

 

 

 

 

No signage accompanied this car above. I thought it was the Thunderbolt, but Google shows a 2-door with a retractable hardtop for that one. Can anyone identify this car?

 

 

PRE-WAR MG CARS

 

JAPANESE PERFORMANCE CARS

 

 

 

 

GERMAN CARS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BRITISH

 

 

 

 

 

VOLVO

 

 

 

FIAT

 

This 1st series Fiat 124 Sport Coupe (“AC” in Fiat-speak) is the single-headlight version from the late ’60s. It was spotted in the paddock.

 

 

 

 

 

LANCIA

 

 

 

 

 

 

ALFA ROMEO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All photographs copyright © 2023 Richard A. Reina. Photos may not be copied or reproduced without express written permission.