What makes a car show great?

The Rundown

For 10 years, Wekfest has been the leading name in import car shows or “Automotive Showcases” as they would describe it. They’ve outlasted the lesser and flashier shows that came before them and Super Street Magazine calls them the best car show in the nation. This leads me to the question I found myself revisiting over the course of the day: What makes a car show great?

Full disclosure: I’m not a “car show guy.” But I probably should be a “car show guy.” I’ve been to SEMA several times, went to a few car shows that bragged of hot temperatures after sunsets and other shows that end with the abbreviation “fest.” I even own a car whose functionality aligns more with the show scene than it does regular life. But atlas, I’m not really a car show guy. I enjoy them, but the details escape me. So let’s see if we can figure out what makes a car show good and why Wekfest is good.

Is it the location?

Location is often ranked as the primary concern for any event organizer. After all, you can’t have a show if you don’t have a place to park it. As a guy who takes photos, location is super important; I’d rather have a unique or picturesque setting for photos opposed to something super mundane.

I didn’t really know what to expect from CenturyLink field in Seattle or what the show would look like. For like a half second, I actually thought we might somehow be on the field, but then I realized that would be super dumb and highly unlikely. Once I reigned in my unrealistic ideas, I discovered the cars were all parked in one interior space of the concession area. This proved to be a little difficult for me, as I chose to shoot most of the event with a 24mm lens. For you non-photography folk, this means I needed to put a decent amount of space between me and the cars, and it often resulted in me politely waiting for crowds to exit my frame.

Realizing that I (literally) had a skewed view, I asked Gerard from SerialNine what he thought of the event and location. He assured me that it very much seemed as if they allowed adequate space between the cars. He also mentioned that the size of the show was good and because it was limited one space, it didn’t require one to navigate the arena looking for cars. He also pointed out that he enjoyed the lighting.

So, the location was good – maybe even great – but it wasn’t mind blowing. However, I think we can say location alone doesn’t make a show amazing. I’ve been to shows with amazing locations that weren’t as well received as Wekfest.

Is it the entertainment and vendors that make a show great?

Gerard actually pointed this out to me as well. The vendors all seemed on brand for Wekfest: “Polishing compounds and general bullshit.” When I think back, he was right. In fact, the line-up to the Never content booth was so long, it seemed more like they were hosting Wekfest at their event instead of the other way around. To that end, it’s very rare to see that type of vendor engagement at a show.

Secondly, I often find myself wishing the DJs would chill out at car shows. The usual steady playlist of songs from The Fast and the Furious or Need for Speed Underground were almost completely absent from the show – along with the dance crews and models who are always getting in the way of the cars I’m trying to shoot.

Wekfest was surprisingly stripped down to the basics and required very little extras on top of the cars, which makes me think that the lack of entertainment doesn’t really have any effect on car shows.

Is it the event organizers?

Are event organizers responsible for making car shows great? I think the simple and obvious answer is yes. I’ve heard nothing but good things about the people behind Wekfest.

However, I have been to other events where I believe the event organizers deliver on event planning, but the overall event still doesn’t stack up to Wekfest. An event organizer can be amazing, but I’m not sure that means they’ll always attract the best cars to their show, and without great cars it’s not really a great car show.

How do you attract nice cars?

Short answer: Be Wekfest with 10 years’ experience under your belt and all the clout of being a cool car show. This will help attract cars from up to 20 hours away. It was interesting, as many people I talked to welcomed the lack of RWB/libertywalk/RocketBunny cars at the event.

To quote Mitch Fleischer (winner of best Mark II): “I enjoyed seeing variety, not 100k cars that don’t look good.”

Eric Zapata – who apparently made the jump from the rolling car show of Final Bout to just straight car show competitor/winner – pretty much felt the same as Mitch, but used his words more politely. He explained: “It’s one of the top shows in the US, and the name usually means ‘best of the best.’ For the most part anyway. Kinda like Final Bout.” He also went on to explain that he didn’t expect to see any RWBs either.

Closing

Realistically, it’s not just one thing that makes a car show great. You need to attract the right people, cars and vendors and put them all in one place and maybe to do that, you have to be Wekfest. Maybe that’s what made this show so special to the people who attended. A few people have described it as the car show for people who don’t like car shows. I think they’re half right when they say that. It’s not for people who don’t like car shows, but perhaps it’s for those who aren’t fond of import car shows in the more played-out format we’ve become used to over the years.

Wekfest managed to strip away the gimmicks and the loud noises that plague most car shows and left us with a room full of well-built cars to admire. It might not be the car show we deserve, but it’s the one we need right now.