I was thinking of entering a car show. It would be my first. I just want to show off my car. Can I get some pointers? Do I need a framed banner? If so what does it need to include? What do you guys do?
I have an older Chevelle that I put in car shows. I have never put my '05 Mustang in one. I just don't like the idea of driving something off the lot and putting it in a show. I see a lot of guys slap a K&N filter on a new truck and enter it in a show. Drives me nutz.
I had people beg me to enter mine when mine was the only Mustang in town but I still passed.
Now don't get me wrong, what I mean is all I had was racing stripes and that is all.
You guys with extensive mods and aftermarket body kits etc are the exception. (That's just my opinion)
Judges in a show will consider that too, when judging.
Anyway, if you enter a show, Pay attention to details. That is what will set you apart. I've had cars in my class that were a shoe in to win but I beat them on the detailing.
Obviously wash your car and wax it. No bugs or tar.
There is little chrome to polish ..maybe exhaust tips . Make sure to polish your rims.
You will have your hood and trunk open. If you don't, you will miss out on points from the judges. I don't know about the rest of you , but my trunk tends to build up crud in the corners below the window. Leaves, dust that mixes with the water turns to mud.
When your preping your car, (at home) open your hood and trunk just as if it was at a show. Then inspect it. Be picky! Make the judges have to look for minor things.
Also, this is a trick I like to do. When you park your car at the show, turn the tires 1/2 way. Then, spray the treads of the visible treads of the tire with Armor All, Tire Wet ...etc...(any part that is visible).
Everybody sprays the outside and it leaves a line from clean to dirty and when your next to somebody who has not done this, your tires will definetly pop.
Make sure you bring items to detail your car through out the day. Usually you are there a few hours before they get judged and a lot can happen in this time. Rain/Dust/Fingerprints..etc.
make sure you seat belts are positioned well and both seats are set to the same position.
It's not as impressive on newer vehicles, but the original window stickers, manuals, Brochures are nice to lay in the trunk.
Newer car classes are usually about the cleanliness and modifications.
Judges don't really have to look for Bondo, Sagging Doors, Leaky differentials, worn weather stipping... etc.
Just clean it real good and show off what you got!
Those are all great points and I especially like the tip about turning the tires to get better spray coverage.
I kind of agree with the idea of not wanting to take a new car to a show because how hard is it to take a new one and win BUT you'd be surprised how much even a couple of weeks on the road can put dirt and grime in places you'd never think of.
It is about the details. The first and only show we were in was in our 96 GT and it was one year to the day that we bought it. I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned... and then cleaned some more. I obsessed and obsessed and obsessed some more and it paid off. We ended up getting a first place trophy in the daily driven class and beat cars that were garage kept and babied from day one. At the time we were living in a duplex and the car saw ALL the Kansas elements (wind, rain, hail, snow, cats flying by, etc.).
So the point? Like Legend says... it's all in the detail cleaning.
Good luck and have fun. You'll have people there that basically go to shows professionally and it's all about bragging rights to them. Don't let them take the fun out of your show. Go, have a fun time, meet some great people and be proud of your car. That's what it's all about.
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66 Coupe Tahoe Turq - 200, Pertronix & Flamethrower, 3 Row Rad, Cliff. 6/2 96 GT Vert Laser Red - FMS pulleys, Bullet ProM, BBK CAI, Prof. Prod. Elbow and 70mm TB, MAC Off-Road H, Borla side exhaust, Tokicos, B&M Ripper, 18x10 & 18x9 DD Bulletts 06 GT Tungsten, UIP, Red Leather, Stick, 18" blades, Steeda CAI, SCT XCal 2 w/ MC Racing 91 tune, MACs, BMR SP010 springs, BMR Adj Panhard, CDC ducktail & quarter louvers, Rear louver, painted black stripes
I would agree with the others. It's all about clean and shine. If you want a display, I would include facts about your car (factory) and any mods that you've done. I've entered into a national mustang / ford powered show next month. Our local club is hooking up with a club coming through from Nebraska. At last count, we will have approx 60 cars traveling to the show, with the largest group close to 40. I decided to go for 3 reasons. 1. Represent our club. 2. See how many others have the "dream hood." 3. Drool over all the other cars and maybe pick up some ideas for my own.
There is one consistant thing I've found at any show I've gone to. Everybody loves to talk about their car. Have fun.
I see you're in Wichita. It was actually the "Classic II Cobra" show and 7th Annual Mustang and Ford Powered Show and Swap that we got our trophy in. It was run by the South Central Kansas Mustang Club back in May of 2000. Man, seems like a million years ago. It was either at Towne East or West... I always get those two confused.
I'd love to get in to the shows again but my wife and I just don't have the time. We always talked about each showing one for fun. Maybe some day.
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66 Coupe Tahoe Turq - 200, Pertronix & Flamethrower, 3 Row Rad, Cliff. 6/2 96 GT Vert Laser Red - FMS pulleys, Bullet ProM, BBK CAI, Prof. Prod. Elbow and 70mm TB, MAC Off-Road H, Borla side exhaust, Tokicos, B&M Ripper, 18x10 & 18x9 DD Bulletts 06 GT Tungsten, UIP, Red Leather, Stick, 18" blades, Steeda CAI, SCT XCal 2 w/ MC Racing 91 tune, MACs, BMR SP010 springs, BMR Adj Panhard, CDC ducktail & quarter louvers, Rear louver, painted black stripes
I am a big time car show freak. So much that I am traveling 1250+ miles to enter the International Mustang Meet. Yes, I have a '05 stang. Yes, I agree, driving a car off the lot and entering in ashow seems odd to me. Now as for my car, it is not stock. Even in my first show, I wated until my Stang was "different" than other Stangs or unique.
The best advice I can give is clean, clean, and clean...even for a clean freak like me, there is always a spot that needs cleanning. remember, it is all about the details. I do have a binder that has all my paperwork (window sticker, all docs relating to the car, receipts, borochures, etc) and a photo history of the car from new to present. I spend a lot of money on little details that make a big impact. Examples: All my cleaning supplies that I carry with me to shows ar eput in a Mustang duffle bag. I paid a couple hundred dollars to have the running pony painted on the underneath side of my hood. I have a them going on my Stang. I have added interior details (door pins, aluminum bezels, aluminum levers, etc), engine detail (polished caps, covers, and other eye candy) and I clean/polish everything.
When I do a wash prior to a car show, I wash, dry, clay bar and/or painting cleaner, polish, then wax. I do a thorough cleaning of the exterior, top, interior, trunk, enigne bay, wheels, tires, and windows.
When I take mine to shows, I power wash the wheel wells, as much under the car as possible and the engine bay. Once the car is all nice and dry, I wax it with a buffer. I also clean the engine bay, engine parts with quick detailer. All the hoses and vacuum lines get Amor All to shine them up as well as all the plastic in the engine bay. Clean the underside of the hood really good. Anything that is painted in the engine bay, use quick detailer on it. Open the doors and make sure you clean all the door jams and edges well with quick detailer. When you vacuum the car, use a high flow vacuum so you can pick up the smallest pieces of dirt. Make sure all plastic has Armor All on it. Make sure your leather seats are nice and shiney. Make sure all windows are not streaked. In the trunk, this is where you would normally have all your documentation and anything related to the car. Make sure it is vacuumed and shined well. Make sure your rims are shined as far as you can reach. It is better if you take off the wheels and clean the inside. Clean every crack and crevis you see.
On your sign, include the year, make, model, 1 of how many that were made with those options for that year, list all mods and acknowledge the ones who has worked on your car such as a body shop. You can include a picture of your car as a watermark if you like but the design is up to you.
Here is a link to the sign that I had made up. Yes it has a spelling error.
I've entered my 05' in a few car shows. I've done hjust about all of the above with no prizes yet. You will be surprised on how "political" even a car show can be. Hopefully you know one of the judges or just made a fat donation to the organization sponsoring the show. Anyway, good luck. Hopefully the show isn't anywhere in NY cus there partial to Chevy's around here.
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05' GT Premium, Triple Black, Hurst Short Throw Shifter, DiabloSport Performance Tune for 93 Octane, FRPP Spring Lowering Kit, Auto Meter Gauges and Tach. Light, White 10" Rally Stripes, K & N CAI, White Faced Steeda Gauges, 8" Shortie Ant., 18" Chrome Deep Dish Rims with Toyo TS-1S's, Strut Tower Brace, Borla Catback Exhaust System, Red Line Tuning Hood Lift Kit, Eclipse AVN 5500 Nav. System, 6.5" kappa speakers, 12" Subwoofer, 500w Kicker Amp., 3.73 Yukon Gears
I think the judges also like originality. I've beat out many cars, because mine is so different. Of course, it's also spotlessly clean. And like the others said, it's the details that win. I always close my a/c vents and make sure they face the same way. Same with all my fluid caps in the engine bay.
But, clean, clean, and clean. My detail kit includes medical swabs for getting in those tight areas, a swiffer duster which is great for cleaning behind hoses and hard to reach places as well as the usual assortment of tire shine, wax, etc.
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'05 Sonic Blue GT w/ '07 V8 engine, 5-sp, IUP, Beige leather interior, nothing else -
just the way I wanted it. (1 of 113)
OK, so I've added a few things to it. Check my Profile - too many to list here.
Wow your banner looks awsome? Can you give some details on how you did that? Did you do that on a PC with Photo Shop and then just take it to a printer or something? That really looks bad azz. Nice job.
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Originally Posted by 05GTBlue
On your sign, include the year, make, model, 1 of how many that were made with those options for that year, list all mods and acknowledge the ones who has worked on your car such as a body shop. You can include a picture of your car as a watermark if you like but the design is up to you.
Here is a link to the sign that I had made up. Yes it has a spelling error.
I love taking the stang to car shows. I've won 3 out of about 5 shows I went to last year. You get addicted after the first car show you go to. Ditto on all the advice above. Especially clean under the hood and get as much dirt as possible off from under the car and in the wheelwells, etc. The one day I spent 8 hours getting ready for a show, and man did it feel good when it payed off and beat a older saleen stang worth a couple more thousand $.
I haven't opened my trunk at the shows because the light stays on in the trunk, and I don't want to feel stupid when i have to get a jump or call a tow truck just because the batterys dead. Anyone know how to turn that light off in the '05 stangs just for the shows?
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2005 Ford Mustang GT *Black Sunshine* Current Mods: head & taillight covers, red tri-bar pony floor mats, sequential tail lights, chrome skull & flame pedals, red wire covers, underhood billet caps/covers 1990 Ford Mustang LX Convertable *White Lightning*
Could the guys in the shows that have banners post thier banners too please? O5GTBLUE posted his and it's nice. I was looking for some other ideas. I think it adds a special touch.
I haven't opened my trunk at the shows because the light stays on in the trunk, and I don't want to feel stupid when i have to get a jump or call a tow truck just because the batterys dead. Anyone know how to turn that light off in the '05 stangs just for the shows?
I always thought the same, however, a couple days ago I left my trunk open while cleaning the car and notice my trunk light was off. My first thought was great, another bulb to replace. Not so. After about 15-20 minutes, the light shuts off.
2005 Mustang GT Car Show ToDo's 
