Bigger is indeed better and with the Carlisle Import & Performance Nationals, guests get the best of the automotive world, literally and figuratively. The 2023 offering runs May 12-13 and with a Showfield parked by country of origin, the 82-acre around the world adventure has something for everyone. From seminars to parts shopping and more, Import & Performance weekend isn’t just about classic cars, it’s about classy cars and the people who love them.

Imagine it now if you can; a Showfield that includes automotive excellence from at least eight different countries!  Cars and trucks representing Korea, Japan, the United States, Germany, the U.K., France, Sweden, and Italy all make up this event.  Best of all, these cars aren’t just trailered in and parked, many of them not only drive to the show, but they show the 20,000+ guests in attendance what their whip can actually do via on-site competitions.  These activities include autocross, rolling burnouts and donuts, drifting, drift limbo, low car limbo, and a rolling exhaust competition.

Cars featuring fresh styles of today and yesterday perfectly complement the special features planned in 2023.  Those features include a spotlight on Audis of all eras, a dedicated Rolls Royce display, 50 Years of the Honda Civic, race-prepared vehicles, French vehicles in Building R, and of course a general Showfield that offers the rare, unique, and exotic too.

Awards are also available in many different categories.  While there is a non-judged Showfield option, others may pick the judged Showfield.  For this, judging is done drive-thru style and managed by professional judges from eJudged.com.  In addition, there are club awards for the largest and coolest club, plus Carlisle Elite.  Carlisle Elite winners are selected by Carlisle Events’ staff based on what is deemed “cool.”  The selection process takes place on Friday of the event, encouraging showgoers to make it a true two-day experience.   

In addition to the international vehicles on display, the food court offers a nice mix of food, including select stands offering dishes representative of the automotive world.  In all, the Carlisle Import & Performance Nationals is the kind of car show that is just as educational as it is entertaining.  Discounted spectator tickets are on sale now, while the event itself is actively taking Showfield registrations.  Kids 12 and under are admitted free.  For complete details on discounted spectator admission tickets, gift cards, registering to show, becoming a vendor, and more, visit CarlisleEvents.com or call 717-243-7855 today. 

For many years at Carlisle, one man helped put together a display that showgoers loved and looked forward to checking out.  Mel Major was the mind behind the Mopar Survivors Display at the Carlisle Chrysler Nationals.  It was his idea, he fielded the submissions for consideration, and he sat under the tent with car owners as he mixed and mingled with guests.  Sadly, Mel passed away not long after the 2022 Chrysler Nationals.  While his passing is monumental within the hobby, his legacy lives on at the July 14-16, 2023 event with the return of the Mopar Survivors Display.

Powered this time around by Mel’s sons Ken and Gregg, the display once again welcomes 40+ cars that areat least 85% original.  The cars and their protective tent will be just east of the stage with ample access space for guests to walk through, photograph, and check out in person.

“Even as a participant, Mel’s Mopar Survivor Display was always one of my favorite parts of the show, if not my favorite,” said Carlisle Chrysler Nationals event manager Ed Buczeskie.  “I continue to be amazed at how many Survivors there are in this area (the Rust Belt).   Working with Mel was a pleasure and an honor,” continued Buczeskie.  “He was the greatest guy to talk to, not just about Mopars, but about anything.  He ran the entire Mopar Survivor Display and made it a turnkey operation for me.  All I had to do was provide the tent.  I am excited and looking forward to working with Mel’s sons, Gregg and Ken this summer and can’t wait to see what types of vehicles they’re able to secure for the display.”

Learn more about the display, the 2023 Carlisle Chrysler Nationals, and how you can be involved by way of CarlisleEvents.com.  If you're not showing within the tent or at the event itself, but still looking to attend as a spectator or shopper, we also offer discounted spectator admission tickets.  Make your plans today.  Full details on the event, links to purchase tickets, and more are available online or by calling 717-243-7855 today. 

There are many great car stories that come from events hosted at Carlisle.  This week's All About Cars pulls the curtain back on one such story from a Corvette loving husband and wife duo named Robert and Carrie Frampton.  In Robert's own words, learn about his trials and tribulations throughout his build, how Corvettes at Carlisle was a part of his experience and what's next for them!  
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This is my second time to build a first-generation Corvette Restomod.  My first was a 1961 Corvette project car which my wife and I found at Corvette’s at Carlisle in 1998.  I thought the project would take me approximately 2 to 3 years to complete; boy was that a miscalculation.  My 1961 Corvette build was my first experience in fiberglass repair and bodywork.  I disassembled the car in 2002 and didn’t have it back on the road until the summer of 2011.  Although it was a great experience, and the car came out beautifully, I swore I would never do that again.

Fast forward to 2020 and imagine my wife’s surprise when attending Corvette’s at Carlisle, I told her I saw a 1962 Corvette project car for sale which I was thinking about purchasing.  Against my better judgment we purchased the car.  Since I was now retired my thought was, I could build the car in two years.  The car was primed therefore I couldn’t see all of the hidden damage.

As soon as I got the car home in September 2020, I started to take it apart making a list of what I would need to rebuild it.  After the car was completely disassembled, I made a wooden dolly for the body so I could move it around the garage.  The chassis it was sitting on was from a 1959 Corvette and since I intended to buy an aftermarket chassis with a modern Corvette suspension, I sold the old chassis.  I ordered my chassis complete with a C5 front suspension and brakes, and a C4 suspension and brakes for the rear, with coil over shocks at all four corners along with power rack and pinion.

With the body on the dolly, I was able to get to the underside of the car.  I spent most of the 2020/2021 winter scraping and sanding the underside of the car.  After all of the undercoating was removed, I was able to start making repairs.  Five of the ten body mounts were damaged, the steel body mount reinforcements were missing, and the fiberglass floor supports were damaged beyond repair.  When I started scraping the undercoating from the underside of the nose of the car, I could see the nose was pieced together from several different year Corvettes.  The right front fender and the center nose piece were from a 1961.  After finding more damage on the left side I decided to remove the nose and order a new press molded one. 

The chassis was delivered in the spring of 2021 and at the same time I ordered my drivetrain for the car; a 430HP LS-3 and a 4L65E automatic transmission.  In July 2021 the engine and transmission were delivered.  From there I was able to set them up on the chassis and start to build my exhaust system, fabricate brake lines, and build the parking brake system. 

With my parts list made I started patiently waiting for 2021 edition of Corvettes at Carlisle.  The most expensive parts on my list were the front bumpers.  The bumpers that were on the car were so badly rusted through they could not be repaired.  In September 2020 I ordered a set of reproduction bumpers and as of August 2021 I still did not have them and could not get an estimated delivery date.  While attending the 2021 Corvettes at Carlisle event, I found many used bumper cores in great condition.  After looking at several bumpers and negotiating the best deal I could, I purchased them and took them immediately to one of the many chrome platers on the Carlisle Fairgrounds.  In three months, I had a perfect set of show chrome front bumpers for approximately the same price as a set of reproductions.  While at the Corvette show, I also purchased a set of C7 Z-06 chrome wheels from one of the vendors.  There are some parts for the first-generation Corvettes which are not reproduced so a swap meet (thank you Carlisle Events) or the internet are your only options.  Before my wife and I went to Carlisle in August 2021, I checked the internet prices for the parts on my list so I could compare them to the prices at Carlisle.  One of the nice things about looking for used parts at any of the Carlisle swap meets is you actually meet the people you are dealing with and you can see the part you are purchasing.  Every part I purchased at the swap meet was much cheaper than buying off the internet.  At this point I am one year into the build.

When I got home from Carlisle, I ordered the new front end with a delivery date of March 2022.  With the nose cut off at the firewall I decided to flip the car over to complete all of the repairs on the underside and apply paint.  I built another dolly and mounted it to the top of the car.  When family arrived for Thanksgiving 2021, they helped me turn the body upside down.  Little did they know they would be working for their dinner.  In February of 2022 with all repairs made and the underside painted, and with the help of family and friends, we flipped the car back over and set it on the chassis to get it ready for the new front end.

After removing the rest of the fiberglass from the old front end I found the left side hinge pillar was damaged beyond repair.  I ordered a reproduction fiberglass replacement, which took another three months to get. 

The new front end was not delivered until June 2022; approximately three months later than expected which in the long run gave me the time I needed to make the repairs to the left side hinge pillar.  With the body mounted to the chassis, I was ready to start fitting the new press molded front end.  As with any reproduction fiberglass part, there is some grinding and trimming of the part to make it fit properly.   From the middle of June 2022 through the middle of August 2022 I had installed and removed the front end a total of seven times, each time trimming and sanding for a perfect fit.  Shortly before Corvettes at Carlisle 2022 I had the front end fitted perfectly and bonded in place.  Now...all I had left to do before taking it to the painter was to fit the doors, hood, deck lid, and trunk lid; which would have to wait until after Corvettes at Carlisle. 

Off to Corvettes at Carlisle with a small list of parts I still needed which included rocker panel moldings.  There was no shortage of good used moldings allowing me to get them at a great price.  Also, while at Carlisle, we picked up our custom leather interior which we had ordered from Al Knoch Interiors during Fall Carlisle 2021.

So now I am at the two-year mark of the build, which is when I had originally hoped to have the car completely done.   I can partially blame Covid and the lack of parts availability, but I also did find a lot of surprises along the way with one of the biggest surprises coming right after attending Corvettes at Carlisle 2022.

I was working on the passenger door gaps when I realized someone had mated a '62 outer door skin to a 61 inner door shell.  Since the '62 Corvette has a unique one year only door and the inner shell being a 61 there were no provisions for mounting the arm rest.  I decided to wait for the Fall Carlisle Swap meet hoping I might get lucky and find a passenger door.  There were a few sets of doors there, unfortunately none for a '62 Corvette.  All the vendors I spoke with had sold the ones they had at the Corvettes at Carlisle show.  When I returned home, I had no choice but to search the internet for a good used door.  Finding a passenger door for a '62 Corvette wasn’t a problem, the problem was finding one undamaged.  I finally located one in California which appeared to be in good condition.  After purchasing it, it took approximately two weeks to receive it and thankfully it was in pretty good condition. I stripped the paint off, made some minor repairs, and fit it to the car.

Early January 2023 I called the painter to see when my wife and I could deliver the car to him.  On January 24^th we trailered the car to Brad Goetz of HarborVette Fiberglass Magic in Erie, PA.  Brad did an exceptionally nice job when painting our '61 Vette in 2011, so there was no question on whom we would have paint our '62 Vette.  Since Brad made our '61 Vette look perfect, I know our '62 Vette is in good hands. 

All we can do now is wait for Brad to work his magic and return the car to us so I can put the Vette back together.

Learn all about Corvettes at Carlisle, the location where Robert and his wife Carrie sourced many of their parts, in person August 24-26, 2023 at the Carlisle PA Fairgrounds.  Complete event details can be found online at CarlisleEvents.com or by calling 717-243-7855.