Elvis Presley’s Love Affair with Cars Returns to Charlotte Motor Speedway
March 07, 2014
When Elvis Presley wasn’t singing to thousands of adoring fans, he was working on his always expanding car collection. Elvis’ love affair with automobiles started when he was young and grew over time, just like his music career, ever changing and evolving.
So which famous car will be on display at the Charlotte Motor Speedway AutoFair hosted by OldRide.com on April 3 - 6? We’ll just have to wait and see. The yet to be announced special car on display at the Charlotte Auto Fair will come from Elvis Presley's Graceland in Memphis.
Last year, Charlotte Motor Speedway displayed one of his most famous cars, his 1956 Lincoln Continental Mark II, courtesy of Elvis Presley Enterprises and Graceland. The celebration of Elvis and his passion for cars will continue this year at the April 3-6 AutoFair hosted by OldRide.com as an even more famous and historic vehicle will be on display in the Showcase Pavilion. The automobile will be announced in a special unveiling at the end of March.
“We were fortunate enough to work with Elvis Presley Enterprises last year to bring the King of Rock ‘,n’Roll’s Lincoln to the spring AutoFair. The fans truly loved the chance to get up close and personal with that vehicle,” said Marcus Smith, president and general manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway.
“At the speedway, we like to make things bigger and better than the year before, and fans from around the globe will be in awe of what we’re going to display at the show in April.”
When Elvis’ career took off in the 1950s, so did his collection of vehicles. He set his sights on Cadillacs, purchasing perhaps his most famous vehicle, the Pink Cadillac, which he eventually gifted to his mother. While he served in the Army and was stationed in Germany, he bought a second-hand Volkswagen and two BMW 507s.
By the 1960s, the crooner continued his collection of Cadillacs and expanded into the Ford Lincoln market and purchased a Rolls Royce, among many other vehicles. In the 1970s, Elvis acquired a Mercedes-Benz 600 and a Ford T-Bird, in addition to a couple of Stutz Blackhawks.
Elvis didn’t just share a love for automobiles, but for speed as well. He often used to drive souped-up go karts around his Graceland property with friends and family; and his passion for horsepower extended into the multiple horses he had housed in his Graceland stables and at.
Today, Graceland has a museum dedicated to his expansive collection of cars. More than 30 vehicles are on display, including the Pink Cadillac, Harley-Davidson motorcycles, cars from his movies, a dune buggy, a pedal car, a six-door Mercedes Benz limousine, his John Deere 4010 tractor and many more.
The Charlotte Motor Speedway AutoFair hosted by OldRide.com annually attracts more than 100,000 visitors, features nearly 50 car club displays and offers a surplus of automotive parts and memorabilia for sale or trade. There’s also a collector car auction conducted by Dealer Auctions Inc. and more than 1,500 collectible vehicles of all makes and models will be available for sale in the car corral that rings the 1.5-mile super-speedway.
The AutoFair is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $10 for adults and free for kids 13 and under with a paying adult. A four-day pass is available for $30. For tickets or additional information about AutoFair or other events at Charlotte Motor Speedway, call 1-800-455-FANS or visit CharlotteMotorSpeedway.com.
source: http://www.elvis.com
March 07, 2014
When Elvis Presley wasn’t singing to thousands of adoring fans, he was working on his always expanding car collection. Elvis’ love affair with automobiles started when he was young and grew over time, just like his music career, ever changing and evolving.
So which famous car will be on display at the Charlotte Motor Speedway AutoFair hosted by OldRide.com on April 3 - 6? We’ll just have to wait and see. The yet to be announced special car on display at the Charlotte Auto Fair will come from Elvis Presley's Graceland in Memphis.
Last year, Charlotte Motor Speedway displayed one of his most famous cars, his 1956 Lincoln Continental Mark II, courtesy of Elvis Presley Enterprises and Graceland. The celebration of Elvis and his passion for cars will continue this year at the April 3-6 AutoFair hosted by OldRide.com as an even more famous and historic vehicle will be on display in the Showcase Pavilion. The automobile will be announced in a special unveiling at the end of March.
“We were fortunate enough to work with Elvis Presley Enterprises last year to bring the King of Rock ‘,n’Roll’s Lincoln to the spring AutoFair. The fans truly loved the chance to get up close and personal with that vehicle,” said Marcus Smith, president and general manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway.
“At the speedway, we like to make things bigger and better than the year before, and fans from around the globe will be in awe of what we’re going to display at the show in April.”
When Elvis’ career took off in the 1950s, so did his collection of vehicles. He set his sights on Cadillacs, purchasing perhaps his most famous vehicle, the Pink Cadillac, which he eventually gifted to his mother. While he served in the Army and was stationed in Germany, he bought a second-hand Volkswagen and two BMW 507s.
By the 1960s, the crooner continued his collection of Cadillacs and expanded into the Ford Lincoln market and purchased a Rolls Royce, among many other vehicles. In the 1970s, Elvis acquired a Mercedes-Benz 600 and a Ford T-Bird, in addition to a couple of Stutz Blackhawks.
Elvis didn’t just share a love for automobiles, but for speed as well. He often used to drive souped-up go karts around his Graceland property with friends and family; and his passion for horsepower extended into the multiple horses he had housed in his Graceland stables and at.
Today, Graceland has a museum dedicated to his expansive collection of cars. More than 30 vehicles are on display, including the Pink Cadillac, Harley-Davidson motorcycles, cars from his movies, a dune buggy, a pedal car, a six-door Mercedes Benz limousine, his John Deere 4010 tractor and many more.
The Charlotte Motor Speedway AutoFair hosted by OldRide.com annually attracts more than 100,000 visitors, features nearly 50 car club displays and offers a surplus of automotive parts and memorabilia for sale or trade. There’s also a collector car auction conducted by Dealer Auctions Inc. and more than 1,500 collectible vehicles of all makes and models will be available for sale in the car corral that rings the 1.5-mile super-speedway.
The AutoFair is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $10 for adults and free for kids 13 and under with a paying adult. A four-day pass is available for $30. For tickets or additional information about AutoFair or other events at Charlotte Motor Speedway, call 1-800-455-FANS or visit CharlotteMotorSpeedway.com.
source: http://www.elvis.com
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