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ENJOYING YOUR NEXT CAR SHOW

Entering your Mustang in a car show can be a lot of fun. If you want to have a chance at winning, make sure your car is looking its best. Just remember, it's the fun of the show, and not winning, that counts. To prepare your Mustang for a car show, we present some helpful tips to help increase your chances of driving home with a trophy.

    1. Pre-register for the show. A package will be waiting for you when you arrive and it will save a lot of time and confusion.

    2. Wash, dry, wax, vacuum and dust your Mustang the night before. Pay particular attention to areas of the car that aren't usually cleaned, such as inside door jambs, the back of your wheels, etc.

    3. Assemble a "Show Box" of cleaning products you will need to take to the show to touch up your Mustang -- tire cleaner, wax, window cleaner, duster, etc. Bring a spray bottle full of water for general cleaning.

    4. You will be showing your Mustang with the hood and trunk open so make sure the entire car is clean. Again, spending more time on the underside of the hood, the firewall, trunk padding, etc.

    5. Bring a folding chair, sunglasses, a hat and a cooler of ice with cold beverages. You are going to be at the show for many hours, and probably in the sun.

    6. Arrive at the show slightly early. This will give you more time to make those final cleaning touches to your Mustang. Park in the area for your class. There will be members of the Host Club to direct you.

    7. Clean off any dirt and dust your Mustang has picked up along the way. Shine tires, chrome and dust the interior, and place your "Please Don't Touch" signs.

    8. When finished, place your Show Box of cleaners under the rear end of the car, not back in the trunk.

    9. If you brought a chair, set it up behind your Mustang.

    10. Feel free to wander and look at other cars in the show, but don't leave your car for too long.

    11. Trophies are awarded at the end of the show, so do not leave before the show is over.

    12. If you win a trophy, congratulations. If not, take a look at the the Mustangs that did win to see what you can do differently next time.

    13. Most importantly, just have a good time. Fun is what this hobby is all about!

While at the event, the main objective is to show off your Mustang and have fun doing it. Since you're going to spend nearly 6 hours at any given show, you can use the following suggections to make the show a pleasurable and memorable event.

    1. Car shows are long. Try not bring small children or pets with you. Dogs and clean cars are not a good mix, and small children get bored quickly and have a tendancy to touch things.

    2. Be prepared to answer lots of questions about your Mustang.

    3. Wear comfortable shoes. You will be doing a lot of walking looking at other cars.

    5. Wear your hat and/or sunglasses to avoid over-exposure to the sun. Remember, car shows take place outside.

    6. Feel free to compliment owners on their Mustang but never criticize any car no matter how bad it looks. This car is someone's pride and joy, and it's a safe bet your Mustang looked just as bad or worse some time in the past.

    8. Bring your camera and take lots of photos. Remember to bring batteries and film (or memory, if your camera is digital).

    9. Never touch anyone else's car. That "Please Don't Touch" sign means you as well as everyone else at the show.

    10. Buy some over-priced food and a tee-shirts or a hat. Most car shows are fund raisers for a worthy cause.

    11. Pay attention to what's going on around you. Cars will be moving in and out of tight spots.

    12. A car show can be a nice family outing, but please pay attention to your children at all times.

We hope these suggestions help you enjoy your next car show. Good luck, and we'll see you at the show!

Concours Mustangs, What's The Deal

Many classic car lovers dream of owing a Mustang that all our friends and neighbors will envy. We attend car shows and walk up and down the rows, wishing we had a Mustang worthy of display. Although most of us own Mustangs that look great and may even win a trophy or two at local competitions, they usually aren't worthy of concurs. Bringing a Mustang up to concurs level is no easy task. People who say "well that's about as good as I can make it," will never make it to concurs. A concurs show is the ultimate in restoration skills. A true concurs car is no longer driven. One tiny chip in the paint means points off. Every centimeter of a car will be inspected by expert judges. If the car isn't perfect, off come the points. In most concurs shows, a car begins with 100 points. An expert judge will then go over the car with a very fine tooth comb, so to speak. This judge's job is to find flaws on the car. Each flaw or error in restoration subtracts points. When a judge is done scrutinizing the vehicle, the points are added up and subtracted from 100. This number will be the final score for the car. The car with the highest score wins. First of all, the paint must be perfect. No scratches, no chips, no bubbles no streaks. Even dust is enough for a car to lose points. Yes, even dust. Judges know what color your car should be based on the VIN. If your Mustang has gone through a color change, you might as well forget entering your car in a concurs show. Chrome must glisten and have no pits or dings. This goes for the body as well. Even the tiniest ding or ripple means lots of points. Dirt in a headlight or tail light housing is unacceptable as well. Your engine and engine compartment must be clean enough to eat off. Spark plug wires must curve a certain way. All radiator fins must be perfectly straight. Tie wraps and electrical tape will get you laughed out of the show. Just as the paint needs to be the correct color, you must also have the correct engine that matches the VIN plate. Everything in the car must be original or an original replacement. If your Mustang is supposed to have an Autolite battery and you slapped in a bargain priced DieHard, you will lose points. The interior of a concurs Mustang looks better than the day it left the showroom. The carpeting must be spotless as well as the seats. Gauges and the entire dashboard must be flawless. The steering wheel can show no signs of wear and there must not be a single fingerprint on the glass or anywhere else in the car. Even the brake and gas pedals must look like new without footprints. With this amount of nit-picking, you can see why these Mustangs are not driven to shows. Concurs cars arrive in nice clean climate-controlled carpeted trailers. They are carefully unloaded and driven slowly to their rightful spot. Then the owners will work feverishly to clean the tires (which are resting on pads or carpet between the rubber and the concrete) and get rid of any dirt or dust that has somehow settled on the car. You will see lots of feather dusters at a concurs show. Car owners will lightly dust their car every few minutes until the judge arrives. You might think owners of concurs Mustangs are "anal retentive." Why would anyone want to own a car that can't be driven? To the non-Mustang enthusiast, this sounds moronic. You have spent thousands of hours and thousands of dollars to build the ultimate machine that will quietly sit in a garage for most of it's life and may come out for two or three days every year. This is what concurs is all about. These cars are not restored to be functional daily drivers. They are restored to be perfect specimens of they unique make and model.