Radwood is a new series of car show events that take place around the USA, plus Japan and the UK, featuring cars, trucks, motorcycles, music, and fashion from the 1980s and 1990s. This literally is not your father's car show. Generation X, Millennials, and younger generation enthusiasts have less interest in 1957 Chevys, 1964 1/2 Ford Mustangs, and 1969 Dodge Chargers than they do in 1992 Dodge Vipers, 1984 Ford Mustang SVO turbos, and 1987 Chevy Celebrity Eurosport VRs. For its first visit to Detroit we sent Kelly, a child of the 1980s who once owned a Chevy Cavalier Z24, to check it out.
By: Kelly Lett
On a much too hot late September weekend, Radwood Detroit took over the West Riverfront Park lawn, bringing with it the bodacious awesomeness that is 80s and 90s culture. As a child of the 80s, and a teen of the 90s, I was stoked when given this assignment. My editor knows my love for that era and the cars that went with it, he casually mentioned that I might even see my first true love there, I laughed and said I hope you’re right.
Plus, I’ve gotten a little "gag me with a spoon" when it comes to classic car shows. Chrome and 50s nostalgia is fine, but it isn’t rad. The 80s brought us a time traveling DeLorean, and a knight riding Trans-Am that talked back to the handsome, young, crime-fighting David Hasselhoff. We were already living in the future in the 80s, and cars represented that. That futuristic detailing was clearly on display at Radwood Detroit, pop-up headlights flared across the park grounds.
My first true love was, of course, my first car. In 1996, I was handed the keys to my mother’s 1985 Chevy Cavalier convertible (all black with a solid red interior), which I drove from then on, until the day it died. Though I secretly already had a set of keys, as I’d had my own set made when I began stealing it from her at age 14. Don’t tell her though!
It wasn’t all futuristic and 8bit nostalgia though. Nestled in among the neon paint jobs and giant sedans was what in my mind will forever be the ultimate "Mom car": A faux wood tan and beige station wagon with backwards facing third seat. The amount of strange fuzzy childhood memories I have attached to that particular vehicle might only be parallel to the amount of mini Care Bears I lost in the crevasses of the fold down seat.
I was so small when my family had one of those that I was able to roll like a ball around the way-back when the seat was collapsed. I often did this as my mother yelled at me to get in my seat and buckle up. Don’t judge, the 80’s were a whole different time when it came to transporting children.
As the 1990’s arrived the future seemed less high tech, things softened up a bit. Japanese car makers introduced wide wheel flares, and rounded out the hoods and rear ends. Small, efficient, aerodynamic jelly beans had a brief decade of popularity. But, in response Dodge created The Viper, just a concept for the 1989 Detroit auto show, it nevertheless went into production for 1992. Bright red and ready to be ticketed, the Dodge Viper was known for being loud, clunky and hot, as in physically hot and uncomfortable for the driver and passenger. My mom wanted one, she loves little sports cars, but my Dad smiled, rolled his eyes, and upgraded her mini-van.
This show being in Detroit, the organizers of Radwood convinced Fiat Chrysler to bring out that 1989 show car! It was joined by several other privately owned, production models in the park. Also under the Dodge branded big top, was the 1981 Dodge M4S concept car, as made famous in the 1986 cult classis "The Wraith".
With the hard push away from traditional bodies on frames, and into lighter more aerodynamic unibody cars, and composite body panels, the higher fuel efficiency cars of the 90’s gave up a lot when it came to style. Many contemporary automotive writers described them as melted bars of soap, or lozenges. As a nation it seemed like we were starting to embrace the reality of thinking globally and acting locally when it came to our vehicles and climate change.
Then the explosive popularity of the Sports Utility Vehicle brought all that to a crashing halt. Minivans (which had already replaced mom's uncool station wagon) became the new symbol for the loss of one's cool. But SUV’s meant you were the hip soccer mom who went to that cool new coffee shop, Starbucks, before each game. Linda and her thermos filled with homebrewed coffee were so passe’. Never mind the fact that early SUV’s were so top heavy they had the regrettable habit of flipping over while driving down the freeway.
The only real way to step back in time to the rad age is to go to a Radwood show, but perhaps the next best thing is with a big gallery of brightly colored pictures? You wouldn't think Detroit, near the river, would be hot, sunny, and pleasant in early autum, but I guess we all just got lucky?
See you next year at Radwood 2020
Period dressed show goers rest in the shade
Volkswagen came with some new cars, and some classics
Rabbits, Sciroccos, Corrados, Audis, and Jettas
Lots of room, so come and show your youngtime classic next year
The 1991-96 Buick Roadmaster is GM's last hurrah of traditional American Luxury
The 80s and 90s had their own bright and exciting color palette
Bright colors and a custom paint job attempt to make a minivan cooler
Simply called Toyota Pickup, most were worked half to death
Period correct portable video games compliment the 1980s interior
Even full size trucks were small in the 1980s, but mini trucks were truly mini
The owners of the Delorean really get into the scene
Novelty "hoverboard" movie tie in does not really hover
Costumes that go with the car
Interior decked out with "Back to the Future" details and props
Big boxy limo get you to the show like a boss
Tiny Toyota Starlet poses next to an 80s wannabe starlet
Interior of this Starlet is all business and meant for track days
The official top down cruiser of 1980s young urban professionals off to the country club
German leather looks buttery soft
Honda turned up the luxury and sportiness when they created Acura
Sharing a restrained style with Honda, the Acura did it with a little more excitement
Grippy sport seats, precision shifter, and feedback galore from the wheel
Understated compared to other brands, this wing was huge for a factory Honda item.
Radwood is fun for the whole family, and look, dad has hair again!
The Trueno, aka RWD Toyota Corolla sports coupe was affordable fun
Yes, that is the least stealthy Dodge Stealth parked next to it
Stealth, Trueno, Skyline, exciting cars in exciting colors
This Skyline has to compete with the blueness of Detroit's sky
Now here is a serious rear wing!
The air cooled Porsche 911 is a timeless classic
The shape of a 911 is unmistakable to anyone who was into fast cars during the past 50 years
The only way this gets more 1980s is with the Miami Vice "slant nose" body kit
Last gen. Mazda RX-7 pairs with a girl straight out of Saved By the Bell
More butter soft German luxury leather, this time a Porsche 928
Porsche 928/4 with a more sedate colored Nissan Skyline
The luxury accommodations of a Toyota Crown Limo
The traditional luxury look at the front of the Toyota Crown
Toyota Crown owners nevertheless dress like young fashionable 80s kids
The tiny and body 1st gen VW Jetta
VW Corrado with Ultimate 80s paint details.
Portable phone with it shoulder bag sull of batteries
A pair of happy Mazda Miatas
More weird JDM luxury, and a stylish show goer
If you were in a Mustang, you saw a lot of these taillights, until Ford made the H.O. 5.0 in 1986
Saab 900 show off how weird it is compared to the traditional Pontiac and
A rare car even in the UK where it was built, the Cosworth Escort was faster than a BWM M3
There is a new Toyota Supra, but it isn't nearly as pretty as the last one
The 80s Supra vs the 90s is a good example of what was happening to car design across the market
The 1980s were the era of the boxy wedge
Some 1980s style, including a BMW bike which was used to demonstrate freestyle stunt riding
This minivan lived a life of leisure, with a flashy paint job and job advertising a car stereo store
The color coordinated, period correct wheels, really make this look
See you next year at Radwood 2020
One of the more lamentable things to happen in the 1990’s was the end of the second oldest American car manufacturer and main supplier of jobs in my hometown of Lansing, Oldsmobile. It didn’t go down quietly though, near the end Oldsmobile released what I consider my favorite luxury sedan, the Aurora. Not much to look at (another smooth 90s lozenge), but the ride was as smooth as floating on a cloud, even on the roads around Detroit. The new age V8 engine put out modern power, and even with that floaty ride, nothing took turns as well as that pearl white road hog.
My parents got one and held onto it for years, I coveted it from afar and was rewarded with the keys when I moved back to Detroit 5 years ago. It lasted one final year before the underbody rusted out at last. I had a few offers from strangers wanting to purchase mine. And why not? Still today, driving around the city I see Aurora’s constantly, but there were none at Radwood. I still miss that car.
Radwood was a great chance to catch up with memories from two decades often overlooked in the annals of car reporting. Besides the cars, Radwood from the start has encouraged period dress, culture and accessories; archaic car phones and clunky boom boxes are worth extra street cred. Seeing people dress in the bright, day-glo colors of optimism that ruled those decades makes one hopeful for our future again.
