Many local car collectors view their vehicles as rolling museums, preserving the technology, history and culture of the years they were designed, manufactured and sold.
On Saturday, March 23, the downtown Naples Depot grounds will turn into a living automotive museum featuring more than 100 faithfully restored antique cars and trucks as the Naples/Marco Island Region of the Antique Automobile Club of America holds its annual Antique Car Show from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth, Rudy Socey and Grant Simon with their cars (1930 Ford Model A, 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway, and 1959 Willys Jeep truck) in Naples.
“The AACA classifies a vehicle as an antique if it was manufactured at least 25 years ago,” says show chairman Gary Doner. “So the vehicles in this month’s show will include models from the early 1900s through the mid-1990s, valued from $20,000 to nearly a million dollars. Some of them are very rare.”
A timeline of automotive history is reflected in this year’s list of entries, including a 1903 Reo, a 1926 Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost, a 1931 Duesenberg Model J, a 1941 Packard 110 coupe, a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air, a 1963 Studebaker Hawk, a 1970 AMC Javelin, a 1985 Cadillac convertible, and a 1991 Nissan Figaro, along with 85 more restored cars and trucks.
Throughout the day, a team of judges will inspect and score each vehicle competing for several trophies, and spectators are invited to cast their ballots for the People’s Choice Award. Winners will be announced at a ceremony set for 2:30 p.m.
“We encourage people to ask the owners questions about their cars,” Gary says, “especially if you recognize a model from your own driving days. Our club members have fabulous stories you’ll never hear unless you ask them.”
Read on for a sampling of such stories from three AACA members planning to show their antique vehicles at the March 23 event:
1930 Ford Model A Deluxe Blindback Sedan
1 of 5
Morgan Hornsby/Naples Daily News
Rudy Socey and his 1930 Ford Model A in Naples on February 7, 2019.
2 of 5
Morgan Hornsby/Naples Daily News
A 1930 Ford Model A, belonging to Rudy Socey in Naples on February 7, 2019.
3 of 5
Morgan Hornsby/Naples Daily News
Details of a 1930 Ford Model A, belonging to Rudy Socey in Naples on February 7, 2019.
4 of 5
Morgan Hornsby/Naples Daily News
Details of a 1930 Ford Model A, belonging to Rudy Socey in Naples on February 7, 2019.
5 of 5
Morgan Hornsby/Naples Daily News
A 1930 Ford Model A, belonging to Rudy Socey, drives away, as seen through a 1959 Willy's Jeep truck, belonging to David Chynoweth, in Naples on February 7, 2019.
Rudy Socey was a New Jersey high-schooler in 1961 when his father gave him this rare four-door relic from the dawn of America’s Great Depression. All went well until 1967, he remembers, when “vandals broke into the garage, ripped apart the car’s interior, and tried to set it on fire. Nobody was ever caught, but I promised myself I would restore my Ford someday.”
It took 47 years for that “someday” to arrive, but Rudy kept that promise. As he got married, became a father, and practiced law as a trial attorney, he moved his cherished Ford Model A five times, finally settling full-time in Naples in 2014. His thoughtful restoration included painting the Ford body in a subtle two-tone combination of green and gray. Red wheels added a pop of color, and he replaced the original angora goat hair upholstery with authentic Bedford cord wool broadcloth.
As the current Naples/Marco Island AACA president, Rudy and his wife, Eileen, enjoy dressing in period clothing from the 1930s when they show their beloved Ford Model A.
1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway
1 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
2 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
3 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
4 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
5 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
6 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
7 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
8 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
9 of 9
Morgan Hornsby
Grant Simon and his 1964 Mercury Monterey Breezeway at Veterans Park in Naples.
Grant Simon was 17 years old in 1964, waiting for his father, a self-taught engineer, to round the corner driving the newest member of his Pittsburgh family: “Mom’s New Car!”
It was a brand-new $2,700 Mercury Monterey Breezeway, dazzling white with an optimistic turquoise interior. The four-door sedan powered by a fierce 390 V8 engine features a design detail bound to attract attention at the Naples show.
It’s the reverse-slant rear window, controlled by a switch on the dashboard.
“You could open that window an inch or two, or all the way,” Grant recalls.
Kids could sit in the back seat and eat their McDonald’s hamburgers off the trunk lid, and the window created cooling breezes while driving during steamy Pittsburgh summers.
As he shows his classic Mercury at the Depot show, Grant plans to share family memories of the white whale, nicknamed “Moby Dick” by one of his teenage buddies.
Grant recalls the day he took his driving test in the behemoth, which measures 191/2 feet long by 80 inches wide.
“I should have used my dad’s Volkswagen Beetle instead,” he says with a laugh.
After his mom died, he inherited the Mercury, which still gets 14 miles per gallon.
“It’s never needed a serious restoration,” he says.
1959 Willys FC-150 Jeep Truck
1 of 6
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth with his 1959 Willy's Jeep truck in Naples.
2 of 6
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth with his 1959 Willy's Jeep truck in Naples.
3 of 6
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth with his 1959 Willy's Jeep truck in Naples.
4 of 6
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth with his 1959 Willy's Jeep truck in Naples.
5 of 6
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth with his 1959 Willy's Jeep truck in Naples.
6 of 6
Morgan Hornsby
David Chynoweth with his 1959 Willy's Jeep truck in Naples.
David Chynoweth, of Bonita Springs, bought his first Jeep when he was 17. Memories of four-wheeling in the woods and on the beach made him a lifelong fan, inspiring him to buy several collectible Willys models over the years.
His latest acquisition is a 1959 Willys Forward Control Jeep truck equipped with a cast iron Hurricane engine. His very rare Willys will be parked on the Depot show field and David will be on hand to share the story of its 28,000-mile journey. The Toledo, Ohio-based Willys Company made only 1,546 units of this Jeep truck in 1959, selling most of them as work vehicles for government and military use. Very few still exist.
About the show
The Naples/Marco Island Region AACA Antique Automobile Show charity event is 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, March 23 at the downtown Naples Depot, 1051 Fifth Ave. S.
The requested donation for admission is $5 per adult, free for children. Show proceeds benefit Boy Scout Troop 274 and Friends of the Collier County Museum.
Food and beverages to be sold by the Golden Gate High School Band Boosters.
For more information, visit naplesmarcoaaca.org or call show chairman Gary Doner at 239-860-2726.