Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival
The Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival is Orange County’s oldest running auto show and one of iDriveSoCal’s favorites.
And that’s because our very own Professor, Clinton Quan, has it at the top of his to-do list. So, the two-day event happens only once a year.
As the local, Southern California, summertime auto show season heats up we dispatched the Good Professor to the Muckenthaler Mansion. Hear the details in this iDriveSoCal Podcast.
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***Transcript***
Recorded May 21, 2018 @ Benztown Studios in Glendale, CA
Orange County’s Oldest Running Car Show
Clinton: The Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival, they say it’s the oldest running auto show in North Orange County. It’s a two-day event, and that’s why it’s called a car festival. On Saturdays, it’s hot rods and customs. I always go on Sunday, the big day, the Concours d’Elegance. These are the car shows that I really enjoy attending the most, are the ones that are once a year, because it really is something that’s special.
Tom: Welcome to iDriveSoCal, the podcast all about mobility from the automotive capital of the United States, Southern California. Tom Smith here, and I am joined by The Professor, Mr. Clinton Quan. Say hello Clinton.
Clinton: Hi Tom.
Tom: Today’s topic is going to be an auto show, a very special auto show that The Professor attended, what was that, just yesterday, I guess it was this past weekend, huh?
Clinton: Yes. It was just yesterday.
Tom: The Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival in Fullerton, California. That was at the Muckenthaler Estate, which is now a museum.
Clinton: Yes. It’s a museum, cultural center art gallery.
Tom: Okay, very cool. And you’ve been to this show before right?
Clinton: I’ve been the show a number of years. It’s one of the shows that I attend annually.
Tom: Tell us all about it.
Fullerton, California – Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival
Clinton: Well, the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival, they say it’s the oldest running auto show in North Orange County. It’s a two day event, and that’s why it’s called a car festival. On Saturdays it’s hot rods and customs. I always go on Sunday, the big day, the Concours d’Elegance.
Tom: You didn’t go on Saturday this year. Have you ever been on Saturday?
Clinton: I’ve never attended on Saturday. I always go on Sunday. Sunday is the big day with all the classic cars and sports cars. There’s also a big Jaguar showing there, The Jaguar Club. That’s probably one of their biggest events of the year.
Tom: Yeah, and speaking of which, I was just looking at Clinton’s pictures. If you’ve seen Clinton in some of the images on iDriveSoCal, you know that he can bust out some pretty interesting outfits. I like to call them costumes. Clinton was definitely in full regalia for yesterday’s event. He was dressed as if he was just out of a James Bond movie, driving a Jaguar perhaps, something English, with the top down through the English countryside. But, another fantastic costume as always for The Professor at an automotive show.
Clinton: Oh, thanks Tom.
Tom: Tell us about your experience there this Sunday. And it’s just once a year right?
Muckenthaler Mansion
Clinton: Yeah, it’s once a year. These are the car shows that I really enjoy attending the most, are the ones that are once a year, because it really is something that’s special. It’s one day…
Well, the Concours, it’s a one-day event. I usually get there early, so I can take some really nice photos. There was a special appearance by the original Batmobile. I don’t know if this was the actual one used in the television show, but it looked just like it, even the interior.
Tom: Nice.
Clinton: That was really, really cool. That definitely made my morning.
Tom: We’re going to try something new with this podcast. If you listen, sometimes everybody listens to podcasts a little bit differently, but if you listen on the website, it’ll be easiest for you. Starting with this one, we’re going to try posting some more pictures. We’ll have the Batmobile pictures that Clinton took, and we’ll have some other pictures that Clinton took. Just a heads up everybody, check out the idrivesocal.com. This particular post will have more images from Clinton’s experience at the car show. Now Clinton, the … What was it?
Clinton: The Jaguars?
Nearly A Royal Affair?
Tom: But anyway, back to the Jaguar that you saw at the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival, that tied into actually, the royal wedding.
Clinton: Well, it was a 1969 Jaguar E-Type in a, I guess you could it a baby blue. It looked very similar to the one that Harry and Meghan drove in their wedding. Theirs was a 1968. As soon as I saw that car it caught my attention, and I had to take a number of photos with it.
Tom Smith: Now. Let me get this straight. You know that it was similar to the car in the royal wedding, because it sounds like you were like my wife, in watching all that coverage.
Clinton: Well, I did see some coverage of it, I believe-
Tom: By choice, or were you at a sports bar, and it just happened to be on in the background?
Clinton: I was watching the news. It was pretty much covered on all the news shows.
Tom: All right. Fair enough. I watched it on the news too, but all I saw was the car that she arrived in to show off the dress. I didn’t see what they drove away in. But okay.
Clinton: It is a gorgeous car. There were several E-Types there. There was another one that was just stunning. I believe it was called an opulent silver gray. Something like that. Or, opulence silver something.
Tom: Now, we’re talking about the car show again right?
Clinton: Yes, the car show. And spoke to the owner, and he opened the car up for me. I got to see the red interior, which had been refurnished. It was just absolutely gorgeous. Those were definitely two of my very favorite cars at the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival this weekend.
Old Meets New
Tom: Okay, and what else do we have?
Clinton: Wow. There’s also a big Corvette showing. There were some classic Corvettes and new Corvettes, including the brand new Z06. My friend saw that one, and she was like, “Wow. That’s an incredible car too”
Tom: We had covered the gamut. I mean, it looked like there was-
Clinton: Well, there’s a little bit of everything.
Tom: Flipping through your pictures it looked like there was some old luxury from the 20s, 30s, but then also-
Clinton: Yes, correct.
Tom: … all the way up to brand new.
Clinton: Well, with any Concours d’Elegance, there are vehicles from the 20s, 30s, and 40s. But there are also brand new cars, there are muscle cars. They even have this truck, it was some delivery truck that was just in…
Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival Delivers!
Tom: Deliver truck?
Clinton: Yeah, some type-
Tom: A UPS?
Clinton: Not a UPS.
Tom: FedEx?
Clinton: I’m trying to remember.
Tom: DHL?
Clinton: It was something else. I think it was a tool truck, delivery tool truck. It was just in incredible condition as well.
Tom: You sure it wasn’t just somebody working that day-
Clinton: No, no, no.
Tom: … that had come by? Snap-on guy or something?
Clinton: That was definitely a vehicle that was part of the show, yes.
Tom: Was it old?
Clinton: Yes, it was an older vehicle.
Tom: Did they have any of those there?
Clinton: No firetrucks. I didn’t see any firetrucks this year. Now, they did also have a class of vintage trailers, which was really cool.
Classic Trailers On Display
Tom: That is cool. The old Airstreams and what not?
Clinton: Yeah, type of vehicles like-
Tom: I’m sorry. Is Airstream, I know it’s a brand that’s hot right now, and it has that kind of stainless steel outside look, whatever.
Clinton: Yes, correct.
Tom: That’s been forever, but did they just bring that back and make them look retro, or has that always been or what?
Clinton: That’s a good question. I believe it’s always been that way. I don’t know.
Tom: Oh my gosh. Did I stump The Professor on something?
Clinton: Yes. I honestly don’t know too much about vintage trailers, but they do look really cool. What was really nice was that the owners, they let all of the attendees check out the inside of the vehicles. Not only did you walk around it, but you also got to actually go inside the vehicles.
Tom: Did you pick up any brands by chance? Was Airstream one of them, or were there other brands that were obscure, not even being made anymore?
Clinton: Yeah. Brands that I am not familiar with at all, yeah.
Tom: Generally, the timeframe, that they were from the 50s, I’m assuming?
Clinton: Yeah, I believe it was the 50s. Correct.
Tom: That’s when the United States really got big with the highways and whatnot.
Clinton: I believe the 50s, 60s, yes.
Tom: All right. What else you got on the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival out in Fullerton, California from 2018?
17 Different Vehicle Classes
Clinton: Well, for this show, there were 17 different classes of vehicles. Then they always have special awards. The vehicle that won the best of the show was a Ferrari, this beautiful Ferrari. It was like a grand touring coupe, just gorgeous, silver.
Tom: New?
Clinton: No, no. It’s an older Ferrari.
Tom: Got you.
Clinton: But it was one of the ones that was sort of perched up on top of the hill. It was funny, because I believe it was The Embassy, didn’t see the Ferrari at first, and he asked, “Where’s the car?” The driver, he starts driving the car and then the announcer saw the car. But, it’s a gorgeous Ferrari. It’s not your typical Ferrari. When you think of Ferrari you think of sports cars, but this looks more like…
Tom: When I think of Ferrari I think of beater, rusted out …
Clinton: But this is more like-
Tom: Pretty sure when I think of Ferrari I think of gorgeous work of art on wheels that goes fast and sounds great.
Clinton: But this is more like a grand touring coupe, something that looks more like a classic Aston Martin.
Tom: All right. Is that all with the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival? I don’t know if you’ve noticed yet, but I just like saying Muckenthaler. Muckenthaler. Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival in Fullerton, California.
Clinton: They also had a live jazz band, music from the 20s and 30s. There’s an amphitheater there. They had music there during the daytime.
Tom: I asked The Professor because someone named Muckenthaler long ago used to live there and now it’s an estate that’s run by the non-profit or whatever.
Muckenthaler Trivia
But, I asked The Professor what the Muckenthaler’s were into, business-wise, to create such wealth. I stumped him there too. I didn’t know. Anybody listening to the podcast, do you know? Hit me up, and maybe we’ll have you on and talk about it or whatnot. Probably just on Wikipedia right? Just Muckenthaler.
There it is. Wow, you don’t even have to go through the jumping through hoops, asking people to contact me about it. All right. Sorry to cut you off. Is that it on the Muckenthaler Motor Car Festival in Fullerton, California?
Clinton: Yes. I think we’ve covered the highlights of the show.
Tom: All right. Excellent. Professor Quan, thank you as always. For all of you listening, remember that June, which we are just about upon, is … What are we calling it? … Professor Quan’s Awesome Auto Show June.
Clinton: Yes.
Tom: That’s coming up, so go to idrivesocal.com, the events page. You can check out all the events going on in June because there’s a ton of auto shows. We actually did a whole podcast about this. But then we’re going to be covering each one of those that The Professor mentioned in that podcast.
Maybe you’ll see The Professor out and about. He’ll often times be with his young son. Who knows? Maybe we’ll even arm him with some iDriveSoCal T-shirts or something like that to give out. Professor, thanks again. Thank you for listening for iDriveSoCal. I’m Tom Smith. Talk to you soon.
