Old Town Fort Collins, Colorado is as eclectic as its visitors, from college student hotspots to some of the finest dining you’ll find in the area, all topped off with an old-timey feel compliments of vintage buildings well preserved. But nothing shows just how eclectic downtown is like the turnout at the annual Nelsen’s Old Town Car Show. Held Saturday September 7th this year, the traditional car show brought out vehicles from all different eras and the enthusiasts to back every one of them. The problem? Selecting even a handful of favorites!

While Old Town played host to countless collector vehicles on Saturday, it continually plays host to some of the city’s coolest ghost signs seen here above a ’37 Chevy pickup.

A Traditional Stomping Ground

Put on every year by Fort Collins’ own Nelsen’s Auto Tech Center, the annual Old Town Car Show shuts down the streets around the popular Square in downtown FoCo for hours of vintage vehicle fun.

This year was no different as groves of enthusiasts, vehicle owners and onlookers swarmed Old Town even prior to the show’s 11a.m. starting time to catch a glimpse at some of the most amazing cars the Front Range of Colorado has to offer. And boy were we not disappointed!

Old Town Fort Collins offers something for every taste and with classic building designs that collectively have the claim to fame of inspiring the design of Disney’s Main Street, it is the perfect spot for collector vehicles and their owners to live out their passions.

A vast majority of the vehicle owners who came out to showcase their classic cars, hot rods, customs, vintage trucks and muscle cars at this year’s Old Town Car Show call Fort Collins home, proudly showing off what a bit of mountain air can do for vintage American sheet metal. Others came to Fort Collins just for the show, traveling from surrounding cities like Loveland, Greeley, Windsor and even the Denver Metro area to take part in the event. But no matter where the participants were from, the overlying appeal was the same- vintage cars and a marvelous dining scene topped off by fantastic craft beers and live music equals one fine way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

While the Old Town Car Show has a reputation for featuring some of the greatest muscle cars and hot rods alike, this year’s show also included modern muscle cars, all generations of Corvettes and even a few European classics.

Of course, we were there mostly for the hot rods and customs, of which there were plenty to browse.

Stacked three and four deep in the streets, hot rods of all different sorts raised their unique flags up high. From popular Deuce Coupes and other early 30s Ford, to a number of Bel Airs, vintage Chevy and Ford pickups and even a couple of old Hudsons, the turnout at the Old Town Car Show was more encompassing than initially expected.

With at least a couple hundred cars on hand, the relatively small show took hours to walk through, not solely because of how many cars there were but more because of the caliber of vehicles that were on display. 

Among the vehicle owners attending the show this year, we heard countless mentions of the number of cars that were on display, solidifying our thought that this may have been the biggest year yet for the event. But no matter if it was or not, it’s always quality that counts over quantity and Fort Collins’ automotive enthusiasts truly brought out their best.  

Last weekend Old Town Fort Collins was packed with vintage classics like this one advertising the local Silver Grill Cafe. In talking with the owner of both truck and business, John Arnolfo, we found out that this particular Model A truck has been in his family since it was new and will continue to be passed on to generations to come.

The Old Town Car Show was certainly a breath of fresh air as far as shows go. Laid back, relaxed and full of the friendliest vintage vehicle owners anyone could ask for, this show was exactly what the doctor ordered on a lazy Saturday in late summer. For more pictures from the car show, be sure to check out the GALLERY below!