There’s something about classic cars that brings generations of gearheads together.
Maybe that’s why a local father and son are behind one of the Lower Mainland’s biggest car show.
Phil and Jason Heard, of Burnaby, are returning to the PNE Fairgrounds to run the second annual Vancouver Collector Car Show & Auction on June 21 and 22. The father-son duo started the event last year and drew more than 16,000 people to their 12-acre site, making the car show the second biggest event on the fairgrounds next to, well, the fair.
“We had 500 cars on display and 116 cars on the auction block last year,” said Phil. “This year, we’re going to 700 cars on display, we hope, and about 175 across the auction.
“The quality of the cars from last year to this year in the auction has just gone way up.”
Phil has a history of organizing car-centric events: He was the general manager of the Molson Indy for six of its 15 years. But his love of cars stems back to when he bought a brand new 1970 Mustang Fastback as a young man, and that passion has since rubbed off on Jason.
“For me, I got the opportunity to work at the Indy when I was only 18 and continued on until I was probably 25,” said Jason. “You get into it pretty easy with that kind of history.”
Five or six years ago, the Heards bought a 1970 Cougar Convertible, which really invigorated their shared passion for cars.
“We started going to all the events – we must’ve one year done 35 classic events during the summer and kind of realized that there was something missing out of all of them,” said Jason.
But their idea for an auction didn’t come until they bought their second classic car together: A 1972 red-and-black Mustang from San Diego, which saw Jason driving 26 out of 28 hours.
“The Vancouver Autoshow invited us to put it into Classic Alley, which is an area they have within their show that shows old cars, classic cars,” said Phil. “We couldn’t believe the number of people that were taking pictures of these classic cars.
“There was a big culture in classic cars, and so we thought there needs to be a show.”
The car show has a wide variety of vehicles for every car buff – pre-war cars, hot rods, low riders and muscle cars. They also have motorcycle demonstrations, airbrush artists, live music, beer gardens and the chance to test drive a Model T Ford.
“It’s more of a celebration of automobilia,” said Jason. “On 12 acres, you’ve got to have some fun.”
Jason said they’re expecting north of 20,000 people to attend this year, and that the auction is quite the show in itself. The auction has three cars that were on display at the SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) Show in Las Vegas, as well as a 2006 GT40 with a Whipple twin supercharger that boasts 850 horsepower, and a 1959 Mini with triple its normal horsepower.
“This thing’s just a wicked little go-kart – the guy said it’ll toast Mustang GTs off the line,” said Jason.
“My favourite car so far in the entire thing is a ’54 Chevy Bel Air custom – it has the most amazing blue colour. It is just the hottest car I’ve ever seen. I want to bid on it, but I know I won’t be able to afford it at the end of the day.”
In addition, A&W has donated an orange 1966 Plymouth Satellite with 400 horsepower for auction, with all money raised going to the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada.
The weekend has become a multi-generational affair for the Heards, as Jason’s son Will is getting into cars. And there are plenty of other fathers and sons who come out to see the fairgrounds loaded with classic cars.
“We do see a lot of fathers and sons over the two days,” said Jason. “We’re the weekend after Father’s Day, so we always do promotions for fathers and sons.”
The fair runs from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 21, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, June 22. Tickets are $15, but kids under the age of 13 get in free with an adult. For more information, check vancouvercollectorcars.com.
