ABOUT OUR SHOW AND ITS HISTORY:

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The Coatesville Car Show is a small-town car show. We cater to the true car enthusiast that enjoys going to the local shows on weekends. Our show is designed to be a fun day for the whole family. It is a time for old and new friends alike to meet, reconnect, and socialize with one another. We provide a relaxed and laid back atmosphere with many activities to participate in if you decide to do so. Most of all, it's about looking at all of the cool cars that show up. Whether you have a car, truck, motorcycle, or a tractor, all are welcome here. With the growing popularity of side-by-sides, in 2024 we added a category for these vehicles. 

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Those that attend our show are not here with the notion that their car is deserving of an award and they expect to win one. Instead, for them it is more about seeing the cars, the friendships they make, and the overall vibe of the car show atmosphere. To win one of our handmade awards is just the icing on the cake and tops off an already fantastic day. If this is what you are looking for in a show, then this is the car show for you!

 

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SHOW HISTORY:

The Coatesville Car Show started as a car show and street fair on July 6th, 2013. The Coatesville Downtown Revitalization (CDR) hosted the show on a suggestion by local business owner, Jason Bousley, who is credited as the show's founder and organized the

​​​first show. It was officially advertised as the "Cruise-in Coatesville VW and Classic Car Show". It drew 22 vehicles despite rain. As a result, the first incarnation of the show was born.

 

2014 saw a changing of the guard when Jason handed the baton off to new full-time resident Steven Schultz. In its second year the show was named the "Cruisin' In Coatesville Car Show and Street Fair".  Steven came in late to the planning of the event, but picked it up with the help of Jason and then CDR President, Linda Stoddard. Plagued with rain for a second year in a row with no rain date, the show still drew 36 vehicles.

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In 2015, Steven took full control of the show and introduced the handmade awards which he creates himself. Our third year finally landed on a very nice day and drew 86 vehicles to the event. 2016 drew over 150 vehicles and we've been pushing upwards of 200 vehicles ever since. Over the years we've had great weather days, some very hot weather with a heat index above 100 degrees, and one year where we went to the rain date. We have had great support from the volunteers in Coatesville. In 2017, Steven became President of the CDR.

 

​​​​​​​​​In 2020, the world was hit with the COVID-19 pandemic. This pandemic shut down businesses, forced people to stay at home, it even shut down countries. Needless to say, the majority of car shows were cancelled in 2020 including the Coatesville show. Instead of cancelling, we created a free virtual car show as thanks for all the support over the years. Unlike other virtual shows, we created a "Goodie Envelope" which was mailed to everyone that participated. There were trophies along with participant voting. All things considered, it was a great substitute considering the pandemic.

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In his 9th year, Steven continued to coordinate the show as President of the CDR starting his third term as of 2021. With no more street fair attachment it was decided to rename the show to the "Coatesville Car Show". As a result, you could see the new name and show logo at the 2021 event.

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In January 2022 prior to our 10th Anniversary show, Steven assumed the position of Executive Director of the CDR. Despite the role change, Steven still organized and coordinated the entire event with the help of the CDR. Always held on the third Saturday in July, Steven jokes saying he takes the day off on Sunday after the show and then starts planning and designing trophies on Monday for next year's event.​​

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Our 10th Anniversary Show was a huge success and was a major milestone accomplishment for the CDR, the Town of Coatesville, and the community. As is common with most car shows, not everything went as planned where other things more than exceeded our expectations. We continually learn from our mishaps and apply our learning to the next year's show to make it even better. Despite some minor hiccups with the awards, our show has grown close to 300 cars and over1,500 spectators the day of the show.

 

In 2023, show day brought rain forcing the show to move to its rain date. Such a move always impacts a show, but it was the right call which ended up bringing us to a perfect day on our rain date. New processes Steven put in place following last year's show proved to be a great choice and our new sound system could be heard all around the event. As expected, show attendance dropped but we still had a turnout of 255 vehicles, so not bad for a rain date. For us it was pretty much the perfect show. We saw a few areas where we needed some very minor tweaks here and there that we could work on to make the show even better next year. Prior to the 2023 show, Steven stepped down as the Executive Director of the CDR. Other changes at the Executive Board level took place and Korleen Bledsoe, the town's Librarian, took over as the CDR President. Still with the CDR, Steven wanted to focus more on the planning and execution of the car show.

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On July 20th, 2024, we held our 12th annual show. The day was an absolute perfect weather day drawing lots of cool cars. It was pretty much a perfect show that everyone enjoyed and was our most successful show of all raising almost $21,000 for the community. Sadly, our good friend and show founder, Jason Bousley, passed away unexpectedly shortly after last year's show on September 24th, 2023. Many of you knew Jason, he ran the funeral home here in Coatesville with his family. Jason was a huge Volkswagen collector and enthusiast. Jason is gone, but his legacy will live on.​​​