AutoFair goes ‘Back to the Future’ with DeLorean display

CONCORD, N.C. – Switch on the flux capacitor, point your DeLorean DMC-12 toward Charlotte Motor Speedway and accelerate to 88 miles an hour! The classic time-travel film “Back to the Future” turns 30 during the April 9-12 AutoFair with a display in the Nationwide Showcase Pavilion honoring its automotive star.

“Back to the Future” was the top-grossing movie of 1985, starring Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly who travels through time with scientist Doc Brown using a DeLorean. The speedway will not only pay homage to the popular 1980s film with a replica DeLorean time machine, but “Great Scott!” there will be monster truck and limo DeLoreans as well.

Movie buffs may know that the DeLorean was not the original time machine concocted for the film. McFly’s original mode of temporal transport was a refrigerator, but the writer realized the time machine needed to be mobile and more visual. When creators decided on the DeLorean DMC-12, the somewhat unpopular vehicle, which was no longer in production when the movie came out, turned into a pop culture phenomenon and drew the attention of car lovers from around the country.

Illinois native, Rich Weissensel, was a fan of the car before the movie ever came out, but purchased his first DeLorean the year the movie premiered. The DeLorean collector is the mastermind behind the D-Rex monster truck and the DeLorean limo, both of which will be on display in the Nationwide Showcase Pavilion during the automotive extravaganza.

The massive D-Rex monster truck features the body of a DeLorean on a 1979 Chevrolet K5 Blazer 4x4 chassis. D-Rex towers above other cars on the road with its 12 inch lift kit, 44 inch TSL Super Swamper Bogger tires and other modifications. The gargantuan project took only one month for Weissensel to complete.

The DeLorean limo, a continuing work in progress for Weissensel, is just as big in its own right. The limo features six gullwing doors, custom fabricated stainless steel panels and back-bone chassis and utilizes parts from several wrecked DeLorean cars. Once the interior and drivetrain are complete, Weissensel will be ready to take it out for a test drive.

See all three of these truly unique cars as part of the “Back to the Future” display April 9-12 in the Nationwide Showcase Pavilion. AutoFair features nearly 50 car club displays and more than 10,000 vendor spaces offering an array of automotive parts and memorabilia. More than 1,500 collectible vehicles of all makes and models will be available for sale in the car corral that rings the 1.5-mile superspeedway. In addition, up to 200 cars will be auctioned by Dealer Auctions Inc., and kids can enjoy face-painting, bounce houses and other games and entertainment in the Play Zone.

Hours for the April 9-12 AutoFair are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursday through Saturday, and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday. Ticket prices are $11 per day for adults and children 13 and under are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. Fans who buy three tickets get the fourth day free. Parking for the event is $5. For more information on the four-day event, contact the speedway events department at (704) 455-3205 or visit http://www.charlottemotorspeedway.com