Summer's here and school is out. If you're looking for fun outing options with the kids and you just so happen to be a classic car enthusiast, E3 Spark Plugs has the perfect solution. Pack up, fill the tank and head to Punta Gorda, Florida for a visit to Rick Treworgy's Muscle Car City.
The attraction features a 99,000-square-foot museum chock full of more than 200 vintage muscle cars spanning from the 1950s through the early 1970s, including at least one Corvette of each year from 1954 through 1975 and several of each series up through 2006. There's also a Hot Rod & Speed Shop with an exhaustive assortment of restoration, rebuild and improvement parts from more than 450 manufacturers. And once your ride is sufficiently souped up, make plans to participate in one of Muscle Car City's frequent car cruises. With 720 parking spaces and cruise clubs from around the US making appearances throughout the year, there are plenty of opportunities to show off your vintage roadster and see many more.
All that automotive eyeballing can work up an appetite, so you'll want to stop in to the on-site diner, a retro 1960s-styled eatery offering up American fare including old-fashioned floats, sodas, shakes and homemade ice cream.
Muscle Car City is the handiwork of Rick Treworgy, a bona fide classic car buff who bought his first vintage ride - a 1955 Chevrolet convertible - at age 15 in 1964. He's since amassed an automotive treasure trove that's heavy on GM models. After retiring from a career in land development and managing construction and holdings companies, Treworgy decided to parlay his collection into an attraction that could be enjoyed by the public. In 2009, he opened Muscle Car City in a former Walmart building at 3811 Tamiami Trail in Punta Gorda. Come October, the attraction will move to a new location a mile south to add an improve features and better accommodate the more than 40,000-and-growing visitors that pass through each year.
"I grew up in those years right when that whole [muscle car] thing came about," Treworgy says, noting
a soft spot for ’67 Corvettes with the 427 cubic-inch V-8. "The muscle car era is almost being reborn, which gives an interest in those '60s and '70s cars."
Have you visited Muscle Car City? Which was your favorite classic ride on display? Post your pics and thoughts on the E3 Spark Plugs Facebook Fan Page.
