Weekend Rewind! Goodguys 24th Meguiar’s Del Mar Nationals Presented by FiTech Fuel Injection
California knows how to party, and the SoCal car community demonstrated that once again this weekend as the Goodguys 24th Meguiar’s Del Mar Nationals Presented by FiTech Fuel Injection brought a little automotive sunshine to the West Coast! The cars and trucks were shining, the vibe was warm and bright, and the cruisin’ was off the charts at the Del Mar Fairgrounds as thousands of fine rides celebrated California car culture under sunny SoCal skies.
We couldn’t have dialed up better weekend weather if we’d tried. Perfect springtime temperatures, bright sunshine, and cool ocean breezes reminded us how special this region is, while some of the area’s coolest hot rodders and car enthusiasts rolled in with vivid reminders of California’s impact on car culture. From hot rods, customs, muscle cars, and trucks, to lowriders, Volkswagens, and sports cars, the variety was simply astounding, as was the quality.
In addition to being the first big automotive event on the spring calendar in Southern California, the Del Mar Nationals also ushers in the first at-event competition for a 2025 BASF Top 12 Award. The Meguiar’s West Coast d’Elegance award (formerly Street Rod d’Elegance) is designed to honor an elegant pre-1966 vehicle that exudes West Coast style. The new criteria attracted some truly incredible contenders and resulted in a Top Five that showcased a great deal of variety. This included Greg Heinrich’s ’35 Chevy coupe, Dave Ralph’s ’63 Corvette, Nick Dias’s ’47 Cadillac convertible, Ron Sweet’s ’53 Porsche, and Ryan Kalil’s ’31 Model A coupe. Suspense and speculation were building on Saturday and Sunday as rodders guessed which car would ultimately capture the crown. At the end of Sunday afternoon’s awards ceremony, the envelope was finally opened and Greg Heinrich’s ’35 Chevy coupe built by Ironworks Speed & Kustom was named the winner! Watch for more details on fantastic custom build later this week on Fuel Curve. 
Vehicles from across the automotive spectrum were celebrated with a wide range of other picks and awards, including the coveted Builder’s Choice Top 10, selected at this event by Donnie Hall and Issac Gonzales of Streamline Custom Designs. The shop even created some cool custom trophies to send home with the winners. The winners were all amazing and showcased great variety in addition to incredible build quality.
Among the dozens of other awards distributed throughout the weekend was a full slate of regional BASF Top 12 finalist winners. This included Jim Thomson’s ’68 Pontiac Firebird as the Snap-on Muscle Car of the Year finalist; Jerimiah Belk’s ’66 Nova as the Griot’s Garage Muscle Machine of the Year finalist; Jerry Rodriguez’s ’56 Mercury as the Fuel Curve Custom of the Year finalist; Homer Zamora’s ’57 Pontiac Safari as the Vintage Air Custom Rod of the Year finalist; Larry Jacinto’s ’41 Willys as the LMC Truck of the Year Early; and Frank Walsh’s ’75 Chevy C10 as the Dakota Digital Truck of the Year Late. The Goodguys media team went with the beachside vibe and tapped Sid Chavers’s ’40 Ford woodie for the Goodguys Feature Pick.
Over on the far west side of the fairgrounds, the Goodguys AutoCross Series filled the air with the sounds of engine strain and tire punishment as racers put their skills and their cars’ abilities to the test around a tight and challenging track. The action was fast and frenetic, with racers charging hard to earn class points and a chance to race in Saturday’s CPP Duel in Del Mar Shootout. Top performers included: Tom Kamman winning the Speedtech Performance PRO-X class and shootout; Eric Sheely winning the Summit Racing PRO class and shootout; Ken Yeo topping the Forgeline Street Machine class and shootout, Randy Alldredge winning the Sports Car class and Mark Golovin topping the Sports Car shootout; George Reiss winning the No Limit Engineering Truck class and shootout; Phil Hoffman winning the Challenger class and Mike Russell winning the Challenger shootout; and Eric Sheely topping All American Sunday class and shootout.
The winning went well beyond trophies and awards, though. Every car enthusiast in attendance came out ahead with a wealth of great activities and attractions. There were three buildings of indoor show vehicles – including the PPG Lowrider Palace and the Suede & Chrome display – plus a lowrider pickup bed dancing exhibition and limbo contest. There was also a sizeable swap meet, fun family activities, dozens of vendors, great food, and much more.
Of course, one the best parts of the Del Mar Nationals is the cruising. A central cruising lane cuts right through the show grounds and leads toward the coast, which delivered cool breezes all three days. A stream of cool cars and trucks kept the lane and the Good Times flowing all weekend, and there was always an audience to soak in the action. Like we said, this is a California party where cars and trucks are the stars, and Goodguys would have it no other way.
Photos by Damon Lee and Terry Lysak
