1935 SS One Airline Saloon Best in Show at 2023 Chattanooga Motorcar Festival

The 1935 SS One Airline Saloon, owned by Lisa and Jim Hendrix, of Chesterfield, Missouri, took Best in Show honors in the Concours d’Elegance Sunday at the 2023 Chattanooga Motorcar Festival Sponsored by Millennium Bank.

This fourth annual event in the Scenic City also featured Brian Redman’s Targa Sixty Six high-speed track action at the Pace Grand Prix at The Bend (named for the late Jim Pace, one of the event’s original organizers), plus panel discussions on subjects ranging from barn finds to the voices of Pixar’s 'CARS' movies to Porsche’s 75th anniversary.

A concert by The B-52s, a Gathering of the Greats - Porsche Edition, along with Luftgekühlt’s collection of Air-Cooled Porsches, a tribute to race-car driver Brian Redman, and a display of rare Ferraris at the Westin Chattanooga in West Village overloaded the senses at the Festival, benefitting Neuroscience Center at CHI Memorial and the Neuroscience Innovation Foundation of Chattanooga.

Sixty race cars in four classes took to the under-two-mile race course in the area known as The Bend. The groups included modern race cars, historic race cars and the Ragtime Racers – automobiles from the 1920s and earlier, led by local car collector and businessman Corky Coker.

Famed car drifter Adam LZ performed tire-smoking drifting demonstrations on the circuit in a 2023 RTR Spec 5 Ford Mustang, while competition on a SimCraft Pro Racing Simulator took place, pitting media and fans against time set by Adam LZ, which helped raise funds for the event’s beneficiaries.

The J Willard Marriott Jr. Ferrari Club was unveiled, providing an area in West Village to showcase collector Ferraris at future events.

Celebrities who took part in appearances, panel discussion and interviews included Grand Marshal Luigi Chinetti Jr., Grand Ambassador Brian Redman, Grand Marshal Emeriti Corky Coker and Lyn St. James, Justin Bell, Tommy Kendall, Chip Foose, Linda Vaughn, Wayne Carini, Patrick Long, David Hobbs, Donald Osborne, and even NASCAR racer Kyle Petty was sighted.

Kevin Cogan was recognized as the Honored Collector, and musician John Oates received the Chairman’s Award from event founder Byron DeFoor.

"Everyone connected to the Festival did an outstanding job," continued DeFoor, "and I thank everyone who brought their valuable cars, both for the Pace Grand Prix at The Bend and for the Concours d'Elegance. We are proud to share the proceeds of this event with Neuroscience Center at CHI Memorial and the Neuroscience Innovation Foundation of Chattanooga."

"We were honored to be a part of this amazing event. With a race track just a mile away from downtown Chattanooga and the West Village, Targa drivers took to the track to get folks excited about the cars. Targa gave the huge crowd a chance to see cool cars being driven at speed. Lots of noise, wheel-to-wheel action and the opportunity to get up close to the cars and drivers. Adam LZ and the Ragtime Racers were great additions to action on the track, bringing together opposite sides of the motorsports world," said James Redman, Director, Brian Redman's Targa Sixty Six.

A full list of Concours d'Elegance award winners can be found HERE.