Enthusiasts rev up for motor show

CAR enthusiasts from around the state are gearing up for the popular Searoad Devonport Motor Show to be held next month.

Enthusiasts include Dave Hawkins from the Dave Hawkins Group, which will be bringing four vehicles — a 1967 Chevrolet Impala, an EH Holden, an HT Monaro and a 1963 Chevrolet Bel air.

Mr Hawkins and his mates will form a convoy of classic cars as they rumble up the Midlands Highway from Hobart.

The event is now in its 13th year, and organisers say more than 200 entries have already come in.

It will be held on a different site this year, due to major construction works happening on the Mersey River foreshore.

Mr Hawkins said a shared love of old cars had brought the unofficial group together.

They now meet every month and drive to different parts of the state to enjoy lunch, each other’s company, and of course their cars.

“Owning an old car is a great thing. I love when our group goes for a run and we get looks from people as we pass. It’s a great feeling,” he said.

“Or when we are at a car show and people stop for a chat and tell stories about when they owned similar cars back in the day.

“But the best aspect for me is the great people I have met, people I have only known for 12 months or so are now some of our closest friends.”

The group got its name by accident during a lunch at the Huntington Tavern in Kempton earlier this year, in which staff had assigned a large area of the restaurant to the “Dave Hawkins Group”.

The motor show, established in 2007, continues to grow. This year the expo will be held at Aikenhead Point, near the Vietnam War Memorial in Bluff Rd, Devonport, on March 22.