DETROIT, MI – America’s Greatest Hot Rod Show heated-up an otherwise cold and snowy Detroit over the weekend as over 1,000 of the world’s hottest custom cars were displayed at Cobo Center. The 58th Annual Murray’s – O’Reilly Auto Parts Autorama Presented by Meguiar’s drew large crowds during the three day event and featured the best of the best in hot rods, street machines and custom cars – many in contention for the coveted Ridler Award.

Since its inception in the 1960’s, the Ridler Award (named for Don Ridler) has been proven to be the ultimate expression of recognition for custom design excellence. The award is presented to the most outstanding custom car premiered at Autorama. Many of the world’s best customizers plan for years ahead to design and build what they believe will be the top Ridler contender, each unveiling his/her vehicle under the lights at Cobo for its first public showing.

Choosing the best vehicle from hundreds of entries is a daunting task, and every year Autorama judges narrow the field to the top eight vehicles based on a battery of qualifiers. Those eight vehicles, known as The Pirelli Great 8, provide the pool from which the coveted Ridler Award is chosen each year and are announced at a special brunch held on day two of the competition.

This year, Pirelli Tire North America awarded each of the Great Eight winners $1,000 in prize money as well as a custom jacket and award at a ceremony honoring the greats of the hot rodding world, as well as each of the builders and owners of the very special customs.

“To be included among the Pirelli Great Eight at Detroit Autorama is an honor that is sought by the top custom car designers, builders and owners in America,” said Bob Larivee, Jr., CEO of Championship Auto Shows, Inc. “We are delighted to have the respected name of Pirelli associated with the naming of the Great Eight and we are looking forward to a continued strong relationship with the company.”

2010 Pirelli Great 8 Finalists

Steve Frisbie
Portland, OR
1933 Dodge Pick-Up

Jim Linton
Auburn, WA
1934 Ford Coupe

Rafael Navarro, III, PTNA’s Director of Motorsport and Media Relations was on hand to present the Pirelli awards to each of the Great 8 contenders. Included among this year’s winners was the 2010 Ridler Award winner, announced on day three of the competition – Tammy Ray of Dahlonega, Georgia. Ray’s car, a 1933 Ford Phaeton named Gold Digger, was built by Ted Thomas of Canton, Georgia and features Pirelli P Zero Nero rubber front and rear, as well as Foose wheels, PPG Paint, Dakota Digital gauges and a custom interior by M&M Interiors. Ray, who owns a gold mine in North Georgia, is no stranger to being selected to the Great 8 as she was the first female recipient of the award during the 2006 Autorama. That experience led her to plan and prepare to win it all at this year’s show.

“Pirelli is proud to partner with Autorama in rewarding and inspiring the passion and creativity builders and car owners have at all levels of customization,” said Navarro. “The Pirelli Great 8 represents the best customized vehicles in the world from folks that understand passion and performance and demonstrate that in radical vehicle design and customization. With over 130 years of heritage tire design excellence and over a century of motorsport victories, Pirelli is the first, last and best name in vehicle control and performance, and we are proud to be an active participant in the hot rod, street machine and custom car markets.

“The incredible cars on display at the Detroit Autorama are representative of the heart and soul of American hot rodding, and Pirelli is there with a superior line of tires for hot rodders and street rodders specially manufactured to take advantage of the big power and big wheels these new rides demand. We look forward to growing our presence in this community as well as giving our customers additional reasons to get excited about our brand.”

Pirelli Tire North America designs, develops, manufactures and markets tires for passenger vehicles in both the original equipment and replacement markets as well as markets and distributes tires for motorcycles and motorsports. Located in Rome, Georgia, Pirelli’s Modular Integrated Robotized System (MIRS) employs state-of-the-art technology to manufacture tires for both export and domestic markets. For more information please visit www.us.pirelli.com.