General Post

The beauty of the collector car hobby is the diversity of the cars. The Tri-Five Chevy (1955, 1956 and 1957) is a great example of this diversity, even though it's only a three-year window of production. These cars were available in many trim configurations and body styles, but the most popular are the two-door hardtop and two-door sedan. We found two awesome examples of the classic 1955 Chevy, both of which are sporting our new Coker Classic Star Series tires.

Every year since 2010, we have the opportunity to celebrate Collector Car Appreciation Day on the second Friday in July. This year, the holiday landed on Friday, July 12th and we threw a big party to celebrate. We invited local car folks to join us for a free hot dog lunch and a cool cruise in, and we were blown away with the turnout this year! With temperatures slated for the mid 90s, and the fact that it was midday on a week day, we didn't expect such a great gathering of classic cars, muscle cars, hot rods and cool trucks. There were lots of

The 2024 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Coker Tire is in the books, and we enjoyed an exciting nine-day journey from Owensboro, Kentucky to Gardiner, Maine. The competitionw as fierce, with more than $160,000 up for grabs, split among five divisions. In addition to the cash purse, the Great Race offered many other bonuses, including Coker Tire gift certificates for daily stage winners. We saw lots of great Coker Tire-equipped vehicles in competition, and noted that the top 6 overall finishers featured Coker Tire products, and the top finisher in EACH class

Every old car has a personality, and the easiest way to change its personality is to swap tires and wheels. Tire size affects the stance, sidewall style defines the era and the whole combination can put your car into a whole new identity. Such is the case with this 1964 Chevelle Malibu four-door sedan. This car has racked up tens of thousands of miles under the ownership of Tommy Lee Byrd, who is our photographer and writer here at Coker Tire. He also has a Youtube Channel called "Hot Rod Hoarder" where he documents old drag cars, historic hot rods and big collections of cars and parts. TLB stepped to the front of the line to try out the new Coker Classic Star Series tires, and volunteered to change his car's look for the sake of advertising the new tire. 

When it comes to classic cars, station wagons are hot, and nothing looks better on a '50s station wagon than a set of wide whitewall tires. In the case of this 1957 Mercury Commuter station wagon, it already had wide whitewalls on it, but the tires were too old for safe operation. The whitewalls had also turned to a light brown color, taking away from the natural wow factor of wide whitewall tires. The solution for this car involved a total tire and wheel swap, going with a set of Smoothie wheels, wrapped in our all new Coker Classic Star Series tires.

We've been a little sneaky about showing the final product of our "Star Car" 1957 Chevy four-door sedan because we snagged a set of early sample tires for it and didn't want to spill the beans about the new product. But now, it's time! The Coker Classic Star Series whitewall radial tire is now available for purchase, so we wanted to show off the (almost) finished car. As with most project cars, it's still a work in progress, but the car has handled several road trips with ease. It still needs some attention, but we're loving the way it looks and drives with the new tires. It has an entirely different personality than it did with the billet wheels.

It's that time of year! June is when the Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Coker Tire hits the road and visits more than a dozen cities, over the course of nine days. The event is the premier time, speed, distance rally for classic vehicles, and we're proud to be the presenting sponsor. Because of that, several of our staff members travel with the race, and we added Steve Jackson to that group as a welcomed addition to the Great Race team. The route changes every year, and for 2024, the Great Race travels from Owensboro, Kentucky to Gardiner, Maine, hitting 13 states along the way. At the time of this writing, four days of competition are complete, and there have been four different overall winners for each day's competition. The leaderboard is tightening up, and all four daily winners (so far) rely on Coker Tire products to stay consistent during the nine-day, 2,300-mile rally. This year, we have two sponored teams, a 1932 Ford five-window coupe as well as a beautiful Packard

Coker Tire, the world’s most trusted source for whitewall tires, is thrilled to introduce a new product line within its famous Coker Classic brand. The all-new Coker Classic Star Series whitewall tires are engineered with all-new molds and compounds, with a sharp focus on balance and performance. It’s the only tire of its kind built in North America, and it’s packed with industry-leading features that will improve the ride quality and safety of your classic car. 

Our spring schedule is always packed with events, many of which require our crew to drive long distances to attend. Lucky for us, there are several awesome events within a couple hours of our headquarters in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Such is the case with the Goodguys Nashville Nationals, an event that has been going on for nearly 20 years. It was originally held downtown but moved to Nashville Super Speedway a few years ago. The venue provides plenty of room for cars, vendors and spectators and has space for expansion as the event continues to grow. We always love Goodguys Nashville because that's the home of the Tanks Inc. Hot Rod of the Year competition, and many of the competitors use our Firestone Deluxe Champion tires.

In our quest to drive our '57 Chevy Bel Air project car, there were some necessary items to address. We wanted to update the cosmetics, which we covered in our last installment, but the most important factor in a road-ready classic car is reliability. Getting an old car ready for highway action isn't a one-shot deal--it requires ongoing attention to make sure it stays dependable, but we wanted a solid starting point. Rather than picking away at it here at the office, we trusted our friends at Quick Everett's Garage just a few miles up the road. Hal Everett and his crew live and breathe classic cars, and it was a no brainer to get the '57 checked out by the pros before we embarked on any long-distance journeys.

The Great Race is one of our favorite automotive events in the world, although we might be a bit biased since it operates out of our office here in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The event has been going on since 1983 and we're proud to be the presenting sponsor of the event, which is coming up June 22-30, 2024. But before we can wave the green flag on the main event, the Spring Rally presented by Stahls Automotive Collection serves as an awesome warm-up event. It's a three-day

We've been jamming along on the "Star Car" our 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air project car. This classic Chevy Tri-Five came to us with a host of modifications already in place, and we wanted to give it some wow factor. Our Creative Manager, Marty McHugh laid out a custom flame job and decal arrangement, and we had Inview Graphics & Signs print a vinyl wrap to accommodate the wild custom look. Woody's Hot Rodz stepped in to help us with some trim pieces to bring the car to life after the wrap was installed...you can see more of the Star Car in the American Tri-Five Magazine. The end result is a '57 Chevy that will turn heads wherever it goes...just wait until you see it with the new wide whitewall tires and black steel wheels. You'll see that we had to get the last bit of mileage out of the old tires...

The Horseless Carriage Club of America has been around since 1937, celebrating Brass Era automobiles. These pre-1916 vehicles are extremely difficult to restore and maintain, as parts availability is nearly non-existent. Despite all of that, there is still a lot of enthusiasm around Brass Era vehicles, as they are true works of automotive art. We were thrilled to find out the Horseless Carriage Club of America scheduled its annual National Convention and Tour in our hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee. This six-day event was based out of the Westin Hotel here in Chattanooga, and the event featured hundreds of miles of back-road touring, including a visit to several great attractions. The group visited Coker Tire for a great reception in the showroom and a special parking area on the street behind our office. Take a look at some of our favorite photos from the days we spent chasing 1915 and older cars on the back roads of Tennessee and North Georgia. 

Cars and Coffee events are some of the most popular automotive events of the modern era. It doesn't tie up an entire weekend and the variety of cars is always entertaining, so these events bring a swell of activity that fits nicely with everyone's packed schedules. In Chattanooga, our good friends at Quick Everett's Garage put together a Cars and Coffee event and it has grown significantly over the last year or so. This event is free to the public, and is always well attended. We've been setting up a booth to help with our local brand awareness...we typically get some questions and orders, but the March 2024 event was a whole different anmial, as our sales guys had a huge crowd of buyers swarming the booth all morning.

When it comes to season kick-off events, it doesn't get much better than the Corvette Expo, an event that takes place in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. With such a close location, and such an awesome turnout of cars and spectators, the Corvette Expo has become a great way to ring in the car show season. For many years, we've attended the event to simply walk around and photograph cars, but this year, we set up a vendor space to hopefully speak with our customers. This event features hundreds of Corvettes, and also has a special feature area called Chevys in the Smokies, a

It's hard to beat the classic lines of a 1957 Chevrolet. While most would prefer a Bel Air Sport Coupe, there are lots of great sedans out there, ripe for picking. Such is the case with our brand new project, a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air 4 door sedan. We picked up this car locally, and it already has some nice upgrades in place, which helps accelerate our project. The plan is to work on the car right here on our loading dock...it will be a team effort, with folks from the sales, marketing and distribution teams pitching in make it happen. Let's take a closer look at this '57 Chevy crew cab, which we're naming the "Star Car"...you'll learn more about the nickname in the coming weeks and months, as the project gets traction.

When the new year rolls along, our show schedule is getting its final additions, but one event always sets the tone for the rest of our busy season. The Barrett-Jackson collector car auction is an event that brings thousands of cars and many more people into Scottsdale, Arizona for a week of amazing cars and trucks. The auction includes everything from driver-quality restorations to seven-figure masterpieces, and everything in between. We set up as a vendor and our team enjoys being able to watch the cars in the staging lanes each day. It's an outstanding view of the auto entusiast market, and the event never fails to result in great sales and future contacts. This year, we spotted so many great vehicles with our products, so we're bringing you the highlights below...enjoy!

We're proud of our heritage here in Chattanooga, Tennessee, so when the Chattanoooga Motorcar Festival was announced a few years ago, we could've have been happier. The event has grown in its short four-year history, and it's something we look forward to every October. This year, the event featured a road rally, Grand Prix racing on the redesigned road course, a Mecum classic car auction, a Car Club gathering, a B-52's concert, V8's in the Village (we'll talk more about that in a miniute), a Ferrari gathering, a Porsche gathering and of course, Sunday's

The NSRA Street Rod Nationals has been rolling for more than 50 years, thanks to the hard work and dedication from the National Street Rod Association staff, and the thousands of folks who attend the event each year. It's held at the Kentucky Expo Center in Louisville, Kentucky, which has a GIANT vendor building, and room for more than 10,000 cars on the property. Other activities include a swap meet, a nitro-burning cacklefest, a Builder's Showcase, and much more. Vehicles 1993 and older are eligible to participate, but it's mostly 1980 and older with a heavy emphasis

It's always a high priority for Coker Tire, Honest Charley and any automotive aftermarket company to promote the collector car hobby and encourage enthusiasts to actually get their cars out and drive them! First and foremost, driving your car wears out tires, so that's job security for our team here in Chattanooga, Tennessee, but it's also a key element in keeping the hobby alive for future generations. If these timeless classic cars stay stored inside a garage for months and years at a time, it'll be hard to influence today's youth with good old fashioned American iron. That's why Collector Car Appreciation Day was born.

The 2023 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Coker Tire is underway! We started the 2,300-mile journey on Saturday, June 24th in St. Augustine, Florida and we'll be crossing the finish line in Colorado Springs, Colorado on Sunday, July 2nd. This event covers nine states in nine days, using mostly back roads to string together an intricate course that the racers follow closely. We're big supporters of the Great Race, and love to see our customers go out there and put their vehicles to the test. A great percentage of the cars and trucks in competition are rolling on Coker Tire products, but we're always looking to improve upon that ratio of Coker customers. To help with that, we're providing $500 gift certificates to each day's daily winner, plus other incentives. With 16 hosted city stops, including the green flag ceremony and Grand Finish, this event puts a smile on lots of faces, and we're happy to be a part of it. Take a look at some of our highlights, and be sure to check out

The Goodguys Nashville Nationals is one of the best car shows in the Mid South, and features a lot of great hot rods, customs, muscle cars, classic trucks and more. Last year, the Nashville Nationals moved from its downtown venue to the Nashville Superspeedway, giving it more room to grow and MUCH easier traffic flow in and out of the event grounds. We had a booth setup in the vendor area, and we took a little time to walk around and snap a few photos of cars wearing our products. We also had the opportunity to give away the Best Wide Whites award, and it went to Mike and Kate Cioli from Portland, Tennessee. They brought a beautiful 1957 Ford Thunderbird to the show and we later found out it had been in the family since 1969! The Colonial White paint, the 312ci Y-block and classic fender skirts gave this T-Bird a timeless look, and of course, it was rolling on a set of our Coker Classic 205/75R14 wide whitewall radial tires. It was the perfect choice for our Best Wide Whites award!

The Great Race Spring Regional Rally presented by Stahls Automotive Foundation is a new event created by the Great Race staff, and it's something that's been in the works for quite some time. The rally is a great warm-up for the main 2023 Great Race event, which happens June 24th through July 2nd and travels from St. Augustine, Florida to Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Spring Regional Rally uses the same basic concept of time speed distance rallying, but shortens it to three days, and features a cloverleaf design (instead of going town to town). This type of rally happens a few times a year through independent organizers, but the Great Race sanctions this Spring Regional Rally as a way to help rookies learn the ropes, while also providing great practice for the veterans.

The Great Race Spring Regional Rally was based out of Auburn, Indiana for this inaugural event. Next year, it will be held in Chesterfield, Michigan, home of the Stahls Automotive Foundation Museum, and then it will continue to move to other locations. Additional regional rally events are in the works to offer racers more opportunities to compete. The Spring Regional Rally in Auburn, Indiana proved to be competitive and fun, with nearly 70 competitors making the trip to the car crazy town in Northeast Indiana. The city of Auburn rolled out the red carpet for the Great Racers, as did the local automotive museums, such as the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Museum, the National Auto & Truck Museum and the Early Ford V8 Museum. All three museums opened their doors to the participants, adding to the fun of this springtime rally event.

Coker Tire, the world’s largest manufacturer and supplier of tires and wheels for collector vehicles is now the presenting sponsor of the Great Race, a time speed endurance rally for vintage vehicles. Coker Tire has supported the Great Race in many ways since the 1990’s, providing sponsorship, as well as volunteer help, tire service and much more. With this new agreement, Coker Tire stepped up from its previous sponsorship role into the presenting sponsor of the event, which takes place each summer.
 
The 2023 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Coker Tire travels from St. Augustine, Florida to Colorado Springs, Colorado, over the course of nine days: June 24 to July 2.
 
Coker Tire CEO Mike Kealey said, “Collector car enthusiasts have a choice when it comes to tires, and we’re glad the Great Race community values the authenticity and reliability of our products for such a demanding rally.” He continued, “Approximately 80 percent of Great Race participants

The Corvette Expo has been around since the 1970's and it has gone through a lot of phases through its successful lifetime. This event has always been held in East Tennessee, although it has changed venues several times. It has found a home at the LeConte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, a beautiful facility that offers plenty of room for this awesome event. There are hundreds of Corvettes on hand, ranging from the earliest C1's to the most recent C8 generation. We love the variety when walking through the show, because you can see NCRS judging on high end Corvette restorations, as well as modified cars and drivers. Take a look at some of our favorites, and make plans to join the fun next spring for the Corvette Expo. Check out www.corvetteexpo.com for more information!

Corky Coker's collection of antique motorcycles is one of the finest in the world, and it's housed inside the Coker Museum in downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee. Corky's collection of cars, trucks and motorcycles features a great variety of our product lines, which covers a huge span of collector vehicles. In this article, we wanted to focus specifically on motorcycles, as the Coker Museum is packed with incredible motorcycles, dating back to the 1900's. From the earliest two-wheel machines to more civilized motorcycles of the 1950s and 1960s, this collection has iconic motorcycles, such as Harley Davidson, Indian, Excelsior, Thor, and more! The collection is diverse, with a mixture of beautiful restorations, true barn finds and bikes with legitimate racing history.

We're always looking for ways to improve our products and customer experience, and this new selection of 303 tire care products is a welcomed addition to our tire and wheel offerings. We're proud to announce the availability of a trio of 303® products, specially formulated for your tires and wheels. Compared to the regular cleaners you can get at the local department store, 303® products are safe to use for your specialty products and the strong formulas work quickly! Our team personally tested 303® products and we think you'll be impressed with the quality of the cleaners. 

In only its third year of operation, the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival continues to grow in stature, as one of the premier automotive events in the Southeast. Being held in Chattanooga, Tennessee, it makes perfect sense for Coker Tire to be involved in this highly acclaimed event, and we participated more than ever this year. Our biggest contribution to the event was the V8's in the Village presented by Coker Tire and Paragon Corvette Reproductions. This special event celebrated American V8 engines, and made for a fun Saturday in the West Village area of downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee. A special group of Corvettes and V8-powered muscle cars, hot rods and classic trucks rolled into town and enjoyed the day's activities.

If you're working on a sports car from the 1980's, then you're probably struggling to find speed rated, high performance tires for your 16-inch wheels. Our BFGoodrich g-Force Sport COMP-2 255/50ZR16 tire is the perfect option for a C4 Corvette, but it also offers direct fitment for Aston Martin and Ferrari from the same era. They're also used on custom NEO-Classic builds, like the ones you see at RADWOOD events, as they are a perfect fit for 16-inch Corvette Salad Shooter wheels and other '80s alloy wheels. We have BFG 255/50ZR16 tires in stock and ready to ship to your door...get yours today!

The 2022 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club is a nine day, 2,300 mile journey for 1974 and earlier cars and trucks. This year, the route goes from Warwick, Rhode Island to Fargo, North Dakota. 130 Great Race cars took the green flag at beautiful Rocky Point State Park in Warwick, and headed West into Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota and finally North Dakota. There was no shortage of great stops this year, with thousands of excited spectators, welcoming the cars into town. Team Coker Tire, Gary and JeanAnn Martin once again campaigned their 1932 Ford five window coupe, in hopes of a Grand Championship run. Ultimately, the Martin's landed a second place finish in the Expert division and fourth place overall, another strong finish this year! Congrats to Josh Hull and Trevor Stahl for taking home the victory in their 1932 Ford roadster! There were tons of awesome Coker-equipped vehicles on the race, so let's take

As summertime approaches, the crew here at Coker Tire prepares itself for one of the coolest old car adventures of all time. It’s called the Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club and it’s an event that Coker Tire owns and organizes in-house. This event is a time, speed, endurance rally for cars built in 1974 and earlier, and it’s an event with nearly 40 years of history under its belt. Coker Tire bought the operation in 2010 and the Chattanooga crew put together its first rally in 2011. Now, more than 10 years later, we’ve covered a lot of ground in the United States and Canada, and we’re ready to rack up some more miles this summer.

When car enthusiasts initially hear about the Great Race, they often compare it to the Hot Rod Power Tour or other long distance car tours. While the distance can sometimes be comparable, the experience is very different, as

The Chattanooga Cruise In was born as a way to welcome folks into the Coker Tire family, and we're continiuing that tradition in 2022, despite a two-year hiatus. Join us on Saturday, April 2nd, 2022 for a family-friendly day of fun at Camp Jordan, right off of Interstate 75. This event grows every year and we're expecting a great crowd of hot rods, muscle cars, classic trucks and more! This is a rain or shine event, and it's 100 percent free to the public. We do have some new parking and traffic flow rules for 2022, but it's in an effort to keep traffic moving and get as many vehicles packed into the park as possible.

The fun officially starts at 8am, but participants typically arrive early to get parked and ready for the day's activities. We will have vendors inside the Camp Jordan Arena, and food vendors will be scattered throughout the property, giving you plenty of options. Additionally, our annual Blemished Tire and Wheel sale is happening inside the Arena, and it kicks off

January is always auction season for the collector car market, and one of the big players is the Barrett-Jackson Collecctor Car Auction, held in Scottsdale, Arizona. This event gets LIVE TV coverage and often sets the tone for value trends in the market. We watch the auctions closely to monitor popular vehicles and base our new products around those up-and-coming markets. But more importantly, we travel to the show and set up our 18-wheeler rig to display our tires and engage with our customers. Barrett-Jackson was a huge success for us this year, and we spotted lots of great cars using Coker Tire products. Take a look at some of our favorites, and be sure to check out our Event Schedule to see when we'll be coming to a town near you!

Mecum Kissimmee is the ultimate kick-off to the 2022 season and we've made it back safely from our two-week trip to Central Florida. Mecum Kissimmee 2022 was packed with beautifully restored collector vehicles, ranging from the Teens all the way up to brand new super cars. As always, this is the largest Mecum Auctions event of the year and this time, more than 3,500 cars rolled across the auction block over the course of the 11-day auction. Coker Tire is proud to be the Exclusive Tire and Wheel Sponsor for Mecum Auctions and we were pleasantly surprised by the number of cars and trucks rolling on Coker Tire products. Ranging from wide whitewalls to redlines and everything in between, our product lines were well represented, so we wanted to provide a gallery of photos, as well as a recap video from the Sunshine

When it comes to high end automotive events, there are staples in the industry--Pebble Beach and Amelia Island come to mind. While those events have become a long-standing tradition, the newest addition to this style of event is the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival. This event came about in 2019 and set the bar pretty high, with amazing cars, automotive celebrities and wonderful fellowship. After cancelling the 2020 event due to Covid-19 restrictions, the Chattanooga Motorcar Festival staff had plenty of time to plan for a mind-blowing 2021 event. 

We're proud to announce that the winners of the 2021 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club is Olivia and Genna Gentry! The Georgia-based sisters grew up around many forms of racing, and they have been coming on the Great Race for years. Just a few short years ago (ok, maybe like 10 years ago) these girls were selling Great Race Program Books, and now they are the 2021 Great Race Grand Champions! This victory came after nine days and 2,300 miles of intense rallying from San Antonio, Texas to Greenville, South Carolina. The girls earned the victory in their 1932 Ford coupe, which features Flathead V8 power and BFGoodrich Silvertown wide whitewall tires from Coker Tire! What a great setup, and it proved to be a winning combination for the Gentry girls! Take a look at our favorite shots from the finish line...enjoy!

Day 8 of the 2021 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club featured an INTENSE route full of turns, speed changes and terrain changes. We started our day in the mountains and eventually found ourselves in flat areas East of the Appalachians. Before we exited the twists and turns of the mountains, we made a lunch stop in Galax, Virginia, home of one of the X-Cup teams (Tom Littrell). We entered the Blue Ridge Parkway and made our way down into North Carolina for the afternoon route. It was full of challenges, with a confusing maze that sent the racers looping around country roads, essentially chasing each other around until it was time for the evening stop. Mooresville, North Carolina offered us one of the best evening stops we've ever seen--thousands upon thousands of people filled the streets of downtown Mooresville and cheered as the racing teams pulled in after a hard day. Tomorrow is the final day of competition and the Great Race will crown its newest Grand

We're still making progress on the 2021 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club! Today, we crossed into West Virginia, and navigated lots of twists and turns on our way to an excellent hosted lunch stop in Huntington, West Virginia. From there, we really tackled the turns, as we headed toward New River Gorge National Park. We drove across the bridge, and then made the loop beneath the bridge to see the extremely narrow winding road that leads down to the bottom of the gorge. It was incredible! Then we made the trip to Beckley, West Virginia for our evening stop. Both of our stops today were very well attended! The evening stop had live music and the party kept going long after we packed up and headed for the hotel. Currently, Team Coker Tire (Gary and Jean Ann Martin) are in second place overall, fighting a tough battle with several other Coker Tire-equipped cars and trucks. In fact, the top 5 teams are riding on Coker Tire products! Tomorrow we cross into Virginia

Day 6 of the 2021 Great Race continues an Eastern route across the state of Kentucky. We started the morning in Owensboro, and headed out into the farm land for a short morning of rallying. The change from Central time to Eastern time occured midday so it made for a short morning route. We rolled into lunch at Elizabethtown, Kentucky, grabbed a sandwich and got back on the road. We also had a short pitstop today at My Old Kentucky Home State Park in Bardstown, and then went back into an intense afternoon rally. We finished the day in Lexington, Kentucky and had a great, relaxing evening, as the evening stop took place at our hotel. It was super convenient and fun to hang out so close! Tomorrow we head into West Virginia...ride with us on our Facebook page and be sure to watch www.greatrace.com for more coverage!

Day 5 of the 2021 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club kicked off in Missouri and crossed over into Illinois (a surprise to the racers) and then into Kentucky. We saw beautiful farm land before and after lunch, and we experienced a special surprise organized by the Great Race staff. Part of the course instructions sent us to Metropolis, Illinois and it included a photo opp with Superman. After our brief moment in Metropolis, we crossed the Ohio River and made our way to the lunch stop in Paducah, Kentucky. From there, we motored along with great scenery all around us for the afternoon portion of our route. Finally, we reached our overnight stop in Owensboro, Kentucky, where we were swarmed by thousands of spectators who were so happy to welcome us to town. It was another awesome day of Great Racing as we pass the half way point of this year's event!

We blasted off into Day 4 of the 2021 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club, making our way across the state of Missouri through a mixture of intertsate, Route 66 and back road driving. The rolling hills and beautiful views were fun, but the rallying was intense and made for a challenging day on the route. We screeched into Rolla, Missouri for a quick lunch stop, and then hopped back on the road for an awesome afternoon of rallying. The Gentry girls, Olivia and Genna, won the day in their 1932 Ford five-window coupe...which rolls on Coker Tire products of course! Stay tuned for more coverage as we make our way across Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina!

We're chugging along on the 2021 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club. Today, we covered a lot of ground, covering Oklahoma and entering into Missouri. The route was filled with 50 mile per hour runs that extended for many miles, through various terrains and weather conditions. The day started warm and humid, and then turned cool when a line of heavy rain came through. After a soggy lunch stop in Sapulpa, Oklahoma, we spent most of our afternoon on Historic Route 66 on our way to a giant evening stop in Joplin, Missouri. Thousands of folks came out to see the Great Race and we certainly enjoyed the royal treatment. Tomorrow, we make our way across Missouri, with stops in Rolla and Cape Girardeau. Stay tuned and be sure to check out www.greatrace.com for even more coverage!

Another HOT day of Great Race action is in the books, as we traveled from Temple, Texas to Nocona, Texas by way of historic Granbury, Texas for an awesome lunch stop. We saw hundreds of miles of beautiful farm land, several small towns and lots of smiling faces everywhere we turned. Today's route was filled with challenging instructions, long runs and of course, the high temperatures. Several cars had mechanical issues, but hopefully they'll thrash on them in the hotel parking lot and come back for more action tomorrow, as we cross over into two new states: Oklahoma and Missouri. Stay tuned as we continue this amazing automotive journey!

It's that time of year! We're off on a great old car adventure...the Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty. This year, the event travels from San Antonio, Texas to Greenville, South Carolina, but it'll take us two solid days of rallying to get out of the state of Texas. Today's opening ceremonies offered a great setting, as we were positioned right next to the Alamo. From there, we headed north to San Marcos, Texas for a lunch stop...we didn't do any actual rallying between the start and lunch, just a transit from point A to point B. After a great lunch, the Coker Tire team went on the clock for the first time in the event, aside from yesterday's Hagerty Trophy Run. Yesterday's warm up rally was fun, but today it really counts! The course was challenging, as always, but our team of Gary and Jean Ann Martin took home the Stage 1 victory! Everyone anxiously awaited the results after we rolled into Temple, Texas this evening. Tomrrow we set out for Granbury, Texas and Noccona,

The most highly anticipated Great Race of all time is ready to wave the green flag! We'll be heading out to San Antonio, Texas to support the premier time, speed, endurance rally for vintage vehicles, as it blasts off and heads through eight states on its way to the finish line in Greenville, South Carolina. The route passes through scenic areas and the racers will have access to several great car collections along the way. After taking a year off due to the pandemic, we're SO READY to hit the road with 120 vehicles, all built in 1974 or earlier. With more than $150,000 up for grabs, these guys and girls are serious about competition. Watch our page for daily updates, and as always, keep an eye on our Facebook and Instagram pages for even more content. To see if the Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club is coming to a town near you, go to www.greatrace.com.

When springtime comes around, we love sneaking up to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee for car shows. There are several shows that take place in March, April and May, giving us lots of excuses to make the drive up to check them out. Such is the case with the Corvette Expo, which now features the Chevelles in the Smokies special section. This event is one of the first events of the car show season, and this year it was packed with participants and people. The LeConte Center in Pigeon Forge offers indoor and outdoor space for show cars, parts vendors and a nice swap meet. There are group driving activities and lots of fun stuff throughout the event. We spotted dozens of great Corvettes and Chevelles wearing our products, ranging from numbers matching big block Corvettes to modified "Day 2" style Chevelles and more. We noticed LOTS of redline tires, a mixture of authentic bias ply tires and our modern

City of East Ridge Cancels Annual Car Show Due to Covid-19 Restrictions

The Chattanooga Cruise In, one of the largest free-to-the-public car shows in the Southeast, has been cancelled by the venue and city due to concerns, regarding the expected crowds. The event was planned for Friday, March 26th and Saturday, March 27th, 2021, but unfortunately will not be allowed to take place as scheduled.

The Chattanooga Cruise In was developed in 2011 by the Coker Tire Company as a way of giving back to the local car community with an open house and a free car show, held on the streets surrounding the company’s historic building in downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee. Since then, the event outgrew its original venue and moved to Camp Jordan for the 2019 event. The turnout was bigger than ever, and gave both Coker Tire and venue staff ideas for event improvement in the coming years. Unfortunately, the Chattanooga Cruise In was cancelled in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic,

Coker Tire is proud to announce the availability of new BFGoodrich Silvertown radial tires, sized at 275/65R16, a perfect fitment for the rear of hot rods and classic trucks. This addition to Coker Tire's already popular line of BFGoodrich Silvertown radials continues to increase fitments and fill in gaps in the tire industry. This new 275/65R16 is perfect for the rear of a hot rod or street rod that is utilizing 16x8-inch wheels. The tires come in at 30 inches tall, and measure 11 inches wide when inflated. The new tire is available with a 2-7/8-inch wide whitewall and it's also available with a smooth black sidewall. The tires are made in America, and offer great ride quality and an old school look. These tires are now on the shelf and ready for your vehcile.

Every year, we make the short drive up to Knoxville, Tennessee to check out the NSRA Street Rod Nationals South. We do not set up as a vendor at this event, but we still enjoy going to check out the cars, and enjoy the day at a car show. The event typically takes place on the first weekend of May, but it was recscheduled to the first weekend of October, due to Covid-19 concerns. And while that may have hurt the turnout, it certainly made for pleasant weather, with sunny skies and highs in the 60's all weekend long. There were lots of great traditional hot rods, street rods, muscle cars, classic trucks and customs rolling on Coker Tire products, and we wanted to show them off here. Take a look at some of our favorites from the 2020 "Nats South" and stay tuned to www.nsra-usa.com for updates on their 2021 schedule.

Vintage tow trucks lived hard lives, and many of them ended up in fields or in the woods after being retired from service. The harsh truth is that vintage commercial trucks are rarely worth a lot of money, so they often get neglected and put out to pasture (literally). Such is the case of a 1941 Chevrolet tow truck, which served the Chattanooga, Tennessee area many decades ago. It was damaged and rusty, but its owners found a great way to revitalize it and help a great cause.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The 2020 Hemmings Motor News Great Race presented by Hagerty Drivers Club has been rescheduled for Aug. 22-30 from San Antonio, Texas, to Greenville, S.C., due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Great Race, out of an abundance of caution for the participants, spectators and the small towns along the route, has worked with mayors and city officials to take unprecedented steps to ensure safety.

“I’m pleased to announce that all of our Grand Champions as well as a majority of the race teams, volunteers and staff have agreed to the new schedule and we look forward to having a full field for the start of the 2020 Great Race in front of the Alamo on Aug. 22,” event director Jeff Stumb said.

The Great Race will follow all CDC, state and local guidelines, and officials have been working closely with cities to have spectators line the streets on the way into the venue to

The hot rod and custom crowd can truly appreciate a timeless creation, like this 1955 Chevy that belongs to Steve Rennick Jr. from Fairfield, Ohio. His car has countless modifications that give it a distinct look with the most noticeable being the chopped top. The perfectly proportioned chop is accompanied by other modifications, including a sun visor, Packard taillights, fender skirts, Corvette-style grille and many more custom touches throughout.

Coker Tire Company is the exclusive North American distributor for Michelin classic tires, and partners with the corporation to develop new products to fill voids in the marketplace. We are proud to announce eight new sizes in the already popular line of Michelin radial tires. All Michelin tires are designed for high performance driving and precise fitment. Let's take a look at these new products.

Mild customs have long been a staple in the automotive hobby. They might look simple, but it’s truly a challenge to come away with the perfect look with minimal modifications. Brent Lovern owns this 1955 Chevy 210 Delray. He knew that the car had plenty of style in original form, and he wanted to accentuate those lines with a slightly lowered stance and then hide some modern conveniences from plain sight.

An iconic muscle car, this Hemi-powered 1969 Plymouth Road Runner is owned by Ken Stonebrook of Chattanooga, Tennessee. The car has been in his family since it was new, and belonged to his father, David from 1973 until 2014. That’s when Ken bought the car and decided to give it a much-deserved restoration. The B-body Mopar was originally Rallye Green in color, with black interior and lots of great options. There were less than 800 Hemi Road Runners produced in 1969, making them highly sought after and very valuable. During the 1970s, the car was repainted black and fitted with drag racing equipment, including an inline shifter, mag wheels, a hood scoop and a few modifications to the original Hemi engine. Subsequently, the car got banged up a little, and was parked in his father's barn in 1973 with a little over 30,000 miles on the odometer. 

Hot rods are all about attitude, and David Abell's North Carolina-based 1933 Ford has plenty of it. The heavily choopped top, stretched wheelbase and other race-inspired details give you the impression that this five-window coupe just returned home from a high speed run at the Bonneville Salt Flats. The truth of the matter is that it’s a highway friendly hot rod and gets driven quite often. 

Coker Tire Company is the world’s largest manufacturer of collector vehicle tires and wheels, and it continues to grow with the introduction of Dunlop Sport Classic and SP Sport Aquajet radial tires to its product line. Coker Tire brought on this new line as an excellent option for European sports cars, ranging from the 1950’s through the 1980’s. Dunlop’s racing heritage trickles down into its street-legal radials, as each Dunlop radial tire is speed rated and ready for action.

Chevrolet muscle cars experienced a big transition in 1966, with the mainstream introduction of the big block Chevy engine. Of course, the soft intro with the 1965 Chevelle Z16 (201 produced) gave select buyers an opportunity to preview the engine in GM's A-body platform, but the new big block found its way into more than 72,000 Chevelles in the 1966 model year. This combination, regardless of its horsepower package,offered excellent performance and the ultimate cool factor for any car enthusiast. The cars featured here are owned by Terry Davis of Wytheville, Virginia and were restored side-by-side a few years ago. Both cars have similar option packages, but have different backgrounds. Let's take a look at this powerful pair of Chevy muscle cars and find out more of the story.

As hot rodders, we’re all seeking the nostalgic feeling of the good ol’ days. For most of us, that means the 1950’s and 1960’s, and that’s exactly the era that Dave Doolin wanted to represent with his 1932 Ford pickup. Dave spent two years on his traditional hot rod project and performed nearly every aspect of the build himself, from the flawless body work and Pacific Gold paint to the black and white leather upholstery.

The muscle car era gave new car buyers seemingly infinite option combinations, but sometimes that wasn’t enough. In the case of Chris Kraner’s 1970 Ford Torino GT, it has a laundry list of options, as it was ordered with the Drag Pack option group, which upgraded its engine to the famous 429ci Super Cobra Jet engine. It has 16 additional options, including special paint, as Grabber Blue was not available for the Torino in 1970. Other notable options include a close-ratio four-speed transmission, factory 8,000-rpm tachometer, hideaway headlights and “rim blow” deluxe steering wheel. According to the Marti Report on the car, there are only two examples of this combination of options.

There is something to be said for folks who get out and use their collector vehicles for their intended purpose. A perfect example is Mike Hallmark's 1948 Willys CJ2A. This thing is weathered and worn, but Mike got it running again and put it to work at the Easter Jeep Safari in Moab, Utah. He didn't putt around the low lying areas or search for easy lines to take. He went all out and did exactly what this old Jeep was supposed to do. He held on for dear life as the bumps nearly threw him out of the seat, and kept his foot planted to pull out of some hairy situations. 

The Chattanooga Cruise In has been cancelled. We have been forced to cancel the event, due to the regulations presented by federal, state and local governments, in regard to the coronavirus pandemic. As car guys, it’s not a decision that we are happy about, as we planned to make this year’s event bigger and better than ever. As members of the local, state and global community, we must adhere to these guidelines to protect everyone’s health and the future of the Chattanooga Cruise In. There is no plan to reschedule the event at this time. Thank you for your continued support of the event.