Patty Spagnuolo sits down with Bill Brandt and Scott Skowronek to talk about the Capital City Old Car Club Car Show and how it helps support Lansing Community College’s Automotive Tech Scholarship. The event brings together classic car fans, students, and the community for a fun day of amazing vehicles, food, and connection. Join the fun on May 30 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at LCC’s West Campus and help support future automotive technicians.

Mentioned This Episode:

Event Info: 2026 Old Car Show & Fundraiser

Website: Capitol City Old Car Club

Welcome to the StarZone, I'm Patty Spagnuolo. From resource fairs geared towards our students, to arts and entertainment aimed to connect with our community, Lansing Community College hosts many events throughout the year, and the StarZone gives you a rundown on what's on the way, where it's happening, and how you can get into the zone at LCC.

Hello, I'm your host, Patty Spagnuolo, and you're listening to the Star Zone.

He is the development coordinator for the foundation at Lansing Community College and has been with the college for 17 years. Welcome, gentlemen.

Thank you for having us.

So before we dive into that, I'm thinking I need you to explain how your purposes connect. What does the car show have to do with the LCC Foundation?

And guess what we do here at lcc? We train the next generation of mechanics. So they wanted to set up a scholarship. So I met with them. They were very excited.

We established a scholarship. And then they said, you know, we used to do a car show out in Grand Ledge, and it's not working out so great with traffic patterns and all that.

So we really. Is there some way we could work with lcc? And Lansing Community College has had an auto show out at West Campus in the past.

So I said, I don't know, let me talk to some folks. So I contacted our friends out at West Campus. We started it out.

Now, this auto show, the car club runs it as a fundraiser that supports their scholarship here at LCC. So every year a student gets $1,000 to attend and be a future mechanic from the Capital City Old Car Club. So that's how.

That is. Awesome. Wow. So is it typically a student that just graduated high school? Is that or can anybody apply?

Anybody who is a student at LCC and is in the auto tech program can get a scholarship.

Wow. Bill, what do you think about that? How you were obviously involved from the ground up?

Well, several of our Members are mechanics or retired.

And one of our members, Bruce, you know, said, you know, hey, we need to do something to help get these kids involved in doing the mechanic work, plus getting them and trying to get them involved with the older cars. A lot of us my age are, you know, reaching the end and we need to get some young, young blood into the hobby.

So we figured that was a good way of doing it. Give back to the community and help the kids, get them interested in the cars.

Well, that's the thing I was going to ask you too, is. So I'm assuming they're being trained at West Campus for what is currently being built? Not necessarily.

Because there's a big difference between the cars you're driving.

Oh, yes.

And the cars that we're buying today off the lots.

Yes.

So how does that work?

Well, if they've got the experience and the training to work on today's cars, then they just need to find somebody like us older folks to say, okay, how do I do it without a computer?

Right.

You know, how do I learn how to adjust carburetors and adjust timing and stuff without just clicking a button and it telling me what's wrong? You gotta learn to see the signs of what's wrong and how to fix it.

Right. Well, you know, and that's the other thing. This is getting off the beaten path a little bit.

But with those cars that you bring to the show, I'm assuming that maybe you trailer them there.

Oh, no.

You drive them.

Oh, yeah. 99 And a half percent are probably driven.

You might get one or two that are trailered and some of the more exotic, you know, really expensive restorations and modifications. But most of the cars are all driven.

I mean, because of. Two thoughts there. One, you're putting mileage on an already older car.

And then two, if you crack that thing up, it's gotta be harder to repair that car.

Yeah. Finding parts can be a problem depending on what model and year and make it is. But most car enthusiasts want to drive them. I mean, right.

Trailer queens are nice, but I don't want to sit in my garage and just look at it. I want to drive it.

Nice. Look at the lingo we're picking up already. I love this. I'm going to go back to my guys at home and be able to. I'll be able to hang a little bit.

So does LCC have a student's club that is car.

We don't currently have a registered student organization. An RSO for car enthusiasts. That would be pretty neat to Have.

That'd be awesome.

But in my conversations with the faculty in the automotive technical program, they're kind of their own club because they're there hands on with their cohort of students. So they. I don't know, it's such a specific interest that is served by their classes as well. So.

Okay, okay. And they probably all, as a unit, sort of galvanize and do their own thing on weekends and whatnot, is what you're saying. They kind of threw it.

They're in it together, basically. So. Okay. And do you know it. Does the automotive technology program, does it teach like restoration or just mechanics of it? Like.

No, we. We don't here at LCC offer a restoration program, but powertrain, brakes, electrical, car H vac, all of those mechanical areas.

And as Bill said, you know, it's the ability to then say, I love cars because many of the students who want to go into this work really love cars. And so then it's becoming exposed through things like the car show where they become interested and more informed about old cars.

That is not okay in my heart.

Oh, my gosh. Okay, so I want to jump to this question then. What was each of you, what was the first car you ever drove like to school?

I mean, it was actually yours, not one of your parents that you drove?

Oh, mine was a 65 Dodge Dart.

It started with my folks who drove it and then it went through my two sisters and I was the last one in line and they told me if I paid the insurance, I could have it. So.

Nice. Was it a four door?

No, it was a two door, little six cylinder engine, nothing fancy.

Oh, my gosh. You don't still have it, I'm assuming? No, no, no.

The rust took care of that.

Did you drive it to high school or was it after you graduated?

No, it was in high school.

Nice.

I made it halfway through my first year of college.

Wow, that's awesome. What about you, Scott?

Well, mine is much, much less cool.

Okay.

Nice.

It was white with a red stripe all around the side and red felt interior. It was my grandmother's car and when she could no longer drive, I took over the payments in high school and I drove that thing until it died.

And that was about nine years after I got it. I try to drive a car into the ground before I get a new one.

Right. Well, how many miles do you know did it have on it when you.

It had 160,000 some odd. When I sold it to a dealer for $500 for parts, he said, well, I can give you the money for parts. And I said, yeah, that seems very fair.

Right.

You know what kind of surprises me and I don't know people's perception of what high mileage is, because my Jeep almost has 150,000 on it, and I don't think anything of that. And my son will buy cars. He's like, oh, it's got 120,000. That's pretty good. You know, he. He tinkers and can fix older cars.

And so for us, that doesn't. That's not a lot. I guess we don't think it's a lot unless it's turning 200,000. And then we're like, hey, that car, that's something right there.

So what do you think?

Well, yeah, the newer cars with the technology and everything go a lot more. I know when I was a kid, you know, you had 30,000, 50,000, max. It's time to get rid of it, really.

Because it just didn't hold up like the newer cars do. You got better oils, you got better technology than you had back then.

See, I'm amazed by that. I feel like.

Okay, so I drove a 72 blue Chevy Nova, and I think that thing was around even long after I was done with high school and, you know, the whole bit. So I remember it even had a butterfly clip or something.

And we used to have to stick a thing in it to start it because it needed enough air into the carburetor. That makes sense. Things I remember. Right. Okay, so dream car, what is your dream car or truck? And you can have more than one, because I do.

Oh, I would have to say probably anywhere from A57 to 60, Dodge DeSoto, Plymouth or Chrysler. The forward look cars with the big wings, the fins in the back.

Oh, wow. Okay. You're going. Yeah, a little ways back then.

Yeah. Yeah. I like the cars back then more than I like the ones now.

What about you, Scott?

Well, I'm not a car guy, which is the funny thing about all this, is that I like a car that gets me from point A to point B reliably. So my dream car, I actually got to own it, which was a Subaru Outback.

Nice.

And I owned that for about 10 years. Before selling it on to a young person just out of college.

Wow.

A little bit of money so that they could have something relatively reliable.

And the cycle continues.

Exactly. That's what you do.

I like the wood grain. You know, you get one that's the limited and it's just. Yeah.

The only thing I don't like is sometimes the interiors are a little funky with some of those older cars. The Broncos are the same way. You know, it's that crushed velvet stuff and you know, that kind of thing. But anyway, okay, I digress.

So let's talk a little bit more about the show. What exactly will be going on on Saturday? Will there be a circus going on and you know, or is it just come look at the cars?

Well, no circuses, but we will be a lot of different cars. A lot of variety come. Last year we had about 200. Wow.

If the weather is cooperative, the Model T club will be out there giving rides in their Model as or Model Ts. You know, depending on which members bring what. There's going to be food.

We'll have a couple of food trucks out there, two guys, nomadic grill and mobile munchies will be there. There'll be music. DJ.

Wow.

Seeing that it's the 100 year anniversary of Route 66 this year.

Oh my gosh. Good plug.

Wow.

Didn't know that.

And so they're gonna raffle off that quilt.

Nice.

And be a lot of fun. We're hoping the weather cooperates. That's always the big unknown.

So there's food there, there's these raffles. I'm assuming the people that come, it's free to come to the event. But all this other stuff, you know, bring your pocketbook.

You're gonna pay for your food, obviously.

Well, yeah, you'll have to pay for your food. And whatever raffle tickets you buy spectators, it's free admission.

Yeah.

If you're bringing a card, registration fee is $20.

Wow.

And like we said, all the proceeds go to that scholarship fund or. Scholarship fund.

What do the people that bring their cars? I mean, just the love of the cars, of course.

I think that's a passion and I think you put a lot of time and work into it and share it with other people. So thank you for that. Is there some sort of award that you're giving out?

Yes, there'll be awards. We'll have 30. We have 15 classes. So there'll be 50 first and second place in each of the classes, and that'll be a best of show.

And it's a judge show. We have judges that go around and judge the cars. And it's a numerical score that they'll decide who's first, second and such.

Also, I forgot to mention too, that the auto lab at the LCC will be giving tours of the lab at 11 and 1. So that'll be something to do as well.

Very cool. Yeah.

People are always amazed. It is. I worked at LCC for 17 years. I know how cool LCC is. Lots of people know we've got things, but they've never been out to West Campus.

They've never seen our auto lab. And just seeing it is one of the greatest advertisements. People talk about my nephew should come here or my niece or my granddaughter.

When they see it, they realize how much we have to offer. And that is so very neat to see happen in real time at the show.

Right, right. So how many people does it take to run this organization? Because as I'm hearing you talk, I'm thinking, okay, got all the scheduling.

You had to line up all these other things. I mean, the food trucks, the dj, all this stuff. And you must be keeping, you know, somebody's got to pay for to have the DJ out there.

So I mean, this is like a mini organization.

Well, it's the club, the car Club. We currently have 75 to 80 families in the club.

Wow.

We usually try to get about 50 volunteers to do the work. You know, being at the registration table, the gate and the raffle tables and things like that. So it takes a few people to do it. This is our fifth.

This will be our fifth.

I think it's the fifth year. So the logistics of it is pretty much all ironed out by now.

LCC does a great job of letting us, you know, giving us tables and chairs and stuff to set up for in the dining area, the eating area and things like that. So it's it pretty much runs itself now. We just need the bodies to be there to. To facilitate stuff.

Well, I noticed looking at your website, you have something going on like every month.

Yeah, on the website we have an events calendar. The way things are now, you can go to a car event every day. You'll pick from three or four a day which ones you want to go to.

Especially now getting into May and then June, July, August especially. You'll see some of them. There's four or five things listed for all the same day. So there's a lot of it out there to do.

So our website will have that on there so people can go on the website and look at the event calendar, see what's going on in the area and if they want to attend something.

Do you have to have a car to join?

This sounds like a silly question, but do you have to have like a car or a classic car or something that you'd want to show just to be part of the organization?

Art club. You can join if you don't have a car. All you have to have is an interest. We have a range of cars from works in progress to.

One of our members has had several Auburns over the years. So we have a total range. We have several members who don't even have cars. They just like cars.

And you had mentioned earlier about the young kids getting into this. We're always looking for young members. You know, we're all getting my age and we need some younger blood.

And then what a better way for a younger person who's in the tech program who wants to learn about old cars. Join a club with a bunch of guys who've been working on old cars for 40, 50 years. And there's your in to say, hey, how do I do this? How do I do that?

Right?

Because it hasn't happened to me.

I want a Wagoneer. So, you know, whatever. I want to find someone with one in their barn.

So I'm curious, is there one big old car convention somewhere like Vegas or somewhere that you all go where across the country people come?

There are several organizations that are nationals. I'm a Chrysler guy or Mopar guy, so I know they have the Mopar nationals every year down in Columbus, Ohio.

I know Ford collectors, They'll have a national show somewhere. There's street rod people have a national show. And for street rods, there's several different chapters in each state.

So, I mean, it's the Oldsmobile Club here in town. The same way. There's several different chapters of the Oldsmobile Club. So, yeah, you can find an organization, if you like a certain brand.

There's groups out there that you can join and be part of for that. That brand.

Yeah.

And we're pretty tribal here in Michigan with our car brands because I grew up in a Ford family and.

Okay.

Yeah, my second car was not a Ford. My father gave me a look.

A look.

And he continues to give me a look anytime, because now I drive a Chevy. And as a. As a kid who grew up a NASCAR fan, that was. That might be the biggest. No, no. I could make.

Wow.

Driving a Chevy for a Ford family.

So that is funny. My dad, big Ford guy, and our family Ford, and then my son switched it up when he got his first vehicle. It was a Dodge, so. And that was. That was.

Yeah, that was us. I've had a. I've had an Aspen. You know, right now I'm driving a Jeep or Angler. Yeah. So it is kind of funny, though. You're right.

You get stuck in those and. Yeah. I know people who are just straight Chevy people. That's it. That's all they're gonna drive. So. Wow. All right.

Is there anything else that we want to bring up about this car show that, you know, just come hang out if. If it's a rain date. Is there a rain date?

No, it's a rain or shine, so it's going to happen if it's raining or sunny. We're hoping for the sun, so keep your fingers crossed for the good weather.

Okay. I want to shift gears a little bit, and. No pun intended.

How, like, do we know, do the LCC students that go through the program, are they coming to the shows even after they've graduated? I know it's still fair. The scholarship's still fairly young, so I assume you might have one or two graduates or.

We have not had a graduate come to the show that we knew about. Certainly, they may have come as a spectator, but unfortunately, when we have the car show is after the semester is over.

Oh, right. Yes.

So many of the students, they're off, they're working. They're doing what they're going to be doing for the summer.

Right.

So we do have a smaller student participation than we'd like, but if you're around campus, you'll be seeing the digital signage all over campus. We'll have information about the car show. It'll be on the page.

If you go to LCC Edu Car show we have an event page with links so that you can learn more about the Capital City Old Car Club. Or if you feel like donating, you can click there's a Donate now button right there.

Or you can always go to LCC Edu Give now to support any scholarship or program here at lcc the foundation, we support every type of student that there is.

All right, Bill, any parting comments?

No. Like I say, hopefully the weather cooperates and hope to see lots of spectators out there.

Awesome.

Again, we are talking about the Capital City Old Car Club Car show, which is a fundraiser for the Lansing Community College Automotive Tech Scholarship. It is being held on Saturday, May 30 from 9am to 3pm at LCC's West Campus.

For more information, please visit LCC Edu Events or visit the Capital City Old Car Club website at Old Car Club Gentlemen, it was a pleasure. Thank you for stopping by.

Thank you.

Thank you for having us.

Until next time, this is Patty Spagnuolo. Wishing you well. Everyone,

Thanks for joining us here on the StarZone. For more information on this episode, visit lccconnect.org. You can also find a complete list of Lansing Community College events by visiting lcc.edu/calendar. Until next time, thanks for getting into the Zone.