Step back in time with a classic car-show in America’s biggest little city.
Hot August Nights has been blending America’s love of classic cars with rock and roll since 1986.
Car or truck models newer than 1979 are not allowed to participate and live music from the 50s, 60s and 70s is featured nightly. Elvis, Buddy Holly and Boston tributes are all on the 2022 docket. Events also include a show & shine contest, craft fair, refreshment stands and so much more.
Hot August Nights will conjure feelings of nostalgia for attendees who have lived through these eras. But it will also preserve and invigorate car culture for younger generations.
While this car show welcomes 6,000 participants each year, one of the best ways to showcase or view these classic cars is at the AMSOIL Drag Races & Burnout. In the shadow of the historic Nugget Casino Resort, all attendees may take on a 1/16-mile track to see whose car still has what it takes to be the fastest. Each night, a cash prize is awarded to the top three racers in elapsed time and reaction time categories. While the overall event is free, there is a $15 charge to spectate at the Drag Races.
When to see the AMSOIL Drag Races & Burnouts:
Wednesday, Aug. 3 & Thursday, Aug. 4
6 p.m. – Midnight
Nugget Casino Resort West Parking Lot
All makes and models are able to race, but only 40 modern vehicles are allowed per night. 2022 Hot August Nights participants may race for free. It costs $30 for non-registered participants.
Friday, Aug. 5 & Saturday, Aug. 6
6 p.m. – Midnight
Nugget Casino Resort West Parking Lot
Open to 1979 and older vehicles only. Registered participants may race for free. There is a $50 fee for non-registered participants.
To learn more about the 2022 Hot August Nights and see a full schedule of events, check out the Hot August Nights website.
Do you have a classic car? See how our Z-ROD® Keeps Vehicles Street-Ready – AMSOIL Blog.
Video transcript: Company of Enthusiasts: We’re into Classic Cars
My name is Jerry Mikulski and I’m an independent AMSOIL dealer from Wyoming, Pennsylvania. And I’m into cars and anything with an engine. We are at Victory Pig in Wyoming, Pennsylvania. It’s a weekly car cruise.
A lot of people come here just to hang out, check out everybody else’s cars. My family’s been doing restorations since I was little. My father and my uncle have been restoring cars before I was even born. We try to restore them to the point where they are an amazing looking driver.
You can take them out to a cruise, drive them 120 miles to a trip, enjoy them. That’s really what we want to do with them. My favorite part of restoring a car has to be the journey, the memories that are created, working on something, trying to get things right, finding that part, looking for the car in the beginning, trying to find the car that you feel like that’s going to be my car. You never forget that moment, that adrenaline rush of, wow, look what I found.
This is definitely work for me. Always an exciting moment. Throughout the years, we’ve accumulated a really nice collection. It’s a lot of really unique stories that go along with each vehicle.
My name is Jerry Mikulski Sr. And this is my 1965 Corvette* Stingray. When I first bought the car in 1978, it was in rough shape. I went and bought a brand new short block from General Motors*, 327, 300 horsepower.
I changed the rear end to a posi 370. I like the low end. The side pipes roar, but that to me is music. The radio works, but I never play it because the music comes out of these side pipes.
I’m Greg Mikulski and this is my 1958 Pontiac Chieftain four-door hardtop. I bought it when I was 14, fixed it up, made sure everything was okay mechanically, repainted it. And by the time I was 16, my girlfriend and I went to the senior prom with this car. And then several years later, we ended up getting married.
Being my first car, you know, you talk to different guys and they always say, shouldn’t have sold my first car. Well, I still have mine and I plan on keeping it. And this is my wife’s 1957 Nash Metropolitan. This is an American-made car by American Motors.
It was made in England to help keep the cost down, four-cylinder, English engine in it. It’s a three-speed on the column. It’s designed to be driven in the city to go shopping, a great fun car to drive, turns heads all the time. You don’t see many of them around and people just love it.
These are my Jeeps. I have a 2002 Jeep* Wrangler TJ and a 2011 Jeep Wrangler JKU. Unlike all the restoration projects of the classic cars we have, Jeeps are more of an upgrade. The parts available to it are real easy to put on and you make it bigger, better, badder, so you could take it off-road and put it to the test.
Working in the garage with my brother and my dad have a huge impact on who I am today. I feel like I’ve gotten a very fulfilling life out of growing up in the family that I did and I want to pass that along to my girls. They will definitely be in the garage with me, getting their hands dirty. I would hope that all those values that have been instilled in me, I’ve passed on to them and they could pass it on to their kids.
My name is Jerry Mikulski and I’m an independent AMSOIL dealer from Wyoming, Pennsylvania and I’m into cars and anything with an engine.
