TMCP #650: Ask Rick – Father’s Day Car Shows, Summer Cruise Nights, and Patriotic Auction Temptations
The MuscleCar Place
Robert Kibbe
4.5 • 702 Ratings
🗓️ 5 June 2026
⏱️ 55 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Father's Day is right around the corner, and on this month's Ask Rick, Rob Kibbe welcomes National Parts Depot CEO Rick Schmidt for a wide-ranging conversation covering everything from car show planning to collector car buying strategy. Drawing from more than twenty years of experience producing NPD's legendary Silver Springs Ford and GM shows, Rick shares what makes a great event, why most car shows overcomplicate things, and how creating an experience for the entire family is often more important than the cars themselves.
The discussion also dives into the evolving world of reproduction bodies and restoration parts. Rick offers an insider's perspective on the quality improvements seen in replacement Camaro and Firebird bodies, the challenges of manufacturing and licensing, and why some projects help preserve the hobby while others raise serious questions. If you've ever wondered what goes into bringing reproduction sheet metal and complete bodies to market, this segment is packed with fascinating insight.
Of course, no Ask Rick episode would be complete without auction picks. This month Rick evaluates six vehicles ranging from a 1968 El Camino SS 396, 1969 Mercury Cougar Convertible, and 1962 Chrysler 300, to a modern Shelby GT350R Heritage Edition, a stunning 1950 Oldsmobile 88 Convertible, and a 1969 Dodge Charger R/T. Along the way he reveals which cars he'd happily cruise all summer, which ones he'd avoid entirely, and why some of the hobby's most interesting opportunities aren't always the most obvious choices.
The post TMCP #650: Ask Rick – Father’s Day Car Shows, Summer Cruise Nights, and Patriotic Auction Temptations first appeared on The Muscle Car Place.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Muscle Car Place online podcast, episode number 650. This week, Rick is here to kick things off for the month of June, and we're going to cover a myriad of topics in depth, specifically the ins and outs of putting on a really nice car show, even when it's not to make money. |
| 0:17.2 | Rick did one for years, just effectively for good PR. It was really hard to do. |
| 0:21.6 | And he definitely did not like having 50s music on the PA. |
| 0:24.6 | He'll share that. |
| 0:25.6 | Then we discussed the business of full reproduction car bodies. |
| 0:28.6 | This is not a new thing, certainly. |
| 0:30.6 | NPD sells the mainline ones already, but more are coming out from various players. |
| 0:34.6 | You've seen the video, so did Rick. |
| 0:36.6 | I saw in that video trademarkable brands being stamped into tailgates for trucks. |
| 0:42.4 | Automatically, I'm like, well, that's not going to fly with that manufacturer's licensing |
| 0:47.9 | department. And that video was the first time that I've ever seen China, mainland China, |
| 0:54.0 | even spoken about in the |
| 0:56.2 | classic sheet metal business, let alone the bodybuilding business. |
| 1:04.1 | This is the Muscle Car Place online podcast, brought you by National Parks Depot. |
| 1:14.5 | This is the weekly show dedicated to people worldwide who love American muscle cars. If you're buying, selling, restoring, even racing them, this is the |
| 1:22.0 | place for you. Now here's your host, Rob Kibby. Yes, indeed I I am Rob Kibby, and welcome to the Muscle Car Place podcast. |
| 1:31.1 | Well, happy June, everybody. |
| 1:32.4 | First show of June and Rick is here to walk us through all the trials and tribulations |
| 1:35.8 | of life and putting on car shows and figuring out if repop bodies are a good idea to sell |
| 1:42.5 | to your customers, picking cars off or bring a trail to get ready for independence and end up flip them and make some money. |
| 1:47.9 | Or maybe most importantly not lose money. |
| 1:50.2 | All coming up. |
... |
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