Radwood Philadelphia was a 1980s and 90s-themed car show that took place at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on October 14, 2018. Cars from this period are hot right now, and I love me some nostalgia. And the best kind of nostalgia is when it brings back memories of your own childhood. Yes, cars from the 50s and 60s are cool in their own way, but it was the cars of the 80s and 90s that turned me into a car guy.

(No offense, cars of the 70s, but you know what you did.)

So Radwood is totally in my sweet spot. And it did not disapoint.

The Dream Cars

Most of the time you go to a car show to see the cars you would never be able to own, fantastic machines that might adorn your walls but not your garage. Radwood had no shortage of these cars, starting with The Car I Most Wanted to Take Home, this 3rd-generation Toyota Supra:

Toyota Supra (of my dreams) Photo : Rob Ristuccia


But there were plenty of other machines that successfully awoke the 12-year-old boy in me. Everything from Ferraris to an Audi Quatro rally car to a metric tonne of Acura NSXs and Mazda FD RX-7s to imported Toyota Seras.

Ferrari Testarossa Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Audi Quattro Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Acura NSX Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Acura Integra Type R. Oh, how I wanted one of these when I was in my late teen and early 20s Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Toyota Sera, the car that inspired the door design of McLaren F1 Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Toyota Sera. Somehow I would figure out how to daily a right-hand drive car if I had this in my garage Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Ferrari 308, Lancia Delta, Porsche 911, Dodge Viper Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Mazda FD RX-7, one of the best-looking cars ever made Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Porsche 911. I’m not sure what’s going on in the back of this 911, but I’m pretty sure that’s not a Porsche flat six Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Alfa Romeo GTV

Alfa Romeo 155 Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Alfa Romeo 155 Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Ferrari 348 Spyder Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Dodge Panel Gap Photo : Rob Ristuccia


The Regular Cars

Despite all this magnificent metal, the thing that really made Radwood special for me was seeing all of the “regular cars” that I remembered seeing (and maybe even driving or riding in) during the 80s and 90s. I’ve always thought of myself as a practical person, and this really came to the surface when I found myself geeking out over a Toyota Corolla and suddenly realized that while I was taking a picture I had my back turned on a pristine Acura NSX.


Anyway, seeing these regular cars again, usually in pristine condition, was a real treat. Maybe there wasn’t a 1988 Toyota Camry like I learned how to drive in or a 1993 Toyota Corolla like the first car I owned, but there was no shortage of cars that had nice memories attached to them.

Toyota Corolla Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Toyota Corolla Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Dodge Caravan, with turbo, all set to embarrass kids down at the drag strip Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Acura Integra Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Acura Integra, with an engine that looks like it just rolled off the factory floor Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Honda Accord Coupe Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Honda Accord Coupe Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Volkswagen Sirocco Photo : Rob Ristuccia

Nissan Sentra, looking a lot like my 1997 200SX SE-R but with easier access to the back seats (hopefully also without seized rear brake calipers) Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Volkswagen Cabrio, Teddy Bear Edition, apparently Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Volkswagen Golf Harlequin, which apparently came from the factory with this color scheme Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Of Course, the Miatas

Radwood was well-stocked with first-generation NA Mazda Miatas, from pristine examples of mostly stock cars to heavily modified versions intended for track use. Pop-up headlights over a subtle smile were everywhere. Unfortunately, NB1 was not represented. But given that really only the 1999 model year would qualify for the show, that’s not too much of a surprise.


You would never know it by looking at the paint, but “Red Five” has over 170,000 miles on the odometer Photo : Rob Ristuccia

A nicely track-prepped NA Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Photo : Rob Ristuccia

I almost walked right by this NA in its camouflage paint scheme Photo : Rob Ristuccia


Photo : Rob Ristuccia

My Big Idea

And so it comes to my Big Idea. I want to start a rental car company called “The Car You Learned How to Drive in.” The idea is to own a fleet of cars in which people my got their first taste of driving. I’m thinking of such 80s and 90s regular car all stars like:

Toyota Camry, Corolla, or Tercel

Chevrolet Corsica or Lumina

Ford Escort or Taurus

Honda Accord or Civic

Nissan Sentra or Stanza

Dodge Diplomat or Omni

Any Chrysler K-car variant

Volkswagen Golf or Jetta

This is all I can think of for now, but list of Learn-to-Drive Cars could go on and on. Be on the lookout for my kick starter.