Aliso students in the Auto Shop class showed off various vehicles at the car show on May 1.
The event featured a wide variety of students’ cars, including classic cars, modern rides and custom student creations.
The event was largely student-led, with interested participants submitting their vehicles on a Google form. Additionally, the show featured various local sponsors as it engaged the community while displaying the students’ skilled and passionate creations.
Auto student Kai Thomas (11) says, “It was a great way to show the different ways students enjoy cars and how people’s tastes in cars vary. Lots of preparation went into it, especially with the desk.”
Thomas refers to one particularly notable inclusion: a standard school desk on a custom-built chassis, powered by a 15 horsepower engine. Such projects were commonplace at the show and indicate the range of vehicles the Auto students had been working on.
Other cars included older Chevrolet and Corvette muscle cars, modern Mustang sports cars and more conventional vehicles that students simply wanted to show off.
“We’re just a bunch of students who have cars that we’re proud of, that we worked on or that we just think are cool, and want to share with the school,” says Auto student Ozi Leibovitz (11). “It’s been going on a while and really helps students be more connected when we all have a shared appreciation of the same thing.”
Planning for the show is a collective endeavor that takes considerable effort. Participants must first submit their entries online; afterward, the show is organized on the basketball courts. Planning also includes reaching out to community sponsors to attend the show.
“Everyone who was working on it pulled together to get it rolling,” says Thomas.
Despite the effort the show requires for planning and execution, it has become an Auto tradition due to the collective passion for cars as a community.
Thomas notes, “It allows students who are interested in cars to share their passion, and it also helps other students to find their own interest in cars.”
The event drew a large crowd, who came to see its classic and powerful vehicles but also appreciated the custom-made or conventional cars, as the show had something for everyone and showed off the hard work of the Auto students.
“It takes a lot of effort to plan, but it’s worth it,” says Leibovitz. “It’s great because car lovers at school can get together and have an opportunity to appreciate the thing they love with like-minded people.”
The Aliso Niguel car show is open to anybody who wants to share their car, whether they worked on it in Auto Shop or just want to put it on display for others to enjoy.
“It doesn’t have to be a Lamborghini to be interesting,” says Thomas. “If you like it and put time into it, then it belongs at the show.”M
