POINT LOMA – The third annual Sunset Cliffs Auto Show will roll into town Saturday, Sept. 6, as a community celebration anchored around a vehicle exhibition.
This family-friendly, community-powered event from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. will be held along Point Loma Avenue, where it intersects with Sunset Cliffs Boulevard.
Presented by The Inn at Sunset Cliffs, the car show takes place the weekend after Labor Day, offering something for car lovers and locals alike. The show, featuring 110 vehicles selected from more than 150 applicants, features live music, food trucks, merchandise vendors, and exciting activities for all ages. It will transform the neighborhood into a festive outdoor gathering.
The main sponsors for the 2025 Sunset Cliffs Auto Show are Hodad’s Ocean Beach and The Inn at Sunset Cliffs. Other sponsors include Ocean Beach MainStreet Association, Trinidad Motors, St. Peter’s By The Sea, Music as You Like It, Catrina Russell Real Estate, Brad Zemcik, The Harp, Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers, San Diego Gulls Hockey Club, Farm Fresh, and BK Printing.
“I had this idea about 10 years ago,” Gavin Fleming, owner-manager of The Inn At Sunset Cliffs, said of the show’s origin. “I thought I’d probably never be able to afford the car that I, and/or most of us, would want. So I figured, ‘How do I get around that? What would make it OK for me to sit inside of it without being in trouble or feel like I’m stealing it?’
“It’s been a good one,” said Fleming about the show’s concept. “It’s been fun. It works out well for the community. It’s all about keeping it in the community.”
Fleming said the car show gathers momentum every year. “
The second year we knew we were onto something,” he said. “This year, with the attention, it’s already grown to what I would have only imagined it would ever grow into. Last year, we ended up having 2,000 to 3,000 people come out.”
Can Sunset Cliffs Car Show grow bigger?
“We never thought it would,” said Fleming, adding that he’s having so much fun sponsoring and promoting the event that “it’s almost not like work.”
Fleming pointed out there’s a real upside to the future of the show. “We’re starting to be asked to do more shows in other locations,” he said. “We’ve found a little niche. We’re pretty good at hosting events.”
Of the cars being exhibited, Fleming said: “You’re going to have a variety of vehicles, including a 1910 Stoddard Dayton. We’ll have concept cars that people customize. The cars that we have this year have won some of the biggest car shows in the world.”
Added Fleming: “There are a few ‘cool’ secrets that we do have that we’re not allowed to say. But we can say there might be a big ‘reveal’ at our auto show from some of our big names in the community.”
Fleming said judges finish up looking over the vehicles in various categories about 1 p.m. and do their awards presentation about 2 p.m.
“We would expand it into further territory. But car shows are one day, unless they’re at a fairgrounds,” Fleming said.
The car show also gives back to the community. “A lot of [proceeds] we donate back to Ocean Beach,” said Fleming. “We donated $7,000 back to Ocean Beach MainStreet Association last year.”
