PONTIAC, Mich. – One of the first signs of spring for enthusiasts in The Motor City area is the cars & coffee monthly cruise-in season opener for the M1 Concourse. This facility in Pontiac, Michigan, (just north of Detroit) is a car-lover’s dream, with a 1.5-mile road course track, a paved skid pad, and a few hundred private-garage man caves (with a scant few still available for purchase).

Over the fair-weather months, the crew at M1 open the gates to the general public for a mega “Cars & Coffee” event. Car owners bring the vehicles, while local sponsors supply the coffee and donuts. You’ll need walking shoes if you plan to see all the vehicles that show up for these gatherings. Early arriving attendees wind up parking up and down the skid pad, as well as multiple vendors and any M1 concourse display vehicles. Once that fills up, they begin parking vehicles on either side of the track, which fills up quickly when the weather is pleasant.

The M1 Cruise-ins start each year in the spring and take place the first Saturday of each month through the fall. As you might expect, Ford fans have plenty to see at an M1 Cars & Coffee, from classic Mustangs and Fords to Shelby GT350’s and GT500’s, to Focus RS’s and even Ford GT’s. Our own super-enthusiast and longtime photojournalist, Ford retiree Bill Cook, visited M1 last week when Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles were the featured marques at the facility’s first Cars and Coffee event for 2024 (although all brands were invited).

“With it being early April in Michigan, a good number of us (including me) still have their cars in storage.” Cook told us. “I should have mine out later this month. But I enjoyed an accelerating/exhilarating ride to the event at 7:15 a.m. with Daniel Teoh in his Pastel Blue 1970 Mustang Boss 302. There a was a strong turnout on this sunny morning with temps in the high 30's to low 40’s.”

As you can see from Bill’s photo gallery below, there were plenty of fine Blue Oval rides in attendance that morning. Enjoy:

FORD PERFORMANCE PHOTOS / COURTESY BILL COOK