Car show season at Carlisle is an annually celebrated event akin to the opening day of baseball season, the leaves falling each October, fireworks in July or snow at Christmas. Over a half a million guests converge on America’s Automotive Hometown to buy, sell and trade all things automotive, see decades of classic cars or trucks on display, connect with old friends or make new ones. Best of all, of the people who come to Carlisle from around the world, not many of them are paying full price to attend. Why? The annual Carlisle Events Holiday Sale is why.

This year the sale returns and kicks off on Black Friday, November 23; running through Wednesday, January 2 at 5 p.m. For more than one month, fans of Carlisle Events and the 10 events produced by the company (plus four auctions backed by Carlisle Auctions) can secure all types of access at a 20% discount. This 20% discount includes season passes, weekend passes, single day tickets and showfield registration; again all at a 20% discount. Passes of all types are available via www.CarlisleEvents.com starting November 23, so act now!

Why pay full price for access to some of the most historically significant automotive family fun on the planet when the holiday sale is specifically designed for that to never happen. Every 20% discount is applied at check out and multiple passes or tickets can be purchased in a single shopping session. Give the gift of Carlisle Events for Christmas, Chanukah, Valentines, a birthday gift, etc. and do it starting November 23. Again, online sales are an option for you 24/7 at www.CarlisleEvents.com. Passes and discounts are value priced for all Carlisle Events/Carlisle Auctions happenings, including the season opening show in Allentown, the event in Lakeland, Florida or any of the events at the Carlisle PA Fairgrounds.

With 10 annual events (plus four auctions), a season pass is the best way to experience all that Carlisle Events has to offer. The on-sale price for this pass will be $71.99, a 20% savings off the already low rate of $89.99. More so, this discount pricing carries a true value of $423. WOW – what savings! The season pass is THE gift that keeps giving all year long, so whether it’s for one of Carlisle Events loyal guests or a gift for a Carlisle first-timer, this is a deal not to be missed.

In addition to a 20% limited time savings for season passes, showfield/fun field registrations are also available. Right now, passes are available at a 10% savings via Gate-N-Go; however, for a limited time, passes will see an additional 10% discount, providing for a total of 20% in savings through the end of this Holiday Sale. Weekend and single day passes are also discounted, so act today and order your passes online.

Overall, taking advantage of the 2018 Carlisle Events Holiday Sale is a tremendous way to save time and money prior to the upcoming event season. Anyone interested in grabbing a discounted pass in time to stuff into a Christmas stocking may call 717-243-7855 through 12 p.m. on December 21. Passes purchased through that 12 p.m. timeframe will be mailed. Otherwise, with the business office closed December 24 through January 1, enthusiasts may purchase passes online at www.CarlisleEvents.com. Any passes purchased during the holiday break will be mailed once the office re-opens at 8 a.m. on January 2, 2019.

It seems just like yesterday for fans of the annual Auto Mania event at the Agri-Plex at the Allentown Fairgrounds. Thousands of guests ventured to eastern Pennsylvania to buy, sell and trade vintage cars, parts, advertising, collectibles, literature, services and more for more than fair prices. Wait and reminisce no longer, as Auto Mania 2019, powered by Carlisle Events returns to jump start Carlisle Events 45th Anniversary season.

The annual Allentown weekend runs January 18-20 and spotlights Pennsylvania’s largest indoor and heated automotive flea market. In addition to the treasure trove of goodies within the Agri-Plex, guests can also enjoy a limited number of outdoor car corral and vending spaces. In fact, the demand for inclusion over the past few years has grown to a point where outdoor space has been expanded for yet another year.

Not far from where guests will spend hours satisfying their automotive appetite is an outlet to satisfy everyone’s culinary appetite too! Less than 200 yards from the main entrance of the Agri-Plex is the Allentown Farmer’s Market. This expansive footprint spans the underbelly of the fairgrounds grandstand and has all types of home grown and home cooked foods and treats. Much like the merchandise for sale as part of Auto Mania, the market offers affordable treasures and must be experienced first-hand to truly appreciate. This aspect of the weekend runs on Friday and Saturday only of Auto Mania weekend.

Spanning nearly three-full days, Auto Mania has entertained and assisted motor heads for decades, offering some indoor solace from the otherwise dark and chilly winter months. Auto Mania hosts those selling automotive pieces and parts, food vendors, movies, collectibles, signage, merchandise, antiques, aftermarket accessories and more, all will be offering a safe haven for like-minded enthusiasts to gather and catch up. After all, a show like this backed by Carlisle Events isn’t just an automotive weekend, it’s a reunion of sorts.

Situated conveniently off many of eastern Pennsylvania’s major roadways, Auto Mania sells out annually. Vendors and guests travel from far and wide to buy, sell and trade all automotive flea market items and to get out of the house in the midst of winter. From rare to common, unique to exotic, the event certainly does have it all!

In the seventh year of its 11th generation, the 2018 Toyota Corolla sedan continues its legacy as a top-selling sedan. Currently the ninth top-selling vehicle and third best-selling sedan in America, Corolla has gained a 52-year-reputation for being a sensible, practical and reliable car, and recent engineering has gained it a sportier demeanor.

Corolla offers minor upgrades for 2018, following last model year’s enhancements in which it received sportier exterior styling and Toyota Safety Sense-P. All Corolla models come standard with TSS-P, a system that bundles the Pre-Collision System with Pedestrian Detection; Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist; Dynamic Radar Cruise Control; and Automatic High Beams. Having standard TSS-P puts Toyota four years ahead of the model-year 2022 industry target for standard automatic braking supported by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

For 2018, all trim levels gain driver and front passenger illuminated visor vanity mirrors. The XLE and SE grades feature a leather-trimmed 3-spoke steering wheel with controls for audio, Multi-Information Display, Bluetooth® hands-free phone, and voice command.

Part of the Corolla’s popularity can be attributed to its wide appeal. The model line covers the gamut of tastes and needs with the L, LE, LE Eco, XLE, SE, and XSE grades. There’s a sporty, sophisticated look to all thanks to Bi-LED headlamps on the L, LE, and LE Eco grades, and Multi-LED headlamps come standard on SE, XSE, and XLE grades. The sporty SE and XSE trims roll on standard 17-inch alloy wheels.

Striving to add sporty to safety, the Corolla SE I tested was part of the 2017 restyling that included front end freshening, with a glossy-black mesh grille, sculpted body lines, and faux brake-cooling ducts. Unibody construction utilizes high tensile-strength steel, a rigid platform for precise handling, and quality fit, finish and materials including an acoustic glass windshield, floor carpet insulation, an instrument panel seal between the cowl and the windshield, fender insulators, and an inner dash silencer pad that provide a luxury quietness in the cabin.

The compact Corolla measures 183.1 inches long, 69.9 inches wide and 57.3 inches high on a 106.3-inch wheelbase, providing ground clearance of 6.7 inches and a curb weight of about 2870 lbs.

Corolla has been known for its fuel economy and that continues this year. The 2018 Corolla offers two efficient 1.8-liter, all-aluminum inline-four-cylinder engines. The base 1.8-liter unit with VVT-i is available on all trims but the LE Eco, and is rated at 132 horsepower and 128 lbs.-ft. of torque. The Corolla’s LE Eco trim level is equipped with a 1.8-liter engine with Valvematic, to bring a five-percent improvement in fuel economy and engine output, at 140hp, but the system loses a bit of torque to 126 lbs.-ft. Economy is a factor here with the main plant rated at about 28/city and 35/highway for about 32mpg combined for most trims. The Eco setup gets 30/40/34. My mixed-use tests showed an average of 31.7mpg in an LE.

But Corolla’s fuel economy is a trade off with acceleration quickness. Corolla has always been known more for economy than for acceleration, and this year’s entry is no different. While the ride was comfortable, Corolla is hesitant from a start, though slow and steady during uphill and passing maneuvers. Typical of a fuel-efficient compact, time trials seemed tedious as a sprint from zero to 60mph took 9.8 seconds and a quarter-mile lasted an interminable 17.6 seconds. At speed on the highway, passing power was good after initial unwillingness, so passing needs some strategizing.

With seating for five, Corolla’s cabin is compact-niche cozy, with 38.3 inches of front headroom and 37.1 inches in row two; legroom stretches out a bit at 42.3 inches in the first row and a comfortable 41.4 inches in the second seats and shoulder room is comfortable at 54.8 in both rows. The cabin is packed with infotainment, climate features, cool upscale lighting and instrumentation and various informational displays that are driver-friendly.

From a safety perspective, Corolla is built with front and rear energy-absorbing crumple zones, side-impact door beams, energy absorbing collapsible steering wheel, head impact protection structure and high-tensile strength steel body panels. Installed safety items include Enhanced Vehicle Stability Control, Traction Control, driver and front passenger advanced airbag system, driver and front passenger front seat-mounted side airbags and front and rear side curtain airbags.
The 2018 Toyota Corolla Base L sedan starts at $18,600. Third up among the six trims was the sporty SE trim I tested, basing at $20,545. The top-of-the-line XSE starts at $22,780. My SE had a sporty front fascia with a Gloss-Black Mesh-Pattern grille, Multi-LED headlights, integrated backup camera with projected path, and a Sport Instrumentation Cluster with speedometer and tach. Blue Crush Metallic exterior paint came with the SE Premium Package for $1535 that included infotainment, GPS, Siri® Eyes Free, power/tilt/slide moonroof, 7-inch touchscreen, iPod® Connectivity and Control, Bluetooth® wireless technology and much more. Mudguards were $129, a four-season floormat package added $373, door edge guards added $125, and a Body {Protection package with body side moldings, and door sill and rear bumper protectors added $487. With delivery, processing and handling fee of $920, the price-as-tested was $23,194.

> Visit www.CarlisleEvents.com for more on the automotive hobby.

Mike Blake, former editor of KIT CAR magazine, joined Carlisle Events as senior automotive journalist in 2004. He's been a "car guy" since the 1960s and has been writing professionally for about 30 years.

Past success is translating into current sales for the all-new 2018 Honda Accord. Ranked as the No. 12 best-selling vehicle in America this year – and No.4 top-selling sedan – Accord’s first nine generations and 42 model years have seen American car buyers purchase more Accords than any other passenger car, with total U.S. sales exceeding 13 million vehicles.

The 2018 Accord is all-new from the ground up, built on a new platform with a lower, wider stance, with a lighter and more rigid unibody structure, a lighter and more sophisticated chassis; three advanced new powertrain units, including Accord's first-ever turbocharged engines, a new 10-speed automatic transmission and a third-generation two-motor hybrid system.

Virtually everything on the Accord is new and substantially reengineered. Major new engineering features and technologies for the 10th-generation Accord include such body tweaks as: 29 percent ultra-high strength steel, the highest ever for a mass-produced Honda; ACE™ front body structure with crash stroke design; laser-brazed roof skin; rear crush zones with Softzone technology; more aerodynamically efficient at 3 percent reduction of CdA; and it is lighter and more rigid (+24 percent torsional stiffness, +32 percent bending stiffness). The 6-percent-lighter chassis now has an aluminum-intensive front suspension with new ultra-rigid aluminum and steel subframe; a multi-link rear suspension with floating subframe; dual-pinion, variable-ratio electronic power steering; Electronic Brake Booster; Electric Parking Brake with Automatic Brake Hold.

The 2018 Accord also has improved connectivity and driver-assistive technology that includes standard HONDA SENSING™ with new Traffic Sign Recognition, available 6-inch Head Up Display, available next-generation HondaLink™ telematics, Smartphone entry and engine start, and more.

With a crisp, sporty design, the new Accord has a longer wheelbase, 111.4 inches, a gain of 2.16 in., a lower overall height for stability at 57.1 in. (-0.59 in.) and wider body of 73.3 in. (+0.39 in.), with a shortened overall length of 192.2 in. (-0.39 in.). Accord also now shows off sportier seating positions, a sweeping greenhouse positioned farther back on the body, shorter overhangs, a bold front fascia, a long and low hood, and a visual center of gravity moved closer to the rear wheels. Curbweight for the EX-L I tested, was 3217 lbs., but the Accord line-up runs from 3131 lbs, to 3428 for some Hybrids.

The 2018 Accord takes an entirely new approach to performance by featuring three advanced new powerplants – two turbocharged 4-cylinder engines and the third generation of Honda's two-motor hybrid powertrain technology. A new Honda-developed 10-speed automatic transmission, the first of its kind for a front-wheel-drive car, is paired with the new 2.0-liter engine, and a short-throw 6-speed manual transmission is available for both turbocharged engines in Sport trim.

The new 1.5-liter, 16-valve DOHC direct-injected turbo with dual Variable Timing Control produces a peak of 192 horsepower and 192 lb.-ft. of torque; up from 185 hp and 181 lb.-ft. last year. The Accord can also be equipped with the new 2.0-liter 16-valve DOHC direct-injected turbo with VTEC® valvetrain and dual VTC. The system produces 252 hp and 273 lb.-ft. of torque, compared to 278 hp and 252 lb.-ft. for the 3.5-liter V6 that it replaces.

The new Accord Hybrid is powered by the 3rd-generation of Honda's two-motor hybrid technology featuring a 2.0-liter 16-valve DOHC Atkinson cycle engine with greater than 40 percent thermal efficiency, the highest for any mass-produced Honda engine, paired with two electric motors.

Slow, but steady, my test Accord EX-L with manual transmission got me from zero to 60mph in 7.6 seconds during a 15.8-secon d quarter-mile. Accord handles well, with predictable steering and good stability. Reliable on the road, Accord is a sweet performance ride on the autocross, with little drift during quick turns. For family outings on the highway, Accord’s suspension is family-comfortable.

With seating for five, the newly elegant interior loses some space with only 37.5 front headroom (down 1.6 inches) and 37.2 row two (-0.3). Legroom for all trims is 42.3 in row one (-0.3) and 40.4 for second-row passenger (a gain of 1.9 inches). Shoulder room goes 58.3 and 56.5

The cabin is packed with such amenities as power door locks, power windows with auto-up/down driver's window, tilt and telescopic steering column, USB audio interface, Bluetooth® HandsFreeLink®, speed-sensitive volume control, Maintenance Minder™ system, illuminated power window switches, Smart Entry and Start, Honda LaneWatch™ blind spot display and a 160-watt, 6-speaker audio system.

Accord is offered in six trims, with the base 2018 Accord LX starting at $23,570 with the 1.5T powertrain. The top-of-the-line Touring trim starts at $33,800 and comes with the larger engine. My test EX-L is fifth on the list and comes with either engine, Leather-Trimmed Interior, Driver Seat Memory, Heated Front Seats. One-Touch Power Moonroof, 8-inch touch-screen, 450-Watt Premium Audio System with 10 Speakers and more, for a base price of $29,970. With the 1.5-liter engine and manual transmission (automatic would be $2000 more), and in Radiant Red Metallic paint and Ivory Leather interior, my Accord EX-L added Honda Satellite-Linked Navigation System™ for $1000; a Decklid Spoiler for $349; Door Visors for $185; splash guards for $104; heated steering wheel for $399; Parking Sensors for $514; USB Charger for $120 and Wireless Phone Charger for $300. With Destination and handling fees of $895, my 2018 Honda Accord EX-L as-tested stickered at $33,322.

> Visit www.CarlisleEvents.com for more on the automotive hobby.

Mike Blake, former editor of KIT CAR magazine, joined Carlisle Events as senior automotive journalist in 2004. He's been a "car guy" since the 1960s and has been writing professionally for about 30 years.

And then there was one (in Pennsylvania anyway) …and it’s happening on November 4, 2018! What started in July for the Chip Miller Amyloidosis Foundation continues in November with the 10th Annual Corvettes for Chip event! Taking place Sunday November 4 at the Carlisle Expo Center, this event is for Corvette lovers and lovers of Chip Miller. It’s as much of a car show as it is a fund raiser and over the years, participants have helped raise thousands of dollars for the CMAF.

Doors open at 8:30 a.m. for the start of the two-hour registration window. As registration wraps up, the event officially gets started with a 10:15 a.m. playing of the National Anthem. Not long after, registered car owners will meet with staff to lay out the agenda of the day. With Corvettes spanning every era of production, awards voting commences at 10:30 a.m. and runs for nearly 90 minutes.

Of course, through it all, donations are being taken to support the CMAF and the battle against Amyloidosis. It is this fund raising and giving mentality that brings the “jolly fat man” to Carlisle too. Starting at 11 a.m. Santa Claus comes to town. This is a great time for family and friends to connect with St. Nick as part of the annual Toys for Tots drive. Talk with Santa, donate at toy and even pick up tickets for the 50/50 raffle.

No event honoring Chip Miller would be complete without a ceremonial revving of the engines. At the mid-point of the Santa meet and greet, car owners will fire up their beloved Corvettes at 12 p.m. for an audible tribute to a man who played a vital role in Carlisle’s automotive history and Corvette history too.

The event wraps with the raffle as well as three silent auction opportunities, 1 p.m., 1:20 p.m. and 1:40 p.m. followed by a 2 p.m. awards ceremony for the cars and their owners. There’s so much more to the day that just what’s been mentioned above. Additional activities include car show themed awards, a bake sale, food and drink, a DJ playing music, a silent auction and more.

Registration for the event is $25 for anyone who pre-registers online at www.motorsportreg.com OR $30 the day of the show. Parking is available indoors or out, but space inside the Expo Center is limited and at $60, is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Again, to be indoors, pre-registration is required. All registration fees are tax deductible! Complete information on this event and the final one of the season, the CMAF Track Day at New Jersey Motorsports Park (November 11) is available at www.chipmiller.org or by calling 717-243-7855 x113.