George Barris (left) brought his Batmobile to Roanoke for Star City Motor Madness. The famed car customizer had the 20-foot crime-fighting vehicle on display Friday.

Photos by ERIC BRADY The Roanoke Times

Courtney Armsworthy (from left), Jason Onishenko and Jessica Moyer ride in the back of a pickup truck along Williamson Road on Friday during Star City Motor Madness. The event, in its eighth year in Roanoke, continues today with a car show.

The vintage car man can always recall where he sat the first time he went necking. For Red Cawley, that would be in a 1963 Chevrolet Impala.

"Hell, boy, I ain't never forget it," declared the 55-year-old mechanic from Hardy on Friday afternoon, sitting in a lawn chair along Williamson Road in Roanoke. "I guess that turned me on to Chevys."

True enough. Behind Cawley was parked a black '67 Chevrolet Nova, his contribution to this weekend's Star City Motor Madness, which will draw thousands of automobiles -- classic and restored, tricked out and souped up -- to Roanoke for the eighth year.

It has not been a good year for the American car. The industry has suffered in a sputtering economy, shut down assembly lines and filed a pair of bankruptcies. But that has not soured the heart of the American car lover.

For the Friday night cruise, a three-mile stretch of Williamson Road was jammed with Camaros and GTOs, Barracudas and Mustangs. It would have been near impossible to drop a socket wrench without it rolling into a shiny chrome wheel.

And camped out nearby were the folks who adored what Detroit had made, with a "Chrysler guy" here and a "Ford person" there.

"A car has become transportation," said Stuart Boblett, a 63-year-old pilot who grew up in Roanoke in the 1960s. "Back then, a car was part of your family, part of your personality."

Williamson Road, a sweltering expanse of asphalt lined with spectators, was a natural choice for a cruise. A few decades back, a joy ride down the four-lane drag made a weekend night.

"You'd go Lendy's to Lendy's," Boblett said. He traced a nostalgic route from one drive-in on Franklin Road, through downtown, and out to the second drive-in on Williamson.

Highlights of a good cruise? People-watching and hollering at girls, with a Coke and fries in between. Then do it again.

Friday night, the caravan was expected to top 15,000 cars, according to Tom Cox, a Motor Madness organizer. The rally continues today with a car show downtown. Proceeds go to the Virginia Museum of Transportation.

And while classic American cars dominated the rally, a Toyota Prius was not out of the question. "Anybody who feels great about their wheels" is welcome, Cox said. He had arrived in an aquamarine '64 Cadillac.

The celebrity guest of the weekend was George Barris, who came rumbling down Williamson in the Batmobile to a chorus of "Ooohs!"

The prolific car customizer created the 20-foot crime-fighting vehicle, along with just about any other famous car you care to name.

The General Lee? Yes.

Knight Rider? Of course.

Herbie? No need to ask.

Which was his favorite? "It's like if you have a family of 10, you love all 10," said Barris, who lives in Hollywood, Calif. "I have a family of a thousand."

But not so for Tandy Amburgey, a Vinton retiree, whose only love was the '62 Chevrolet Impala. He detailed the affair, starting with the one he bought in 1963.

"I got drafted by Uncle Sam, and I got paid $67 a month. My car payment was $65," he said. "Regardless of what they say, you cannot live in the Army on $2 a month."

He lost the car, but his passion remained. About 20 years ago, he picked up another '62 Chevy and rebuilt the thing. A true Chevy man.

What was he driving that first time he went necking? "A two-door '51 Chevy hardtop."