The annual Woodward Dream Cruise takes place this Saturday, August 15 from 9am – 9pm in suburban Detroit. The Dream Cruise is North America’s largest one-day automotive event, drawing nearly one million people and 40,000 classic cars annually from across the nation and globe to communities along the iconic Woodward Avenue.
PK HyperFocal captured this beauty at the 2015 Woodward Dream Cruise. See more in their awesome Wheels gallery on Flickr.
mLive’s Mark Torregrossa says that although states can have wacky temperature patterns in the heart of a storm system, Michigan is the only place we can mix those storm system temperatures with our mitten and our powerful lakes! Mark shares that warm air will move in from the south while an easterly and northeasterly wind will funnel frigid air from ice-covered Lake Huron over Northern Lower Michigan:
Somewhere around Saginaw, Bay City, Clare and Traverse City, we could have a big shock going from temperatures in the 50s to temperatures near freezing.
Imagine going from Ann Arbor to Bay City to visit family Wednesday afternoon. You open the door in Ann Arbor to see what it’s like outside. It’s a common ritual at this time of year. It’s very nice. It’s 61 degrees, which right now feels like a spring dream. So you put on a light jacket and start driving north. You get out of your car in Bay City, and you freeze.
Definitely a day to keep an eye on the updated forecast!!
Tom captured this ice covered beauty in Utica way back in 2015. See more in his Winter gallery on Flickr!
Detroit Auto Show by Montez Miller / Tell Us Detroit
The annual Detroit Auto Show kicks off today at Huntington Place in Downtown Detroit. This annual celebration of automotive design & car culture runs January 14-25, 2026 & features new models, test tracks, and all kinds of auto related fun.
Montez Miller of Tell Us Detroit was there for an early look with Autot Show officials and new Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield. You can follow Tell Us Detroit’s coverage on Facebook, click to check out her video with some photo highlights of the preview, also also see highlights in the Detroit Auto Show’s hype video featuring GMac Cash. It’s really a great experience for car lovers!
GM Lansing Grand River Assembly Plant by Tony Webster
The Michigan Advance shares that a $500 million grant to convert the General Motors Lansing Grand River Assembly plant to electric vehicle production is being considered for cancellation by President Trump. The grant is one of over $16 billion in already awarded federal grants that could be clawed back, apparently because Michigan voted for Democrats, which honestly sounds insane:
The document, circulated on Capitol Hill, was first reported by The Detroit News (link) and reportedly includes more than $800 million in Michigan projects. Other Michigan-based recipients on the list include Ford Motor Company and Dow Chemical Company. (and Stellantis)
The proposed cancellations come after Trump administration officials last week defended the decision to cancel federal projects in regions of the country that have voted for Democrats, insisting it was in an effort to reduce the size and scope of government during the ongoing shutdown of the federal government. Democrats, however, said the cancellations further eroded Congress’ constitutional authority over spending by unilaterally canceling funding that lawmakers approved on a bipartisan basis.
The lawmakers definitely have a point. How can we expect companies to invest in industries of the future if we as a nation can’t honor our commitments?
The photo is from the Wikipedia for the Lansing Grand River Assembly Plant which opened in 2001 and replaced the Lansing Car Assembly, Lansing Metal Center, and the Lansing Craft Center.
Sunday Drive in Autumn – M-22 – October 2010 by Craig Sterken Photography
Ten years ago I featured this photo from Craig of M-22 on the Leelanau Peninsula on the Michigan in Pictures Facebook. In addition to being a signature location for Pure Michigan fall color, the car happens to be next to the exact spot where I waited for the bus as a kid in the 1970s!
You can purchase this photo & see the awesome vistas this car is bound for as it drives south on M-22 in Craig’s Sleeping Bear Dunes gallery on his website. For sure follow him on Facebook or Instagram for his latest!
1931 Ford Model AA School Bus in Greenfield Village by Steve Brown (in memorium)
mLive shares that the decision to start the school year before or after Labor Day has long been a point of debate in Michigan due to the need for student workers in the hospitality & agricultural sectors. Even though the law requiring schools to start post-Labor Day passed 20 years ago, most Michigan schools are still starting before summer’s end:
…The Michigan Department of Education only tracks districts that are granted Labor Day waivers, but not which districts use their waiver or their start dates, according to spokesman Ken Coleman. There are currently 185 waivers held in the state, covering more than 500 school districts and public academies.
Forty-eight of those are held by intermediate school districts (ISDs) or area educational agencies and their waivers almost entirely cover all districts within their regional boundaries. Additionally, 102 individual charter schools or public academies have their own waivers, as well as 30 school districts outside of ISDs. A few hundred more schools and districts, including several ISDs, are not waiver eligible that automatically start after Labor Day. Still, more Michigan schools than not are starting before Labor Day despite the mid-2000s law.
Steve passed on a couple years ago, but his photos and his love of history remain (click for his Michigan in Pictures features). He took these back in 2018 at Greenfield Village, Henry Ford’s outdoor living history museum in Dearborn. The Model AA school bus was acquired from Florida and visitors can use the historic bus for transportation around the Village (for a price). See lots more in his Classic Busses Old & New gallery on Flickr.
The Woodward Dream Cruise will be celebrating its 30th year tomorrow (August 16, 2025). It is the largest one-day automotive event in North America, drawing nearly one million people & 40,000 classic cars every year.
pk got this shot of a 1971 Superbird dressed in Sassy Grass at the 2023 Woodward Dream Cruise. Here’s a few they have shared – see more great shots in their Wheels gallery on Flickr!
Woodward on a Friday Night by Retta Billy
The city of Detroit was founded on Sunday July 24, 1701 by Antoine de la Mothe, Sieur de Cadillac. Throughout the history of the city, Detroit’s industry has been a driving engine of Michigan and the nation, reaching its zenith with the auto industry. To my mind, there’s few things that capture the indomitable spirit of the city like Woodward Avenue. I particularly love that this photo features the new Hudson’s building as a backdrop with one of the auto industry’s more out of the box experiments and a partly people powered pedal pub from Handlebar Detroit.
Enjoy this selection of nighttime scenes of the city from Michigan photographer Coretta Billy that capture that spirit. For sure follow her on Facebook and view her portrait & event photography on her website.
1958 Chevrolet by Martin Hogan
It’s been a while since I’ve featured a photo from Martin, but these were such a perfect balance to yesterday’s Grand Prix pics that I knew it was time! Follow him on Flickr or Facebook for his latest!!
The 2025 Detroit Grand Prix runs Friday May 30 – Sunday June 1 in downtown Detroit along the riverfront. On Friday they have a couple of grandstand sections free on a first come, first served basis. There are also free viewing platforms located along Jefferson Avenue that are wheelchair accessible & free all weekend. Hart Plaza and Woodward Avenue will be fully activated and free to the public all weekend with fun activations and merchandise vendors.
It’s a pretty cool experience if you’re able to check it out. I combed through the Detroit Grand Prix’s Facebook photos for a representative selection.
