Cars & Coffee Lehigh Valley opens 2026 season at new Allentown home, Coca-Cola Park

ALLENTOWN, Pa  — Cars & Coffee Lehigh Valley filled the parking lots at Coca-Cola Park on Sunday morning, drawing hundreds of show vehicles and thousands of spectators to the 2026 season opener, the show’s first event at its new home after its 2026 season was canceled at its longtime SteelStacks venue in Bethlehem.

The free event ran from 8 a.m. to noon at the Lehigh Valley IronPigs’ ballpark at 1050 IronPigs Way, where muscle cars, classics, exotics, imports and race cars packed both main lots. Within an hour of the gates opening, spectator parking had spilled into an overflow lot.

An official attendance count was not available at the time of publication. Several hundred vehicles filled nearly every display space across the stadium’s two main lots.

The morning marked the debut of a venue the IronPigs offered up after ArtsQuest canceled the 2026 season at SteelStacks, the show’s longtime Bethlehem home. ArtsQuest cited ongoing construction in the PNC lot and around the Turn & Grind Shop, a 150-year-old former Bethlehem Steel building being converted into an arts venue, as well as safety concerns. The IronPigs stepped in to host the show within weeks.

Traffic moved smoothly through the morning. At the stadium’s southeast exit, police and a traffic director funneled departing show cars out onto Union Boulevard as dozens of spectators lined both sides of the road to watch them roll out, a ritual familiar to regulars of the series. Rare and exotic vehicles were given prime space directly in front of the ballpark’s main gates.

A handful of vendors sold stickers, merchandise and automotive gadgets. Food options were thin: only one food vendor appeared to be operating, and the IronPigs’ own concessions were closed. The team had said in advance that there wasn’t enough time to turn the concessions around for the first event.

For the Coca-Cola Park debut, organizers rolled out new procedures. They said the lots would not open before 7 a.m. for anyone other than vendors and sponsors, and they emphasized a focus on the “quality of the event,” warning that some vehicles might not be admitted to the main lots if they did not meet a minimum show standard, according to the event’s Facebook page.

That standard drew mixed reactions online ahead of the event, with some commenters welcoming the move to filter out everyday traffic and others questioning the criteria or hoping to still show off works in progress, the page’s comments showed.

Sam Jellinek, the IronPigs’ manager of broadcasting and media relations, has said the team views itself as a community hub for events beyond baseball and described its role for the opener as primarily that of a venue host. He has said the IronPigs typically host one or two car events a year and that any deeper partnership with Cars & Coffee would depend on how the season goes.

Cars & Coffee Lehigh Valley launched in 2013 at the Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley, founded by Dan Kendra and Dr. Johnny Chung, before outgrowing that home and moving to SteelStacks. The series drew more than 20,000 visitors across its spring and summer dates at the Bethlehem campus, according to ArtsQuest.

For some, the show is a family outing. Brian and Annette Brensinger drove in from Bernville, in Berks County, with two restored 1965 Volkswagen buses — her 21-window Microbus and his double-cab pickup — and the friends they caravan with.

“This is the first time we’ve been able to get to the show,” Brian said.

He said the couple did the work themselves, building the buses as “resto-mods,” restorations upgraded with modern engines, air-ride suspension and electric heated seats so the air-cooled vehicles can be driven comfortably and safely today. Annette said her husband handled the paint, bodywork and interior. Her bus, she said, was a 60th birthday present and carries an “island girl” painted on the back, a nod to her childhood in Hawaii.

Annette, who said she will turn 65 in January, offered a bit of advice with a laugh. “I always tease him that what’s his is mine and what’s mine is mine,” she said.

Brian and Annette both said their favorite part of owning the buses is letting children climb inside.

Brian, 63, a retired vocational school teacher who taught carpentry, said the hobby depends on younger fans as older enthusiasts age out, and that he likes showing kids “what it’s all about.”

“If you have young children, get them involved,” Annette said, warning that the old vehicles will disappear if the next generation isn’t interested. “Let the kids get in your cars and see the cars and enjoy them.”

Organizers have said additional Cars & Coffee dates are planned at Coca-Cola Park through the summer.