DETROIT (Dec. 9, 2025) – The Detroit Auto Show today announced its upcoming “Detroit Auto Show: Route 66 Centennial Exhibition,” at Detroit’s Huntington Place from Jan. 14 – 25, has been designated an Official Route 66 Centennial Project by the U.S. Route 66 Centennial Commission. The immersive exhibition will meld America’s love affair with automobiles and 100 years of the Mother Road. Editor’s Note: Images are available.
The exhibition will feature “The Drive Home VII: Route 66 – A Century of Adventure,” a nine-day cross-country vehicle convoy from Jan. 3 in Santa Monica, Calif., to Chicago, Ill., on Jan. 12, before it concludes at the Detroit Auto Show on Jan. 14. A collaboration between the Detroit Auto Show, America’s Automotive Trust, and the Route 66 Road Ahead Partnership, it will showcase nine classic and modern Route 66-inspired vehicles.
The “Detroit Auto Show: Route 66 Centennial Exhibition” will feature some of the vehicles making the journey. Each vehicle represents an era of innovation, design and adventure that has contributed to shaping the nation’s love affair with cars and the open road.
Visitors will experience multimedia highlights, including film and photography capturing the caravan’s stops along the Mother Road in small towns, historic landmarks, diners, motels, and iconic gas stations.
“It’s an honor to have our ‘Detroit Auto Show: Route 66 Centennial Exhibition’ selected as an Official Route 66 Centennial Project, and we’re excited for show attendees to have a chance to experience a treasured part of Americana right on the show floor,” Detroit Auto Show Executive Director Sam Klemet said. “There’s no better place than here in the Motor City to celebrate the adventurous spirit of Route 66, a highway that has connected cars, culture, and communities for the past 100 years. We look forward to sharing the story of this historic milestone with our visitors, while previewing new products and technologies that will take to the open road in the days ahead.”
Bill Thomas, Chairman of the Route 66 Road Ahead Partnership and Commissioner of the Route 66 Centennial Commission, said, “Route 66 is more than a road; it is a journey of discovery, freedom, and innovation. By designating the ‘Detroit Auto Show: Route 66 Centennial Exhibition’ as an Official Centennial Project, we are inviting people to experience the Mother Road through the lens of the automobile, the machines that made the road legendary.”
As an officially designated project, the “Detroit Auto Show: Route 66 Centennial Exhibition” will be featured on route66centennial.org.
Follow “The Drive Home VII: Route 66 – A Century of Adventure” in real time as Jim O’Brien, host of “Big Jim’s House” Morning Show on 94.7 WCSX in Detroit, takes daily call-ins from the road. The Detroit Auto Show will capture the entirety of the caravan and share the experience via its social media platforms.
Detroit Auto Show tickets are on sale now and available at detroitautoshow.com.
