Cars and Coffee Concord, Charlotte Motor Speedway

Charlotte Motor Speedway runs its own cars and coffee. On the third Saturday of each month, from 8am to 11am, the speedway’s Fan Zone in Concord fills with classics, customs and hot rods, according to the speedway’s Cars and Coffee page. HendrickCars.com presents it. Spectator admission is free, and the speedway says there is no show registration and no fee.

The speedway calls the meet Cars & Coffee Concord, and it warns about a name clash: AutoFair Cars & Coffee is a separate event, and that one requires registration and fees. The Cabarrus County visitors bureau lists the meet at 5555 Concord Parkway South and says all are welcome.

When to arrive

The posted hours are 8am to 11am. The speedway’s 2026 schedule names a third Saturday in every month from January to December, so the meet runs through the winter. Two dates remain in 2026: Saturday 21 November and Saturday 19 December. The speedway has not posted its 2027 dates yet.

The speedway publishes no weather policy for the meet. It has moved a date for rain before: the very first edition, set for February 2019, was pushed back a week on a wet forecast, per a speedway news release. On a stormy third Saturday, check the speedway’s page before the drive. The visitors bureau listing also notes that one 2026 edition, in September, was held at zMAX Dragway instead.

Where to park

The speedway publishes a lot map for the meet. The entrance is off US Highway 29, near Bruton Smith Boulevard. Inside, the map lays out a large showcar parking area along the highway, a general show parking lot beyond it, a row for featured cars, a classic car corral, and a separate lot for off-road and 4x4 vehicles.

Spectators park in the lots on either side of Smith Tower, which holds the ticket office and gift shop. Vendors and restrooms sit in the middle of the Fan Zone, and the map marks the exit beside them. The speedway’s FAQ places the Fan Zone outside Turn 1, near the main entrance.

How it started

The meet is younger than the track. The 2019 release announced the first Cars and Coffee Concord as a free cruise-in in the Fan Zone, with no charge for car owners or spectators, running then from 7am to 10am. Rain moved the opener to Saturday 23 February 2019. The plan at the time was the third Saturday of each month except May and October. The 2026 schedule has no such gaps.

The Hendrick connection runs deeper than the sponsor line. In June 2024, a HendrickCars.com blog post said a Concord edition would carry the public debut of two Manthey Racing Edition Porsches from the Hendrick Heritage Collection.

Before you go

The speedway publishes no code of conduct for the meet. The lot sits on a busy highway, and every car leaves through one marked exit, so arrive slowly, park in the area the map gives your car, and keep the revving and the burnouts for somewhere else. A meet that the speedway hosts for free lasts as long as the speedway wants it.

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