NASCAR is parking more than 150 cars along Birmingham's City Walk this Friday for its fourth annual Block Party and Car Show, a free event timed to Magic City Classic weekend that runs from 2 to 6 p.m. The gathering mixes show cars, food trucks, a coffee bar and a kids' trunk-or-treat into one afternoon at City Walk Birmingham.
The free event will begin at 2 p.m. and run until 6 p.m., according to alabamas42.com, which also reports that more than 150 cars of all kinds will line up along a section of City Walk for the occasion. NASCAR is hosting the event for the fourth year running, according to WBRC, which reported that organizers expect roughly 150 vehicles on display, including celebrity and influencer cars and out-of-state entries alongside racing simulators, show cars, local vendors and a kids zone.
Per blackrestaurantweeks.com, the Oct. 24, 2025 Cars + Coffee event included street eats from local food trucks, a coffee bar, a vendor village, a NASCAR racing simulator and a car-show competition. The same listing places that event on City Walk Birmingham's Green Block, between 19th and 22nd Streets North.
A Halloween Treat Before the Rivalry Game
Ahead of Saturday's Magic City Classic, organizers are adding a trunk-or-treat for kids ahead of Halloween, alabamas42.com reports. The annual football rivalry features Alabama A&M and Alabama State, and WBRC notes the block party follows NASCAR's recent race weekend at nearby Talladega Superspeedway.
Brandon Thompson, NASCAR's vice president of growth, engagement, and inclusion, said the Magic City Classic gives the sport a chance to build relationships in the Birmingham market and support the participating HBCUs, according to WBRC. Thompson also said the gathering brings children out, celebrates classic weekend, and lets attendees learn about NASCAR, per the same report. He added that NASCAR values Birmingham's connection to Talladega and intends to continue supporting both schools and the league's broader HBCU initiatives.
Part of a Broader HBCU Push
Thompson said NASCAR has a growing engagement with HBCU communities, according to alabamas42.com, pointing to campus lab programs the organization runs at Bethune-Cookman and Winston-Salem. WBRC reports that NASCAR uses events like Friday's gathering to engage with local communities and historically Black colleges and universities more broadly.
The strategy traces back at least to 2022, when NASCAR hosted a community block party led by Alabama native Bubba Wallace at Railroad Park in downtown Birmingham. Talladega Superspeedway described that family-friendly event, held from 5 to 10 p.m., as an effort to drive awareness, access and engagement to the sport among the Black community. It featured performances by Big K.R.I.T., Mannie Fresh and WBHJ's DJ Gorgeous, plus racing simulators, T-shirt printing and a Kids Zone, and NASCAR partnered with Black Restaurant Week and DoorDash on a food truck village spotlighting Black-owned businesses.
A NASCAR vice president told alabamas42.com at the time that the Railroad Park event was meant to invite a different crowd out to races at Talladega. A comparable City Walk event on Oct. 24, billed as the Cars & Coffee Car Show: Classic Edition and reported by ABC 33/40, ran from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. with music by DJ B. Brian, food trucks, car-club competitions and live entertainment by GRIDNATIONX. That event's promotion listed notable appearances including Big K.R.I.T., Curren$y and Mayor Randall Woodfin, who was set to debut his 1968 Eldorado, nicknamed Ella Mae.
Friday's Block Party and Car Show is free and open to the public, giving Birmingham fans another no-cost entry point into NASCAR's orbit the day before the Magic City Classic kicks off.
