How a shared love of cars is keeping these U.S.-Canada border communities connected

The handful of Canadian-owned cars on display at the Detroit Auto Show stand out — and not just because of their Ontario licence plates. 

A quintet of rare and unique cars from Windsor is featured among the dozens of modified vehicles parked in a vast hall one floor below the main showroom. 

The Canadian cars are “some of the nicest ones” in the whole room, says Mitchell McSweeney, founder of Modded Detroit, which organizes the display of community cars at the annual show.

“That's their first time here, and I can already tell they're gonna be here every year,” he said.

Their presence at the international event is the result of a cross-border relationship that’s flourished over the last year, despite political tensions between the U.S. and Canada. 

“The reality is the people over there are still people,” said Paul Sulja, the founder of Cars for a Cause, which runs charity car shows in the Windsor area. “We're all just trying to get through a very hard time in life and society as a whole.” 

Sulja’s 2001 Subaru WRX STI — wrapped in black and white graphics with the group’s name — is one of the Canadian vehicles at the event. He bought it from Mirm Autoworks, a Windsor car shop that specializes in Subarus and has two of their own creations on display across the river. 

Sulja’s partner in his charitable work also has two Lamborghinis featured in the show, one of which — a powder blue Aventador with a rare Liberty Walk body kit — sits at the entry to the hall.

He says they first met the Modded Detroit crew at last year’s auto show, and that the groups made cross-border trips after that to attend and support some of each other’s events. 

“Cars have always been an escape,” Sulja said. “If there's events over there, we're not gonna hold out going to them because we still want to support their community efforts. They're doing the same thing where they're trying to draw the community together, put on these events and do something good for the entire community. So why not support the positive things?”

McSweeney created Modded Detroit in 2019. He says one of its main missions is to bring people together without judgment. 

“Whether you have the nicest car ever or even just like a minivan, I wanted everyone together, because I think it's more about the people and building the community, and just creating good memories and leaving all the other world's problems at home,” he said.  

For both him and the Canadians showing off their cars in the show for the first time, being featured at the event is a dream come true. 

Igor Moravac and Drew Woodall are co-owners of Mirm Autoworks on Drouillard Road. They say their love for cars started when they were kids, with Hot Wheels, the Fast and the Furious movie franchise, and seeing all the slick vehicles at the auto show. 

“One day, you're taking photos in front of them, and now there's someone else's little kid taking a photo in front of your car,” Moravac said. “It's full circle. Like what an amazing experience, right?” 

One of the cars the pair brought to the show is a “Frankenstein build of sorts,” as Moravac puts it: A 1971 BMW 2002 body fused with Subaru WRX innards. 

“Really, it started off sort of like, I don’t want to say a joke, but it was kind of like just a rough idea of if it was even possible,” said Moravac. “We never really had any intentions to show the car or even drive it.”  

He says the BMW was his and had been “sitting around for many years.” Then, one day, the shop got a crashed Subaru WRX that wasn’t worth rebuilding — but still had a good drivetrain.

“We measured it out and we ended up welding together sort of as a fun project,” he said. They then showcased it at a local car show, and the positive response inspired them to keep working on it.

“It absolutely snowballed from what it was,” Woodall said. “Us being a Subaru shop, we said, hey, why wouldn't we try and do something weird and unique, and definitely didn't realize how much people were actually going to like it.” 

The other car on display is the “complete opposite,” Moravac said: A pink and black 2004 Subaru WRX STI decked out with rare and high-end parts.

Woodall said they went to the show on Sunday, and the lower level “was packed in there like sardines” with attendees. The response to their cars from the public “has been really, really awesome,” with many tagging them in photos and messaging them on social media. 

“Just to see little kids, young kids — the former versions of ourselves — taking the time to enjoy the car, take pictures in front of them, wanting to sit in them and stuff like that, that was us 15-20 years ago,” Woodall said. 

“So to be able to see those kids, the next generation, being passionate about the aftermarket stuff, the fun stuff, makes us pretty happy.”

The auto show runs until Sunday, Jan. 25. McSweeney says he hopes Canadians come visit, despite the trade and political tensions.

“I think that there's a lot of opportunity for collaboration between the two cities here,” he said. “They have a huge car community over there and we have a huge car community here. So I hope they come out here and see what we have.

"And then in the upcoming months, we can all work together to put on some big shows too.”