MORAVIA - For most vintage car owners, their vehicles are a serious hobby that keeps them in the garage tinkering to get them ready for the next car show.

At the Fillmore Auto Show and Flea Market, people weren't afraid to add artistic expressions to their automobiles.

Duke, a black stuffed dog, perched on top of Duke Whitt's 1968 Charger, was ready to bite anyone who might get too close.

Whitt painted the car black, with a gold-sparkled clear coat on top, reupholstered the seats and installed in white carpet.

“Everybody wants to know why I put in white carpet. Nobody's going to ride it in. It's my baby,” the Moravia resident said.

More than 400 cars preregistered and 100 came out the day of the Sunday event. By two hours into the event, organizers had to turn people away because they didn't have the room to park all the cars at Fillmore Glen State Park.

Organizer Gary Fickeisen pointed to the package of the large amount of automobiles, the 125 tables selling anything from toys to miniature cars at the flea market, and the state park itself as the reasons for what he described as the best turn out yet.

“I think it's a combination because we have a strong flea market and car show. Other car shows have trouble getting vendors to come to their shows,” he said.

The Fillmore Auto Club offered prizes in 31 classes as well as special categories such as best overall, longest distance driven and best paint job.

The Moravia parent and teacher organization worked the front gates as one of multiple area organizations and charities that benefited from the show.

Many people came to see cars they used to own, or wanted to own. Others came to see the vehicles that owners have turned into works of art.

Rhonda West of Binghamton turned her 1995 truck into an ode to her horses, which she shows at fairs and local events.

Her teal Silverado Dually has murals of her horses running along the sides and head shots on the hood, painted by Windsor painter Tim Williams. The antenna is shaped like a horse's head, the windows have etchings of roses and the animals and the tail lights have mare-shaped cut outs.

The custom-ordered truck won West the first place at the 2000 All Truck Nationals in Carlisle, Pa. The truck ended up becoming a memorial to a horse she has owned since West was 10 and has since died.

Besides the owners' personal history, vehicles can show a place's history.

The Dudleys' 1940 Ford stood out among the rows of flawlessly shiny cars. Their Deluxe Opera Coupe has rust running along the sidestep, the fender and along the doors. The gray paint had pealed, and chipped down to the metal at places.

But Peter and Louise Dudley's car had a history that made people stop and point.

The car belonged to Lt. Col. Thomas H. Green of Moravia, who shipped the Ford to his station in Hawaii. Shortly after, Dec. 7, 1941, to be precise, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. A couple months later, the women were evacuated, and his wife left for central New York with the car in tow. The car cost $85 and two train tickets to get from San Francisco to Ithaca.

Along with the car, the couple received the automobile's original registration paperwork, and correspondence from the first owner.

Peter Dudley said he is planning to put on a new coat of gray paint, but maintain the factory feel.

“Everybody tells us to keep it original,” Louise Dudley said.

Staff writer Jessica Soule can be reached at 253-5311, ext 267 or jessica.soule@lee.net