The party atmosphere Summernats is famous for had well and truly descended upon Exhibition Park on Friday as the festival shifted up a gear and raced into day two.

Souped-up cars of all makes, shapes, and sizes cut laps of the main drag much to the wonderment and joy of the large crowds coursing along the footpath.

With crowds building ahead of an expected peak of 25,000 patrons on site tomorrow, a procession of cars have arrived over the past two days, with new vehicles lapping the grounds every hour.

Industry traders return for cornerstone event

Long touted as a massive tourism driver for the ACT – this iteration of Summernats is expected to bring in some $32 million – the festival is also an important part of the Australian aftermarket industry from a retail and product development perspective.

One retailer whose been attending the festival for close to a decade now is Dimitri Comino, owner of Motorfocus Diecast Models.

Based in Brisbane, Mr Comino first sold his wares at Summernats in 2013 as part of a concerted push to expand their off-site selling at various car shows and events across Australia’s eastern seaboard.

“We’d just heard it was a really big car show with lots of people, and good potential there for us to grow our business and tap into new areas too,” he said.

“Ultimately it’s about making a living and attending an event that’s profitable; for me, it’s also the opportunity to visit family, so that’s a real bonus.”

Mr Comino’s longstanding passion for cars is what saw him get into selling diecast models in the first place; given that, he relishes the time he gets during the festival to explore and see the sights.

“To come to an event like this where it is the best cars in Australia, to see so many in the one area and to see them moving, that’s the real key to Summernats,” he said. “The cars aren’t static, you can hear them and see them.”

YouTube duo ‘stoked’ to be down for the festival

Among the estimated 80,000 patrons expected to attend Summernats 34 over the four days are YouTube stars Ben Wood and Alan Butler, whose channel, The Skid Factory, has over 233,000 subscribers.

‘Woody’ and ‘Al’ started uploading car-related content to YouTube around four years ago, having been close friends prior to that.

In their videos, they work on all sorts of cars in Al’s shed, doing everything from basic DIY stuff right through to full blown car builds.

They’ll often spend up to four months at a time revitalising the entire vehicle from the engine to the brakes – “the whole works”.

Along the way, they share tips and tricks with their audience while engaging in the kind of banter you’d expect from best mates.

“We’re just two guys in a shed doing stuff with cars because we love it,” Al told Canberra Daily.

This is Woody’s third Summernats, and Al’s first.

“I love the event,” Woody said. “It’s one of the best events in Australia, if not the world; the variety of cars is absolutely crazy.”

Set to be spending a lot of time at the dyno room, Woody and Al are both excited to get around and soak up the atmosphere while capturing footage; they’ll produce a 30-minute vlog documenting their experience.

Getting around the festival, Woody and Al have run into a lot of fans already, something they’ve embraced by stopping for a chat and hopping into cars for rides along main street.

“If we see a shirt of ours, we bail them up and give them a bit of time, which means a lot to them,” Al said.

Get all the latest Canberra news, sport, entertainment, lifestyle, competitions and more delivered straight to your inbox with the Canberra Daily Daily Newsletter. Sign up here.