Cheswick's MaxMotive to sponsor 'World of Wheels' car show in Pittsburgh

When Buffalo Township’s Bobby Maxwell was growing up in Saltsburg, he and his brother, David, worked at their father’s company Max Construction and learned business values such as being fair with customers.

David stayed in the field of construction and runs the company today. Bobby became fascinated with the machinery, especially the work trucks.

The fruit of that interest can be seen at MaxMotive in Cheswick, where Bobby Maxwell is general manager.

From the outside, it’s an ordinary-looking building along Pittsburgh Street at the bottom of Pillow Hill. But inside, it’s a dream world of classic and muscle cars in pristine condition.

There are some 80 vehicles in stock at prices ranging from $12,000 to well over $200,000. There’s also more than a few work trucks — lovingly restored — from the 1930s through the 1960s.

The Cheswick showroom opened within the past year after MaxMotive outgrew its former facility at Fox Chapel Marine and Yacht Club, which David Maxwell owns. The local showroom is a companion to a Boca Raton, Fla., operation.

Bobby Maxwell sells cars to local people who just walk in the door as well as to people around the world shopping online. Recently, MaxMotive has shipped to Germany and Poland.

MaxMotive always has a few cars recognizable from TV and the movies, such as a 1976 red Ford Gran Torino from “Starsky & Hutch.” (Starsky’s sweater sits on the front seat, and there’s a red police light sitting on the roof.) He also has the 1970 Dodge Coronet Super Bee that Edward Norton drove in the Spike Lee-directed movie “25th Hour.” Norton signed the dashboard.

This weekend, MaxMotive will be at the center of the world for Pittsburgh car enthusiasts. It’s the main sponsor of the 2020 World of Wheels custom car show Friday through Sunday at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Downtown. Guests include Aaron Kaufman of “Shifting Gears” on the Discovery Channel and Danny “The Count” Koker and Kevin Mack of “Counting Cars” on the History Channel, a show about their Las Vegas auto shop Count’s Kustoms.