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This year's Billetproof Michigan moved to Ypsilanti's lovely Riverside Park, and the new setting brought out some gorgeous rides from all over. It's an onslaught of awesome, billet-free hot rods below. More »
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We heard that a lot of readers were using the Patinas Of Billetproof Nor-Cal 2008 images for their desktop wallpaper, so I decided to shoot a few more this year. Enjoy! More »
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The rules for Billetproof, run by the same miscreants who brought you the Concours d'Lemons, are very simple: 1964 and older, no billet anything, no modern wheels, no fenderless cars with independent front suspension. More »
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We couldn't cover the first-ever Concours d'LeMons in Monterey last weekend, because Jalopnik's entire West Coast Bureau (me) was busy covering some dumb race in Merle Haggard country. No problem, though- we've got photos aplenty! More »
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Billetproof is one of our favorite series of car shows, highlighting vintage-style hot rodding, various elements of car culture, and taking itself none-too-seriously. This beautiful gallery of photos is a peek at Billetproof Texas. More »
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Welcome to Project Car Hell, where you choose your eternity by selecting the project that's the coolest... and the most hellish! We haven't done a serious Engine Mix-&-Match PCH for a while, so let's burn! More »
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This Ford Model A at Billetproof is the lowest vehicle we've ever seen. It's so low you can't get a foot under the frame. We're pretty sure it's being naturally clearanced. And that's just the start. More »
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Billetproof wasn't the only Detroit-area car show this weekend, we also popped over to Ypsilanti's Orphan Car Show, where we found the only car to make an appearance at both shows — Wilt Chamberlain's 1967 Ghia. More »
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Bad ideas in "Miss Fugly" are like stars in the sky, believe us, there were lots of scary/awesome rides at Billetproof, we've got the craziest later, but try to count the brilliant stupidity here. More »
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If you think Billetproof is all crusty-cool rat rods with retro-ironic Indian blanket seats and hard-to-find parts, you're wrong. Proof? Check out this gorgeous custom Nomad gasser sporting a built 400 cubic inch V8. More »
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We found ourselves at Billetproof Michigan this weekend, soaking up the vintage rodding wonderfulness. Let's start on the calm end of things with this GM 502 cubic-inch V8-powered Divco delivery van. It makes all the sense in the world. More »
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When you're in charge of both Billetproof and the Concours d'Lemons, you aren't allowed to use a Camry as your daily driver. No, you must roll Kenosha style! More »
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We thought we were all done with Billetproof Nor-Cal posts after the Mega Gallery yesterday, but then we got all these shots from Ecurie Ecrappe member and 24 Hours of LeMons Assistant Perpetrator Nick Pon. While I was shooting engines, he was shooting door art (and some hood, trunk, and toolbox art as well). Like everything else at Billetproof, the styles range from crude to obsessively detailed, primer paint to gold leaf, and there's some beautiful stuff at either end of the spectrum for those who make the jump. More »
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Now that we've put up a few small batches of photos of Billetproof patinas, engines, and other stuff, it's probably time to share industrial quantities of photographs from last weekend in bustling Antioch, California. Making the jump will get you three big galleries, with photos by me (the first two) and Casadelshawn (the last one). Enjoy. More »
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Of all the cars we saw at the Billetproof Nor-Cal show in Antioch, this split-window VW Type 2 pickup was the hands-down winner of our Rustiest Vehicle Award. Originally a plumber's work truck in Tennessee (you can just barely make out the lettering on the sides), this Transporter became so rust-ravaged that it was junked. After 25 years of quiet oxidation beneath a canopy of kudzu in the junkyard, this Splitty was purchased by a total madman devoted VW aficionado, who got it running and brought it to California. How rusty is it? Well, a friend of the Shitty Splitty's owner put it this way: "When we drove out here, I refused to drive behind it." OK, now you Midwesterners can let loose with a fusillade of "You California boys don't know the meaning of rust, you betcha!" comments. More »
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We've seen the emblems, the patinas, and the people of the Billetproof Nor-Cal show last weekend, and now it's time to look at some engines. Many, many small-block Chevy and Ford flatheads were present, of course, but we (Casadelshawn and I) made an effort to capture some of the less commonplace powerplants as well. Lots of photos here, so jump to see them all. More »
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I really love photographing car emblems and hood ornaments, so you know I had a good time at Billetproof Nor-Cal last weekend. Casadelshawn also got some Emblem Pr0n shots for us, and you'll see the whole mess merely by making the jump! And, yes, you can download the desktop-wallpaper-ready image files below the jump. More »
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As one might expect, the crowd at the Billetproof show tends to be heavy on tattoos and piercings, but (unlike, say, the inhabitants of your local hipster bar) these folks aren't just talking the talk; damn near everyone in the place had some connection to a pretty impressive set of wheels. And for your time-wasting enjoyment, I've included a photo of a celebrity and well-known car freak I spotted making the rounds. Bonus points for the reader who can identify him or her first. More »
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Out of all the old Fords at the Billetproof Nor-Cal show, this one may have been our very favorite (yes, even beating out the undeniably awesome Maserati-powered Ford). Why? It's really a Malaise Era Ford Granada! Jump away to get the rest of the story. More »
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Much as we all love the ol' iconic Model T or A Ford with small-block V8 and primer paint, the landscape at Billetproof is so dominated by such machines- seemingly acres of 'em- that it takes something really wild to make passersby stagger back in slack-jawed awe. This is such a car. In addition to the 300-horsepower, quad-carb DOHC V8 (and Torqueflite-based automatic) out of an '81 Maserati Quattroporte, this Ford has a handcrafted independent front suspension (the coolest parts of which, unfortunately, we were unable to photograph). More »
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We saw a lot of great stuff at the Billetproof Michigan show, and this weekend we get the Billetproof Nor-Cal show in Antioch. I met up with the Audi Fox-owning, Belvedere-racing Casadelshawn and we broke out the Nikons to capture the rusty, crusty, and- in some cases- sparkly surfaces to be found. Stay tuned for more Billetproof fun as the week progresses (and I get around to sorting out 99 million photographs). More »
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In what is probably one of the greatest press communications ever issued, Alan Galbraith, the brains behind Billettproof, has let us know the first Concours D'Ignorance will have to wait another year. We're a bit disappointed that we have to wait until 2009 to celebrate the eye-gougingly bad in automotive history, but for truly perfected automotive terribleness, we will happily endure. Also, the eyebrows perk up when we see Alan mention the name of fair Flint, MI. Could he actually be eyeballing Michigan's armpit as a midwest location? We certainly hope so. Aforementioned press communique below the fold. More »
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While the cars at the Billetproof show come in all sorts of old-skool flavors, there seem to be two ends of the spectrum: hot rod roadsters on one side, and kool kustoms on the other. We know the two don't always have to be mutually exclusive; after all, just look at some of the creations from Autorama Detroit. But the pure essence of each is pretty distinct. So, toward which pole does your compass point? More »
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Some may argue that the only proper finish for a hot rod or kustom is a good ol' flame paint job. But at Billetproof we noticed that many of the rides have adopted the growing trend of a natural (or natural-looking) surface rust. It really depends on the car, and the owner's preference. We dig both, so we'll let you all decide. Which is cooler? More »
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All right boys, you know the rules: Chain up your axle to this here block of cee-ment, spray it all down with water, and roast them tahhrs. Whoe're makes the most smoke wins! Can you think of a better way to spend a Saturday afternoon in America? Didn't think so. More »
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Summer is car show season in Michigan. So, after checking out the Orphan Car Show last weekend, this past weekend we went up to the little town of Davisburg to hang out at Billetproof. Basically, it's the most badass Hot Rod show there is. No six-figure trailer queens here. This is a show where surface rust is loved more than chrome, and flat primer as much as metal-flake candy coat. But what do you really come to a Hot Rod show for? That's right, you come for big, beautiful motors. Check out the gallery below for our favorite mechanical details from the show. More »
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Does the world really need an anti-Concours D'Elegance, something to celebrate everything horribly spectacular in the automobile world? Yes, yes, and yes! The genius behind the Billetproof car show (which will be happening in Davisburg, Michigan this weekend), Alan Galbraith, is at it again and proposing a new show to celebrate all that we Jalops hold dear — terrible, awful, laughably malaise-tastic and yet completely lovable cars from the past. Have a Gremlin, a Lebaron, or perhaps a Mustang II? You'll fit right in with this crowd of automotive offal. The greatest part so far — Alan has no idea when or where or how it's going to work. But we have a few ideas we'd like to pitch. More »
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Trophies at bowling leagues and the ten million other throw away events held across this great nation are often a study in sameness. Plastic base, gold-plated plastic pedestal, fake wood/metal pillar, all topped off with a tiny gold man in the act of *insert here*. At Billetproof, much like everything else, they are high art. A flaked sprayer for best paint and a primered insect sprayer for best primer - now that's clever. How about the catastrophically melted piston head for best burn out? Axe and hacksaw in the "Best Basher" category? There's something to be said when even an events' trophies make us swoon. Check out the gallery for complete ogling. – Ben Wojdyla More »
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When we saw this minitanker mit bier thema — duallies, high Schlitz shifter, bull's head hood ornament and exposed u-joint — it was as if we'd found our hot rod soulmate. It's low, it's rough, it's a little bit ugly, but it is creative and it brings (or pretends to bring) hoppy refreshment to the unwashed masses. There isn't much not to love. If there were beirmaidens involved we would have never left.– Ben Wojdyla More »
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The Jalopnik fanboyism hit a high water mark as the foreboding clouds lingered ominously to the west. This is what a 1966 (okay, they bent the rules) El Camino with a 350, a high-rise Offenhauser intake system, and dual Holley four barrels does in a burnout contest. Oh yes, he shredded those tires. Shredded them like a truck/car from hell. The sweetly scented clouds of liquefied rubber rose high above the masses and baptized us all in the glory that is El Camino. Oh gallery, how much Camino love can you contain?– Ben Wojdyla More »
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Here we have a study in comparative scale. On a 454 or 460, this monstrous B&M supercharger would look normal, but here, perched atop a smaller V8 of unknown displacement, it looks ludicrous... ludicrously AWESOME! Sure, the engine is probably spending most of its time powering just the charger, but jeebus, that whine must sound heavenly when at full snort. Oh baby. In the gallery is the teeny tiny but banshee fast roots unit mounted so high I had to look up to see it! Okay, that's an exaggeration, but it was at least chest level, at least. And look at those headers! Ugly and cool. – Ben Wojdyla More »
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Once, we were trying to think up a clever and marketable name for the sport of tying small knives to the paws of crazed squirrels and setting them loose in yuppie restaurants. We only came up with funny names (e.g., Super Amazing Squirrel Knife Fight Happy Time), but nothing that was both instantly recognizable AND clever. Billetproof on the other hand is evocative of the growing anti-trailer queen hot rod movement and it happens to be the name of an eleven-year-old car and culture show. The rules include no billet (imagine that), no digital gauges, no cars newer than 1964 ('65 in the Cali events) and the like. Awesome old-style rods converged on tiny Davisburg, MI this past Saturday, and while the Gods smote us with a gnarly thunderstorm eventually, radness had its moment in the sun. Stay tuned for full coverage. If you live on the left coast, check out their site for details on the September NorCal show. See artsy image of the pending smotage after the jump. – Ben Wojdyla More »
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Last weekend's Billetproof show in Antioch, CA, was a roaring success by all the accounts we've been regaled with. It's the first one we've missed since we started attending, and we're rather sad about that. However, we apparently got some props from James Hetfield (our first band used to cover "The Four Horsemen"), so that softened the blow of missing out on the action somewhat. So we were cruising the H.A.M.B. this morning when we ran across this gallery of show shots. Check it out and bask in the glory of some of the baddest-ass rods, customs and bikes you've seen since last year's show. More »
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