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2008 Detroit Autorama

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autorama

2008 Builder Of The Year: Gene Winfield

His work has been seen on TV series such as Bewitched, Star Trek, and Get Smart, as well as on the big screen in Blade Runner, Robocop, Back to the Future II, and Sleeper. So it really comes as no surprise that the 2008 Motorama Builder Of The Year is Gene Winfield. He's one of the greats, right up there with Ed Roth and George Barris. He was one of the first to make a "Lead Sled" Mercury, but it's obvious that he wasn't tied down to just that particular sort of Kustom. Even if you're not into "blended" paint jobs or the low stances, you really can't ignore the talent and creativity this gentleman still has. There's so much we could say, but we'll just let you enjoy the gallery below of his display at the 2008 Detroit Autorama.

5:45 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Mark Arnold
3,154 views, 24 comments

Latest by FЯeeMan is slowly cЯawling out of the new commenting system: What in the world is this? more »

autorama

2008 Detroit Autorama, We Hardly Knew Ye

Well, the 2008 Detroit Autorama was a swell show this year, chock full of goodness for any hot rod persuasion. We saw all of the entrants for the Ridler award, a smattering of kit car action, and some very cool traditional hot rods. Hell, we even saw a Citroen 2CV stuffed with a small block Chevy mill. This show does nothing if not inspire its attendants to take on their own projects, push their own envelope, or build their personal dream car. Every year we go we see some new style take root, or a once dead branch sprout new growth - there's just so much good stuff here to see that we can't cover it all. And with that, we conclude this years coverage with a gallery of the things that got left on the cutting room floor. Full wrap up below the fold.

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5:30 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
5,387 views, 8 comments

Latest by Dr.Danger, Hasta la victoria siempre!: @Ben Wojdyla: I will definitely keep an eye out. more »

autorama

Plymouth Rat Rod With Machine Gun Intake

A 1934 Plymouth sedan isn't a typical starting point for a hot rod, but that's just the beginning of the uniqueness of this car. It's a hodgepodge in the best sense of the term; '79 GM A-body rear suspension, 400 cubic-inches of '73 Plymouth V8 power, a custom intake manifold, and 3 Rochester 2bbl carbs. The wood headliner is actually made from a tree that was growing in the owner's yard. That machine gun styled air cleaner even utilizes the leftover portion of the shortened driveshaft. And would you take a look at that homemade hood ornament; its a "screw" flying though a "U." The best part? The owner bought the car just to get one part for another car, but ended up deciding to build this up just for fun. It's stuff like this that make us love Autorama.

4:15 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Mark Arnold
3,852 views, 18 comments

Latest by ccc40821: @smokeydog001: Keep in mind that OCC is not in the bike building business, but in Show Business. They're bloody good more »

autorama

The Larson Engineering Special

What do you call a handmade car built by a 20 something name Bob Larson and old enough to have been in the original Detroit Autorama? You call it the Larson Engineering special and it is a treasure trove of clever ideas and hellish ergonomics. We're not implying anything, but if this is the car responsible for the whole scissor doors thing, we're way less excited by it. Still the way they operate is pretty clever, sort of a pivot on a carrier mounted to a parallelogram hinge and secured with a shot pin latch, not bad for 1953, but not even the tip of the iceberg for this car.

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3:15 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
2,551 views, 19 comments

Latest by smokeydog001: @RichDeBene: A flame thrower! That's just righteous man. more »

autorama

Newstalgia Wheels' Steampunk Chopper

David Coker is an easy talking fellow from Tennessee with a passion for blending the old and the new. His company, Newstalgia Wheel, deals in all those classic style wheels you just gotta have for your hot rod. As a means of showing off those new old stock wheels, he's brought a just finished custom chopper up to the Autorama and it has a delicious steampunk style to it.

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3:00 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
6,828 views, 23 comments

Latest by dculberson: @j6r: I'm not sure the builders called it steampunk. I believe that's Ben's take on it. And I more »

autorama

Return of the Bubble Tops: Vampyre


We don't have much info on this crazy purple bubble top called Vampyre. The owner wasn't around and the placard didn't offer much in the way of details, but it's probably one of the more sleek cars of the genre we can recall. It seems to steal a little style from the extreme low riders with the exposed upper tire and the engine dragging on the ground. It's that low body work and exposed tire style that lead us to believe this car is the work of Jerry and Eldon Titus, who busted out a similar design in the "Voodoo Spyder" back in 2005.

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2:30 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
1,307 views, 29 comments

Latest by RoninianHoon: Ahh the gay batmobile... more »

autorama

Freakshow, The Custom Camino From Hello Kitty Hell

Freakshow has our noodle in a bind. There's not much left of the original '64 Chevy C-10, but it definitely says "1964 Chevy Pickup" on the placard. By all rights it should be the absolute baddest truck/car in the show hands down with a blown 354 cubic inch hemi, six Stromberg 97 carbs, the sickest custom headers we've ever seen all running through a four speed Muncie to a 9 inch Ford rear with 4:11 gears. It has a beer keg and an in-cabin tap coming out a skull mounted under a gun rack. And yet here we are torn - the car is pink, with white fur everywhere, and has a pink telephone on the dash. What. The. Hell?

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1:45 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
2,184 views, 47 comments

Latest by fredgold56: oh boy!! i had a '61 chrysler 4-door. loved it!! as far as this thing goes, everyone needs a hobby!! more »

autorama

Return Of The Bubble Tops: Atomic Punk

It's been a long, long time since bubble tops were popular in the hot rodding circles, but it seems as though they're beginning to make a comeback of sorts. With cars like Dave Shuten's "Astrosled" and Gary "Chopit" Fioto's "Beatnik", the genre is steadily gaining steam again, and the incredible creativity of the style is a welcomed respite from the sameness of the last decade. This car was built and is owned by Aaron Grote, who has dubbed it "Atomic Punk" and dragged it into the Detroit Autorama. The all new, all steel hot rod is based very loosely on 1959 Plymouth bits and really is a treat to see.

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1:30 PM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
1,459 views, 26 comments

Latest by aaron51chevy: It' has fully functioning Air conditioning. No need to have sweaty nuts....And if you really like it buy a t-shirt more »

autorama

Street Legal Cheetah Replicas To Hunt Cobras

There's no question that Cobras are cool, even in fiberglass kit form. But you've got to admit that the fiberglass snakes are becoming somewhat common now with all the companies being sued by Carroll Shelby making their own versions of the V8 roadster. So for those seeking an alternative, Ruth Engineering & Racing will be producing kits for streetable Cheetah replicas. The coupes can be fitted with any Chevy powertrain of your choice; this particular one with a 383 stroker. Suspension bits come from a donor C4 Corvette, but the leaf springs have been replaced by independent coil-overs. That means the new Cheetah should be able to tear up a road course, making this not just a cool cruiser, but a tactical trackday toy too. We'll take ours with an LS9. [RER - AmericanCheetahRacing.com]

10:00 AM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Mark Arnold
3,096 views, 30 comments

Latest by genenmichelle: And Thank You! Sweet Car! Really enjoyed seeing all the talent come ALIVE! Hope to see you at the shows! more »

autorama

We Like To Call This The Puppy Crusher

We saw this mashup at Autorama in Detroit this weekend and immediately imagined a darker, more gory version of 101 Dalmatians. The villainess would beckon her automobile from its murky depths to carry on all manner of misdeed and the car would be known as Cruella's Puppy Crusher. We spent some time talking with the builder, one Mr. Brajkovich of Brajkovich Rods and Customs from Jonestown, PA. and found out some pretty neat stuff. First, even though it isn't quite done yet, what we do see came together in only 3 months of work. Everything in the car is some kind of special, instead of the common 235 straight six, the car has the bigger and nominally more powerful 300. The exhaust is routed 3 per side into the frame rails and is dumped out the back through the open rails

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9:20 AM on Tue Mar 11 2008
By Ben Wojdyla
1,971 views, 43 comments

Latest by Armand Bengle: @Adamskiy: A Jaguar V12 ought to fit in there pretty easily... more »