Get this, long before Tesla’s were rolling down the assembly line that very same facility was cranking out Chevy trucks.. This particular 1980 C30 was also produced there, for the US government. There are some interesting things about it though I’m not sure which modifications were added after the government took possession. Continue reading
There is a famous expression that “everything old is new again.” It seems like there are plenty of examples in today’s world of new things designed to look, feel, or sound like old things. Let me give you some examples.
Many digital cameras and mobile phones will play a pre-recorded “shutter click” sound when you take a picture, even though the device does not have a mechanical shutter. If you’ve been to a casino in the last decade, you may have noticed that the slot machines play a sound of coins dropping into a tray, even though the payouts are electronic.
Have you noticed that virtually every bottle of maple syrup sold today has a tiny, useless “handle?” It’s purely a decoration, a throwback to the days when syrup actually came in jugs. Its purpose is the same principle as people who attach non-functional shutters to the outside of their house, or compact fluorescent/LED light bulbs shaped like incandescent bulbs. From Instagram photos to simulated woodgrain, our lives are full of “new” things trying to emulate the look and feel of something old.
There is a name for these things: they are called skeuomorphs. Like everything else, the automotive world is not immune to the skeuomorph. I have noticed that for some reason, people just love to take new Corvettes and make them look like old Corvettes. I just don’t understand this practice. Continue reading
If this was the 1990’s, instead of 2013, I’d be giving you a long article “ho-humming” the shit out of the little Chevy shoe-box. If you’re a younger reader then you wouldn’t understand, but for those of us who remember that time, it was the equivalent to what you see now with 60’s muscle cars. The generation that grew up with, or aspired to own 1950’s steel happened to be the ones with the buying power at the time. A 1971 Chevelle, Gran Sport, Lemans or Cutlass wasn’t an expensive car then. They were about as viable as say, a late 4th gen F-body is now, or a Fox body Mustang was 5-10 years ago. If you opened an issue of Super Chevy Magazine, you were liable to get your eyes overcome with Bel-Airs replete with loud paint, tweed interiors, lots of billet nonsense, and a TPI motor.
Thankfully for this Chevy Bel-Air, it doesn’t succumb to any of that nonsense of the past. It’s a nice clean example of a cool cruiser. As far as this model of cars go, the ’55 happens to be my favorite, styling wise. It has the short grill up front (which was apparently unpopular at the time) and the bodywork is subtle compared to the big fins and huge side chrome on the rock-and-roll 1957’s. 1955 was also the first year for the now ubiquitous small block Chevy V8 powerplant. In the Bel-Air it displaced 265 cubic inches and was rated at 180hp. It’s no rip-snorting ’55 324 Olds, but the small block Chevy’s smart design and insect-like infestation into other GM brands in the mid 70’s ensured it would be the V8 to survive the longest. As far as the design of the Bel-Air, it’s generations came and went like pop songs and by 1958 it was a new design, only to be used for a year and redesigned again in 1959.
When you get right down to it, a car is a machine that does work. It transports people and cargo from one location to another. For most people, a car is just another appliance which is no different from an alarm clock or a garbage disposal. It is a purpose-built machine that makes our lives easier in some way. You use it when you need to, fix or replace it when it breaks, and feel no special attachment to it.
From the beginning of the automobile era, cars were designed with functionality in mind. Early automobiles were simply boxes on a ladder frame with some wheels. Today, cars have evolved into sophisticated, computer-controlled machines – but I would argue that the majority of cars on the road are still more functional than beautiful.
The appearance of a car hasn’t changed much because it hasn’t needed to: a car doesn’t need to be beautiful to get us where we are going. While I can certainly appreciate the intrinsic beauty of something that is purely functional, I can also appreciate when things are both functional and beautiful.
This car, a customized 1962 Corvette roadster “C1RS” is one of the most aesthetically beautiful cars I have ever seen. This vehicle transcends the definition of a car or even a hot rod, it is a work of art.
While the Batmobile was definitely the crowd favorite of the Barrett-Jackson 2013 Scottsdale auction, I was looking forward to seeing a different car. On Saturday January 19th, they auctioned the first production model (VIN #0001) of the seventh-generation 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray.
When Chevrolet says the 2014 Corvette is “all-new,” they aren’t kidding around! The Corvette has a new exterior look, a brand new engine, and a completely redone interior. Even the sacred round taillamps have been redone! With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the changes.
The words “pro-touring” and “resto-mod” are thrown around a lot these days, but I don’t think that either of those terms adequately describe the amount of work that has gone into this car. “Re-engineered” might be a better way to describe it.
I first spotted this car at the 2012 SEMA Cruise. I didn’t see it on the show floor and I had no idea who had built this incredible car. Imagine my surprise when 3 months and 300 miles later, I found myself standing in front of the same car once again at Barrett-Jackson 2013! Now that I’ve identified it, let me tell you a little more about the car.
