Customs First pics of the golden Sahara in decades

Just like a Vette...no room for the suitcase...What do you expect for $75K.

Joking aside These are things that car makers grapple with. People want space. I guess
Street may have been more trying to sell his Technological ideas rather than the car itself.
I just think that may have contributed to the interest of that not succeeding at the time.
That stuff would take up much less room now. Back then they couldn't make it smaller. Again just
my thoughts...Cool pic @stanlow69

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It would be awesome to see Moriarity clunk, whirr and whiz the Golden Sahara into a parking spot at his favorite breakfast joint on a Sunday morning. Yes indeed.

 

I presume the car was still 6 volts.

 

j'jeff 12V was common by 55. I'd assume his penchant for the electronics advanced it to that.


Anybody know if the truck is still around? I like it more than either car, but I'm weird like that.

 

^^^ I too, think the hauler is awesome. Looks to have had some tasteful custom work done to it including a full interior including headliner (which was quite an upgrade from an all steel factory interior!).
According to this HAMB thread, Jim Street retained the truck. This makes sense as he seemed to be an individual who (could afford to) build and buy but never sell things.

It will be darn interesting to see if it also goes up on the Mecum block! IMHO, I believe the truck should stay with the Golden Sahara. Ideally, Mecum would pair them up in the same lot. If that doesn't happen, I hope the truck is in a lot after the Golden Sahara, so the buyer of the Golden Sahara has an opp to also go after the truck.
This leads me to wonder if the Street collection also holds Jim's boat!?


https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/larry-watsons-golden-sahara-hauler-ford-c900.382537/
LARRY WATSON'S GOLDEN SAHARA HAULER FORD C900

Yes, the truck still exists and has since been recustomized. It belongs to Jim Street, the "original owner and customizer of the Golden Sahara" along with the truck. Neither the Golden Sahara or the truck ever belonged to George Barris or Larry Watson. Jim Street had Larry Watson
paint the truck only. He still has the truck for transporting the Golden Sahara.

 

Some info on the Hauler build done by Bill DeCarr and Larry Watson.
Must have been a sight to see the Hauler rolling with the Golden Sahara inside and the Kookie T on a trailer behind it!

https://www.customcarchronicle.com/cc-builders/larry-watson-c-painter/golden-sahara-at-watsons/

 

I keep trying to visualize canted quads on the cabover

 

Version one and version two. For those of you who don`t know. Taken from the Barris build books.

 

What??? The car wasn’t loaded on the hauler via remote control!

 

I don't want to sound too political but thats how You should make America great again! It's definitly not my style, but I'm deeply staggered by this car. My very good friend lend me a book about Jack Stewards Ford- it was not only bout that particular car but about custom culture at the time. There was a chapter about Sahara and Sahara II. Meen, I was reading it hard, those storys, those times- it must been some special to live in '40-'50, in US

 

I believe you're right. I didn't see much of the 40's but I believe the 50's and early 60's were probably the best years this country ever had.

 

Too me the sixties was the hay day of Hot rodding. American Graffiti was not a myth thats the way it was. I feel sorry for those who missed it.

 

And the fit of that carpet will never win a Ridler! I miss those days!

 

Nowadays all this equipment could be built into the size of a cell phone. And the 100 pounds of wire could be done with that fiberoptic stuff. You would need to de-arch the springs a bit to make the car ride like it did.

 

Hopefully you will be the one adjusting it...

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tex_Avery

The genius of Tex Avery.

 

Thanks I grew up on that stuff...buddie...buddie...well something like that...yeah I just didn't know his automotive side even though I'd seen it all in those cartoons. I like the Woman car in that video of his I posted...

 

The Sahara 1 has a killer roof opening the Sahara 2’s rear fins are killer
All the electronics on it and if they worked at all never mind reliably are just awesome. Some great technological feats done on this car, you can see a lot of stuff copied into modern cars and a lot of the styling although more conservatively done encorporated into cars of the 60’s and beyond.

Not my cup of tea, or coffee, or beer! But it’s a testament to what was done back the. With rudimentary tools and technology, that this car was the Center piece everyware it was shown and still so many years later drawing interest is awesome!!

It only takes two at mecum for this car to bring silly numbers, or it can sell for peanuts if the right folks are not out that day. I’m sure who ever had the pockets for it will be out in full force for this car. Say what you will about the styling but it’s a big piece of automotive and custom car history.

Just spectacular! Looks like something my kids would pound out of play dough but spectacular play dough at that !!

 

The good days of custom cars started and ended in 1950-1965


Sent from my iPad

 

Naaaa. This photo is from around 1939 or abouts. It is from the Carson top shop. They were doing roughly between 10 to 15 tops a day back then.

 

^THIS ^
I didn’t know much about the GS electronics and all until about a year ago and I was at a show and was talking to Voodoo Larry about his version and he was telling me about the real deal and how advanced it was and all. If I remember right, ehe said even some of the auto manufacturers took the car for shows and displays because of the “cutting edge technology” inside the thing.
The he told me about how the original (this one) was being stored and how bad of shape it was actually in and all. The duct tape all across it is apparently there for a real reason, cause it’s practically falling apart.
However, I have no idea personally, just passing on some info that may or may not be true.

I just hope Mark or someone that truly appreciates it gets it and restores it to GS II stage (not to be confused with a GS stage II! LoL!). It just might take a fortune to get it done tho.

 

As you may know, those beautiful fins were created by none other than Bob Metz, who also crafted the fins on the R&C Dream Truck (among others).






Bob's own '55 Buick (1957).....

 

I, for one, don't think it is too bad of shape, especially if it has just been sitting for fifty years. All of the body work looks good, none of it shows any cracks or signs of falling apart, the paint has discolored, but it is flaking in just a few spots. The interior looks discolored also, but it is intact. Just guessing, but I bet the drivetrain has little to zero wear, and it could be fired up with a few days work. The electronics would be my biggest worry, but that would be the last item I would address. This car brings out a lotta haters every time it comes up, I think it's pretty freakin cool. I like the first version the best, but there is no way I would undo the way it is now.

 

I think the duct tape is on there because the car had tarps taped to the top to keep the interior in shape.. Looks like it worked... Then had other tarps layered on top

I think the car is in pretty good shape
There are some very good articles on the car and how it was stored etc...on the Custom Car Chronicles site run by Rikster..info on its paint-hubcaps-pics of receipts from the build etc...

 

Bumping this one back up
@ Great articles about both versions of the car with awesome pics and in depth story about this car...

https://www.customcarchronicle.com/category/custom-history/
https://www.customcarchronicle.com/custom-history/jim-street-golden-sahara-ii/

 

The Sahara is going to be on TV....
Mecum at Indy... Not sure when...

 

I’m headed to Mecum this Saturday. Who else is going?