Hot Rods have been influencing Detroit car designs since the early 50's- Hidden door handles, hide away headlights, frenched head & tail lights, even chopped and sectioned bodies on production cars usually look back towards a hand-built custom creati... <BR><BR>To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.
Something in this car translates better in glass & metal than it did on paper. Neat! There is something missing in the concepts of today. I think the machine replacing the pen, the committee replacing the man, has altered the visions that come out of a design department. I should have been born a couple of decades earlier....
@scottybacus & James D, for what it's worth, we (automotive designers) still draw by hand, use real human clay modelers perfecting the surfaces before 3D scanning into CAD and as an example, the Designer who penned the new Camaro saw his vision through to production without the dilution of a committee. So, in all cases it can't be said that it's lost it's soul to computers, sure, you could probably find examples that look like they might have, but for the most part, it's still a hand done art form for a large part of the work.
I realise that, but even so, I´m sure something has changed. Cars just look less organic than they used to. It´s just not the same since they stopped fitting brown vinyl roofs.... sigh.... Oh BTW - how do I get a job doing what you do?
For what it's worth computers have definitely taken more of a hold than most realize. Speed is the worst enemy of automakers today, everything is to be done as quickly and efficiently as possible there seems to be less quality time with the car. Don't even get me started on government regulations, they haven't helped at all. "Sketches" are done on computer utilizing tablets and touch screens and photoshop. Not to say that design studios do not use pen and paper but it has been phased out with technology. The clay models are originally done in CAD based off of predetermined chassis design before they are cnc'd out of clay, then refined by hand. A lot of manufacturers take great care with their concepts but unfortunately there's just a great loss between that and the manufacturing.
So, Speed Week and LSR historians, which cars may have had influence? I'd love to see some pics from the "week" to see if there are any indicators.
You know, I do not know what american designers were on or taking but they we definitely missing the mark with sports cars perhaps with the exception of the Corvette. Inspired by Bonneville or Bonneville/Jet theme car I'm not sure. The top on this one is a pretty nice piece and I would definitely use that but the front mouth with headlights is pretty ugly and doesn't give (me at least) a sense of speed. The rear is just as ugly at the front. Definitely can understand why this thing only made it to two cars being built. The Corvette convey's the speed and style of the European cars and is a grand slam as far as design goes I think. This thing just looks like they took a '54 Vette and gave it to Orange County Choppers to make a theme car out of. After all that being said, because it's crazy looking and very 50's americana looking....I love it. Hahahah!!! I think the guys building some of the different fiberglass kit cars and such got the idea of speed better then this cars represents. Shit if I went to Bonneville during the '52-'53 season I would probably try to put the So-Cal/Valley Custom streamliner into production before this thing!!! But I am a schmuck so don't read my word as gospel.
One of the first cutesy saying in the computer age was, "Garbage in, garbage out". CNC machines do what they are told, and the designs are done on the computer screen and it is the artistic talent of the person designing, whether using a pen or a stylus.
I agree the fake continental butt is ugly, but I really like the overall proportions and the front end doesn't look that bad to me... Like I said, it was "eyebrow raising"...
Earle was determined...he tried a corvette type coupe with an olds too. that prototype was sold for over 3 million at the BJ auction. I guess if the early corvette had sold more right up front (the design was breakthrough, the powerplant not so much) we might have seen something like this in production. It looks like a 54 corvette got mounted by a 1961 plymouth valiant and this is the evil offspring, which was then bubble top customized by roth. Competely insane and awesome. That rear profile has looks only a mother could love.
Yeah, I think if you were to remove the superfluous stuff and strip it down and use the over proportions and "squattyness" of the car you would really have something. Like what if there was a third car? And with that third car you took the frame including stock wheel base and form there shaved all the garbage and and had Neil Emory and Clayton Jensen reform the car to actually run at Bonneville using the same hatch style top. Extend the rear quarter so they taper out like the SoCal Streamliner. The front end could benefit form an extension so that the air does not barrel into the front causing it to slowdown. 18" Indy Halibrands with Firestone competition rater tires. Keep it that Dark Maroon with the Gold type Halibrands to set it off. Interior very sparse with only the necessities and a single black leather seat.....perhaps the car is now center steered. Lowered down over the new rolling stock. Motor???? Not sure there. Could really benefit from a 331 Hemi under that large hood but I would probably want to keep it Poncho powered. Daydreaming!!! More then likely though if there was a third one built I would be cashing in on that 2 Mill the other one got haha!!!
Can we get a designer on that? Bonneville Special Streamliner with a glass bubble top based on this car?
Eddie Miller Lakester is said to have inspired Harley Earl, I believe it even went to Detroit so the engineers could go over it. The Bonneville concept is awesome, the continental kit is more a styling que towards Jet aircraft styling than an actual continental kit.
I saw the copper Bonneville at Carlisle several years ago. I like it. You have to look at other cars of the same age to appreciate what this car is, lots of B-ville/jet influance.
Is it just me, or is there a slight passing resemblance (front end quarter view) to the Pontiac Solstice?
Hey, That being the case, do you think the designer of this generation of Camaro would have been given free reign of his design from board to production had Ford/Mays not blazzed the trail with the last Mustang which is basicly a warmed over fourty year old design? Nostalgia is hot with " The Sheep" now, but it was just the converse in the day of this Bonneville show car. " The Future" & Jet travel was all the rage in design circles in post war automotive design. Earl, Mitchell and their studio design heads all looked to aircraft/spacecraft for design cues. The designers of salt flat cars did the same, but for different reasons- to design out drag from wind resistance to aid in top speed. Earl's et.al. designs only had to look fast! Swanky Devils C.C. " Spending a nation into generational debt is not an act of compassion "
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