What a dissapointment. I was there last year and the quality of cars was by far much better. This year there was probally less than a dozen cars worth spending time near. Hands down Mike Zenors coupe was the best traditional car in the building. Andy did an amazing job!!!!! THere was a really nice silver model A with black walls and black steelies, Clarks T and Bob Merkts T were both nice cars also. The Chopped 47 ford built by the Japanesse guys was an amazing custom, the body lines that they incorporated into the hood and the rest of the car is what alot of people leave out of a really nice custom. Bobby from IL rootbeer colored custom Chev looked great, but it looked great in its black suede in the past also. I know I have left a couple out, but its hard to look at so much unfinished and impractical "Rat Rods". I dont think I will be back.
so show some pics already...haha I know others have posted...I don't think I've seen the custom ur talkin about
"What a dissapointment" I agree. I've been wanting to go to the show for years, but never had the time. Finally got to go this year and, as was said, there were maybe 30-40 cars MAX that I was even interested in looking at. Walking around the main floor on Saturday reminded me of the bar scence in Star Wars. If I never see another ghetto wheel or spinner cap (the ones that keep on rotating after the wheel stops), it won't be to soon. Bad taste was alive & well in Motown in a lot of cases!! And where did they get hold of the siliconed "models"?? Man, there were some some well-used, pumped up, unattractive broads tossing cleavage at you that had more make-up on their face than body filler on the customs being displayed. Way too much 'Britteny' influence. I felt more at home with the rods on the lower level, but was suprised at how many were really "rat rods", (i.e.: unsafe for the road) there were among the well done 'traditional rods' there were. No doubt about it, there were a lot of VERY cool rods down there, but the hype I was given before I got there led to major disappointment. Gotta say I was super impressed with the area around Co-Bo and the 'People Mover' el-train was impressive. On a more positive note, my buddy yanked me into a nearby casino and I managed to walk out $60 bucks ahead. Not too shabby for a non-gambler !!
I'm there every year and I don't think it was any different that the past ones. Just like Billitproof, Hunnert car, or any other car show. There are allways some really nice cars and some really bad ones, and if your lucky about a 1/4 of them are really worth looking at to see what's going on. Regardless, I had a great time, and it was great to see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while. Gus
This was my first year going and I actually liked it a lot. Theres no doubt that there were a ton of cars that just plain sucked, like mostly everything on the upper floor and the ricer stuff in the basement. But, even the stuff that I wouldn't have been caught dead driving was able to if nothing else show me how I am NOT going to be building my car. On the traditional stuff, I was generally able to find a couple of things on just about any of them that I thought was cool, even if I thought the total project was a little off. There was maybe 5 cars that I personally thought were just what I would have wanted to do, but luckily not everyone thinks the same so my 5 cars where probably different from you other guys. I plan on going again and having my car there next year. Beyond the cars, I met some people from the HAMB that I had not seen before and had a good time talking cars with like minded folks instead of the muscle car mullet crowd that I generally deal with around here.
A good portion of the cars in the basement were a bit on the "rough" side. Sometimes guys take it a bit too far.
this was my first detroit autorama.it was great compared to the dismal piece of shit that is cleveland autorama.at least they confined the wig wag headlighted,big gay wing,ground effect,neon loving "g money" faggots off the main floor.in cleveland you have to wade through all these "my daddy got me a credit card and i just maxed it out buying every bolt on piece of crap in the world for it " cars that just ruin the cleveland show. the rat rod side of the basement was awesome and there were quite a few cool "survivor" cars that i would have never seen otherwise. one thing that concerned me was the engineering"or lack thereof"on some of the tetnus rods EX.soldered copper pipe solid mounted to the engine and radiator(yeah,real safe)and lots and lots of horrid (somebody needs to ibreak out the 5 bucks and invest in an angle finder) engineering. bubble gum and duct tape anyone? if we dont promote safe traditional cars we will be no better than the ricers building unsafe jap lumps of crap. all and all it was great though and i will be back next year. wouldnt have missed it for anything in the world.
Nobody mentioned the "Pinstriper's Jamboree." Anybody stop by there?? There are a LOT of HAMBers taking part in that......
BenD said that Jay's art was great again, if anyone has a pic of his pieces, please post. MissyD (wife and secretary)
Over all the show was a disapointment. There was only one thing i really liked and it was only a bare chassis and no body yet, but the work on that thing was incredible.It was on the top floor. I think there building a replica of an orginal streamliner. I pinstriped one panel, they were using some new paint that completly sucked. And i had my paint box in the car(to heavy to cary five blocks)
i thought the show was great. upstairs and downstairs. my daughter and i had a great time. as far as riddler cars i thought all but two were real impressive. it would be hard to pick a winner. i go to this show every year and love it. plenty to see. if you dont like one car then move on to another. something for everyone!
Wait a few years, the shows will be filled with Donks (don't ask) and we will be enjoying old cars at the good old grocery store parking lots where we should be to begin with.
I wasn't that impressed with the stuff on the main floor, but there were quite a few cars downstairs I liked. Don Moyers coupe, for one... Mom pointed out the "for sale" sign, but I didn't have the balls to ask. Overall, I did like the layout better upstairs this year, at least you could walk around for a change. (For some positive reinforcement for next year. ) Oh yeah, meeting Gene Winfield was pretty cool too, and I got a bitchen picture and autograph! Jay
For the most part I second everything Chris said and I have a solution. All those guys with really nice traditional cars (nice does not imply paint or chrome or primer or even finished, it just means well thought out, engineered, and most of all something your proud of and want to show off) register early next year so the promoters can turn away the "not so quality cars" that have you disappointed. I too was disappointed by the overall vibe of the cars downstairs, thank God for the 815 showing up with their pals otherwise it might have been really bleak. Lets not let the Cobo Hall basement turn into the bearded lady of the circus that is the Detroit Autorama. Just my two cents on top of yours -- almost a nickel.
Say it ain't so, Christopher! The mere prospect of virile manhug comradery with you and your velcro-shod Cheatermates is Detroit attraction #1 in my book. Glad you liked the new heap, and thanks for the free assgrabs! See you in Cheaterstan (formerly known as Wisconsin).
i was there and I think that was getting mixed reviews as well...mainly people were complaining about the paint that was supplied. Now, you can't look a gift horse in the mouth, but you also cant expect people to like/get used to a totally different type of paint on the fly. Next year, If I go, I'm definitely bringing my own paint. But, it's also about the money for charity, which is one of the main reasons why I go and its gotten so big, Sam really has his hand's full and kudos to him for keeping a little bit of sanity. the rest of the show this year...in my past 5 or so years of going.....was the worst...the basement, aside from the So-What section and a few other select...was "absolutely dreadful" , as in REALLY SHITTY..and upstairs wasn't as good as other years as well..... I think last years was by far the best. -Rob
sounds like the folks running the down stairs need to be more selective in what they let in. (like Axle did with this years GNRS) its better to have few then more if it includes a bunch of crap..
I have always judged Detroit Autorama by this standard......If I can see ONE car that gets me pumped, and ready to thrash when I get home, the show was a success. Didn't happen this year. Part of the problem might be my first trip to LA for the roadster show.....hard to even come close to that adventure.
Hatch, this is exactly how i judge the show too. and to be honest i dont want to go work on my chevy right now. There was one car i saw that i will remember the show by and thats the black 36 upstairs. Amazing in every way. But the rest ehhhh not so much. The basment just didnt seem to have the energy it did last year. I dont know why but it seemed like something was missing. perhaps cause i didnt touch a beer all weekend.
I took my two younger nephews so I really didn't get to spend a lot of time looking at the cars like I'd like to. Overall I left feeling dissapointed. II was really hoping to see some cars that inspired me to go start working on mine again. Instead I felt uninspired. There were a few cars that I really enjoyed both upstairs and downstairs however. I hope nobody hates on me here for saying this but it's just my opinion. One thing that really turned me off in the basement were a lot of the people. It seems everyone is wearing the clothes, the hairdo, the tattoo's and the attitude. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with it, except for the overnight trendy people with fresh tattoos and hairdos. It was almost like a fashion show more than a car show. Now I'm no "Ol'skool" hot rodder, (I've only been into older cars for about 5 years now) I don't feel the need to dress the part. It almost makes me wanna not wear a pair of chuck's or a hot rod shirt. Sorry if this offends anybody it just bothers me. A lot of the cars were really unfinished. If it has a engine in it but doesn't run or something that's one thing, but if you cant even prop an engine in there for the show that's a little too much. Oh and don't even get me started on the whole sport compact car scene.
This year being my first (American) indoor show I realy liked the basement but was told that it was not as good as last year. That being said it still kicks ass as compaired to anything Ive seen in Canada.
This year's Autorama sucked because I stayed home puking with diarrhea and a fever. And I had promised my little girl we'd go see Lightning McQueen and Mater.
Zenor's car really did it for me. It was just as much the builder as the car. We went down for the move in on Thursday and I got to talk to the builder for quite a while. You had to peruse every detail to do it justice and talking with the builder left me with the feeling that this hobby/obsession is in good hands and we can trust the new builders as some of them are getting it 'RIGHT'. Clark's T was another example of 'getting it right". I've got magazines from the 60's that you could insert that car in and it would be right at home. Hope he gives us some driving impressions after he has a chance to go over the details and get it roadworthy. Just before I left I ran into Plowboy and had a chance to chat. I'm glad he brought the Seahag, I want it for a shop truck, too cool. Finally, this year might have been a little weak in some respects, but it's something to do while it's too cold to be out driving and for me it still made me anxious for the new driving season to begin. Frank
It is now about 10 pm Sunday night and I just woke up from a 4 hour or so nap and decided to check a few auctions I'm keeping an eye on. I've had about 12 hours sleep since last Thursday so my "coherence coefficient" is a bit on the negative side right at the moment. My two penny interjection here is as follows: I go there not so much to look at cars(I have seen more than my share in my lifetime)but to see old friends that I rarely have a chance to visit with as most of them live on another part of the planet.I go there to see what sort of new madness has sprung from the minds of some of the most fertile imaginations in the inhabited universe;whether it be automotive design or creative paint treatments or just plain kick-ass pinstriping and graphics. I enjoy sitting down next to a crazy Canadian(actually several of them)trading outrageous stories and laughs about past incidents while he scribbles furiously on the back of a show poster some madcap monster piloting a spaceship.I enjoy the look of wonder and happiness of an 8 year old as I paint miniature flames on his new toy. I enjoy wandering around,"the Pit" watching others creating tomorrows precious works of art and sharing the good times of past get togethers and tales of "Hotel Furniture Gliding" contests and,"I wonder what will happen if you put a 50 lb. bag of Jello in the pool" or striping the hell out of a rental car obtained at the local airport or the local,"D.A.R.E." police car while the chief looks on with a smile on his face while a bunch of maniacs converge on the car with brushes in hand. Or the somber talk of people we once shared these times with who are no longer of this earth and wondering aloud(and to yourself)"I wonder how so-and-so is doing;he hasn't been to any of the meets for awhile.Anyone hear from him?" And hoping it won't be you they're asking about next year. But most of all I guess it's the feeling you get knowing that what you're doing is going to benefit a child who is not as fortunate as you or your children(and grandchildren)and that you are giving back to a profession that has treated you very well over the years;has helped feed you and yours and sent the kids to school and out into the world. Yeah I know;I saw a lot of cars that weren't exactly to my liking.I'm not a fan of cars with mile high wings and wheels the size of hay bales or vehicles(a speculative term)that looked to be one step away from the crusher.But I can appreciate the work that these people put into these vehicles;whether it be via bloody knuckles and burns or the almighty checkbook.They are living out their 4 wheeled fantasies and so they should.It is their way of keeping reality in perspective.I could say the same thing about tattoos,body piercings,hairdos and other fashion statements:if you aren't inflicting pain or the like on your fellow man,more power to you! For a venue that has seen so much negative feedback in this post,it seems to have struck a chord with the hundreds of THOUSANDS of others who paid $16 a head to stumble around in what could only be described as a 12 hour long "human rush hour" standing in long lines buying $3 soft drinks,hot dogs,and ice cream and $6 cups of beer.The only thing that seemed to be a great bargain was a large amount of high quality art work by extremely talented people being auctioned off every three hours or so to benefit a bunch of kids who may never get to celebrate a birthday with more than one number in it. Sorry for the long rant;the drugs haven't kicked in yet as has my last cup of coffee for the day.My voice is gone from talking way too long and I have to engage my ex-wife in a conversation tomorrow that will sort of resemble me standing out and pissing headlong into a hurricane,my body hurts in places that I didn't even know HAD places,my dog wants to go out and chase racoons and the evil,"black and white kitties" and I not in any real mood to have to give her a bath in Massengill Douche tonight. Oh yeah there was one vehicle there that really "tripped my trigger":When you came in the Exhibitor's Entrance,there,next to an orange Henry J was a two toned green 58-59 Chevy pickup with a silver leaf stripe down the side.Something about it just hit me and I'm not really a huge truck and/or billet wheel fan but everything on it just seemed to work. OK rant is over;everyone please return to your regularly scheduled calamities. A very exhausted pinstriper
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