Features The Ugliest Kustoms of the 50s

Honestly can't imagine what the owner was thinking here.[/QUOTE]

Looks like something "The Cat in the Hat" would drive in a Dr Seuse book.

 

The point to remember here is these car's were the owners idea of the perfect custom. Ugly or not they were created by hand and lacquered and loved.

I build radical custom's. Never lost one of my rides in a car park or at a run yet.

 

The front of this has a kind of Tiki look to it!

 

Don't forget Gene Howard's '50 Buick "Truly Rare". A face only a mother could love....

 

Anything with a bubble top.

 

Amen. Most of the cars mentioned, like the Matador and the Buick Lesabre (which is not a Custom, but a GM concept car, and runner, not a styling mock up), are loved by some, and hated by others. It's a matter of taste. Whats ugly to one is beauty to someone else. Arguing about it doesn't change any ones mind and is pointless.

I'm wasting a lot of my time on my '59 'Bird, which is an awkwardly styled car to begin with, but I always liked them, and I had this one setting around, so I'm doing what I can, the best I can.

Is it ugly? Maybe to some, and I admit it's not "beautiful" to my eye, but I still like it. And, I'm not building for anybody but myself.

Brian

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I may be wrong here, but I think that thing in "grease" is a cartoon style movie prop, not a serious attempt at a custom and as such shouldn't really figure in this discussion.
Paul

 

Agree with this totally.
Any car, the Batmobiles, or Monkeemobile for instance, made under contract for a movie or TV show are just that, Movie props.

 

The title of this thread is The Ugliest Kustoms of the 50's.
The Grease Lightning movie was filmed in 1977. The car in it created at the same time.
Therefor should not even be discussed in this thread.

 

Rik is right...lets keep this thread from the golden age of hideous Kustoms.

 

I LOVE the lesabre concept....

 

Me too! In 1951, this thing would have been amazing.

 

My ex wife reckons mine was ugly... Maybe she just couldnt get me lovin another bird... Anyways thats why shes my ex

 

I love this car.

 

So, are you haters-of-anything-the-least-bit-"different" going to post pictures of every factory concept car ever built in the '50's?

 

No way does El Matador belong here! (IMO)
Paul

 

WOW never thought I'd see this again, back in the late 80s or early 90s my dads boss had the red one, I have a bunch of pics of it, including my standing in front of it as a kid holding a trophy from a local car show in walled lake,MI, I still have the trophy, the passenger seat was backwards guess it was so "mom" could keep an eye on the kids lol, my dads coworker at the time knocked the taillight out and my dad had to fix it, I'll dig up the pics, we all called it the bat mobile, anybody know if it had a name?


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Not sure about a name, but it was shown with the Pass seat facing to the rear in '61 as well. There were a lot of cars built during that time that used swivel Living Room Chairs as Bucket seats. I especially remember what I thought looks like Black Bear Fur in the interior and Headliner for the half top.....Centurion9

 

buh-zing......

 

That's the Andy DiDia/ Bobby Darin Dream car......

 

I think it still had the black fur in it, I have to dig up my photos, it was deffanetly a wild car lol, I wish I could see it today, my dads old boss had some cool cars, he had a few Tucker's, we took a greenish blue tucker to the same show that we won the trophys with the red ford, but didn't win any with the tucker


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I'd love to see them.....

 

Wow, all I can say is I just coughed and sprayed my coffee on my screen.

 

Strange.. The Di-Dia Bobby Darin is probably one of my top 5 american kustoms of the early 60's. Along with El Matador.

 

The Di-Dia car is incredible especially if you saw the ClarKaiser shop it was built in. No power hammers or sophisticated tools to shape and create. Ron Clark and Bob Kaisers were/are under rated masters and this car is a testament to their ability.

 

But Rick.....I love Jerrys Thunderbird!....surely you've made a mistake...I remember buying that issue on the way home from Confirmation Class.......

 

Uhhhhhhhhh, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.