I’m not sure what year it. You couldn’t really tell by the headlights or tail lights. But one doesn’t often see one of these in this condition too often.
One of a kind.
Back of the Bun!!
The interior was set up like a tour bus.
What I can tell you is that the big dog is resting what appears to be a Chevy Dually pick up truck bed. According to the sign it’s powered by a 5700 6.0 Vortech Chevy engine.
This one is for the C4 crowd (You digging this one Tony Z.?) There will be two winners one from Corvette Pals and one from my blog. Here is what I’m looking for. I use to auto cross my 1984 Crossfire (still do SCCA with my C6) and I love to see the C4 in action.
So post of a video of your C4 in action (action photos are ok too!) – Nothing illegal (snicker) or unsafe, mind you. Burn outs, auto cross, drag strip…Looking for some action shots. Post them up at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Average-Guys-Car-Restoration-Mods-and-Racing/185827701454279 and mention The Average Guy’s Car Restoration, Mods and Racing blog.
OH…what’s the prize? How about a 1984 Red Corvette promo model in the original box or a 1984 Silver C4? These are the model cars the dealerships give away. Can’t win if you don’t play…can’t win if you ain’t got a C4!!!! Game on!!!
1984 Silver C4 Promo Model - Yes those are Mustangs in the back ground!!!
Not only is there a ton of beautiful cars at Barrett-Jacksonauctions, there are also a lot of venders. Anything from car care products, to engine builders to custom building shops.
One of those was Karl Kustom Corvettes located in Des Moines, Ia. I had a chance to speak with Jim Hidy one of the reps for Karl Kustom at the auction this past January.
SWEET!!!!
Nice looking car, yes? HELL YES. But there some interesting things I didn’t know about these custom Vettes and how they are made.
I spoke with Jim at length and I have to tell you that how I thought these were made wasn’t even close and how they are made was pretty surprising to me. Jim set me straight.
Great Creation
These are of course C6 machines with the look of the 60’s Vettes. All the great handling and power of the C6 underpinning and classic looks. I thought ‘how cool they manufacture a body that snaps on the C6 frame. But that’s not how it’s done.
Hey everybody, just a quick update on the TrackVids Racing4Vets BMW E30 325 ground up build. Here are a few photos of the cage and interior paint work. Very clean, very tidy, gonna be lots of fun!
BMW Shell getting some paint.
Interior Sprayed
Cage shot
Can’t wait to see it done.
Thanks for reading. Here is their Site: https://plus.google.com/u/0/112504538024847827140/posts
Whenever I can I like post up a plea for someone doing a restoration that may need some assistance. The Sarasota County Lodge #45 needs assistance with restoring a 1953 patrol car. This car is a ’53 Chevy Bel Air 150.
Here are some details:
1953 Chevy Bel Air 150
The Sarasota County Lodge #45 of the Fraternal Order of Police is spearheading a project that will involve the restoration of an antique patrol car. The vehicle will match one that was actually used by the sheriff’s office since the office first purchased patrol cars in 1953. Once the restoration is complete, the vehicle will be donated to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office for various public uses.
By reviewing photographs in “From Shield to Star,” a book by retired Sgt. Bob Snell that documents the history of the department, several vehicles were identified by make and model. The first fleet of four vehicles consisted of 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air 150s. The project is being coordinated by FOP #45 Vice-President Kevin Lynch, who is a retired SSO lieutenant. Lynch has overseen the restoration of several emergency vehicles including two fire trucks and a Cadillac ambulance that he currently owns.
Tax-deductible contributions to this project can be sent to The Community Foundation of Sarasota County, P. O. Box 49587, Sarasota, FL 34230-6587, marked for the antique patrol car project.
The FOP is also looking for in-kind services and donations such as labor and supplies needed for the project, and possibly the vehicle itself. Storage space will also be needed for the vehicle as well as initial transportation to Sarasota. Questions can be sent to FOP Lodge #45 at P.O. Box 1488, Englewood, FL 34295-1488 or e-mailed to Lynch at floridafop45@yahoo.com. You may also visit the Lodge #45 website at foplodge45.com.
Having attended the Barrett-Jackson Auction in Scottsdale, Az. and blogging about it, thought I’d make a few entries as a follow-up.
I written about previous times I’ve attended (actually it is a family and friend affair – last year went with friends and the previous and this year our son was able make room in his schedule to go) and how much fun it is and all of the events.
An additional thrill is being there in person and seeing some of the rarest cars on the planet.
Case in point is this Tucker. That eventually sold for $ 2.9 million!!! This picture is from Hemmings:
Beautiful car...but...
…Under the lights and in person….
1948 Tucker A beauiful Car!!!
Truly a great piece of history.
More coming…like…..wonder where some of those Win Both Vettes or Mustangs end up? You’ll see.
The big Scottsdaleauction week is finally here, now with six companies set to to drop the hammer on literally thousands of collector cars in a mere handful of days. In typical fashion, Barrett-Jackson was the first to usher cars through the stage lights, and it’s here where we’ve been alerted to the probable sale of this 1948 Tucker (chassis #1043) currently owned by none other than noted Barrett-Jackson attendee and enthusiastic car collector Ron Pratte.
Specific details about the Tucker are lacking, other than mention of its restoration, on Barrett-Jackson’s auction description. And we use the phrase “probable sale” simply because unlike most of the lots at B-J, the Tucker is listed as having an undisclosed reserve. That said, Mike Schutta of the Tucker Historical Foundation, provided more insight.
This car is very nice and most Tucker fans are keeping a close eye on this auction to see if it will set a new record price for a Tucker. The current record is $1,127,500 paid for Tucker #1045 about 18 months ago. This Tucker is in much better condition.
An interesting tidbit is that Tucker #1043 was used as part of an advertising scheme for a golf driving range in a western suburb of Chicago back in the ’50s. It was painted Tropical Rose and Snowshoe White to match the driving range buildings.
While surfing through the Barrett-Jackson website for more information on the Tucker, we stumbled upon four other Ron Pratte-owned vehicles that will also be offered at Westworld during the weekend, beginning with the car pictured above: the 1947 Bentley Mark VI with coachwork by Franay. The Bentley was last offered for sale by Barrett-Jackson – at no reserve – at their 2006 Palm Beach auction, where the hammer fell at $1,728,000 (including buyer’s premium). At that sale, details of the Bentley were as follows:
4.5 Liter Inline 6 with a four-speed. Coachbuilt by Franay. Magnificent restoration to Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance winning standards. This is the first major winning Concours d’Elegance car after WWII. Winning the first two major Concours in 1948, back-to-back, on the 12th of June at Enghien and the 17th of June at Bois de Boulogne. Mr. Gudol, the original owner and visionary of the Franay, was an industrialist whose sole purpose was to prove to the world that France was not only back from the rigors of war, but ready to reassert its dominance of haute couture and automotive design elegance. The awards the Franay has won over the decades is proof of his timeless vision. Mr. Gudol, in his wisdom, continued to enhance and advance the performance capacity and design elements of the Franay to push the envelope of an ever improving competitive edge in Concours d’Elegance competition. Mr. Gary Wales, who has shepherded the Franay through over 50 major awards and honors since 1990, has scaled back the number of public appearances so that the car is currently eligible for any and all Concours d’Elegance events.
Like the Tucker, the Franay Bentley touts an undisclosed reserve.
Then there’s Pratte’s 1957 De Soto Adventurer convertible, again with an undisclosed reserve. Oft-repeated generic De Soto history aside, specific details provided by Barrett-Jackson state:
Powered by the famous 345/345hp Hemi V-8 with dual quads, an automatic transmission, push-button shifter on dash, and independent torsion bar front suspension. With the division’s top Hemi V-8 under the hood, the Adventurer was an early muscle car with a set of the most aesthetically pleasing tail fins ever seen on virtually any car.
The only two cars listed by Pratte without a reserve are this pair of 2007 Shelby GT500s, which are to be sold as a pair. Details per the auction site are identical for both Shelbys:
In January 2006 Ron Pratte bought the Ford Motor Company’s newest car, a 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 VIN 00001 that benefited Carroll Shelby’s Children’s Foundation. In the past, Ford reserved the first fifty cars produced for Ford family members and senior executives or by other people on a selective list. Ford was so grateful to Ron for his generosity, they offered him the opportunity to buy two more, VIN 00002 and VIN 00005. While Ron is keeping VIN 00001, he is selling the orange Coupe and matching convertible as a pair. The successful bidder will get both cars for one price. These cars are special in other ways as well, as part of the purchase of VIN 00001 was a trip to the Flat Rock assembly plant where these legendary cars are manufactured. At the end of the tour of the assembly plant, Ron was presented with the keys to VIN 00001, VIN 00002 and VIN 00005 by Carroll Shelby and Carroll autographed all three cars for Ron. Along with his cars were three other 2007 Shelby GT 5000′s, for Carroll Shelby, Steve Davis and Gary Bennett. Ron then threw Ford a curve and said he didn’t want any of these cars shipped by rail to the owners, he wanted them trucked, enclosed, to his facility in Chandler, Arizona, bypassing the traditional dealer delivery and inspections. All of the cars, including Carroll’s personal GT 500, were delivered to the respective owner this way. This is a unique opportunity to own two pieces of Shelby and Ford history.
Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale auction started Sunday and will run through this weekend. For more information, visit Barrett-Jackson.com.
It’s been a while since I’ve provided an update on the restoration of the 1975 fuel injectedVW bug that I’m project managing for a former workmate. So I thought I’d post of some details andsome pics.
The car is called a “Standard” – that doesn’t mean a manual shift (although it is a manual 3 speed), that means the most stripped down, no optioned, VW you could purchase. I’m talking interior door panels with a thin covering of fake leather over (almost as thin) cardboard. Rubber floor coverings (I wouldn’t even call them mats!!!), a headliner, cloth seats were the total of trim in side. There was no upholstery covering the rest of the interior – just painted metal. It did have an AM radio – which was replaced it a JVC.
Not much to the door panel.
Headliner and sun visors are about the only other upholstery, the rest is painted red like you see here.
In fact importation of these striped down models was halted shortly after about 100 here shipped to the US in 1975. This is one of the 100 allowed in. Pretty cool story.
This particular car belongs to June Yang and she purchased the car, brand new, while attending college in Iowa. The car lived in Iowa it’s entire life (until now) and it show’s signs of every winter too. The car had been stored for years and suffers from a severe case of rust and by all accounts shouldn’t able to sit up-right on four tires.
But like many folks, who love their V-dubs, June has a lot of memories tied to the rusted fenders, college, and other life milestones. So when she moved to Tucson, Az she thought of bring the Bug with her. She was advised that the car was not safe to drive down the driveway much less the block and certainly not 1/2 way across country!!! And that was an
understatement!!!!!
I met June when she came to work at the same establishment where I labored. I’m not a closet car guy and a visit to my office at that time it was pretty clear. Eventually she asked about having the car fixed and her desire to have it join her in Az was discussed and although I had no idea the exact condition. I helped arrange transportation to Tucson.
The goal was to get it here to some place that could get the car running (it wouldn’t start and brakes hadn’t been serviced in some time). In run condition, the thought was we could then running it around (save a few $$) to the various places I had planned to do the work. Unfortunately even running it wasn’t going to be safe enough to drive. See here<<<<>>>>
The transport had one bump when the driver’s truck died en route. The company immediately arranged for a local company to pick it up and finish the trip. I believe June called them every hour for updates. Eventually, the car showed up at my favorite auto repair shop and Tim Sisk gave me a call to come look the car over.
These pictures don’t nearly capture the condition this car, frankly I was taken back as well and I grew up driving a 1930-ish Ford stripped down pick-up that served as an alternate tractor on my grandfather farm, in upstate New York – no floor boards and the like. This VW was nearly eaten alive by oxidation.
Rust 1
Rust 2
And here's a little side view.
See the highlighted area? It's not attached. It should be. It holds the body to the frame!!
So are you saying WHAAAATTT???? Pretty much the standard response… but don’t fret….there’s a plan!!!
