We contributed an article and some photos about the recent SEMA Show held in Las Vegas, Nevada to our Canadian friends at www.mystarcollectorcar.comÂ
It’s always nice to share ideas, thoughts and car shows with others. You can check out the article here. The website posts a new article every day and never spams you. So check them out if you want a Northern perspective on car shows! Frankly sometimes, it is hard to realize that they are writing from Canada.
Take a 2008 Harley Davidson Dyna Street Bob motorcycle, add huge amounts of ingenuity, imagination and innovation and blend with over 3,000 hours of labor and you might end up with this homage to the ever popular 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air. This red beauty was seen at the SEMA (Specialty Equipment Marketing Association) show held in Las Vegas, Nevada last week.
57 Chevy Bel Air
The 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air is an iconic look from the 50’s. Any enthusiast will easily recognize the front chrome bumper, the bullets on the hood, the swoopy aluminum molding along the sides and the wild fins and rear tail lights of the 57. It is ironic that these styling features were only found on the 57 and none of the other Chevy years. For the tri-five years, (1955-1957) Chevrolet altered the appearance and styling of their vehicle. Try re-tooling a car line now like that every year!
Close Up of Rear End View
LUPO Racing
The builder, LUPO Racing, was from France and brought over this interesting takeoff on the iconic ’57 Chevy Bel  Air. The builder/owner used the styling cues from the Chevy “fins” for his rear end and actually utilized the rear tail light to accentuate the rear view. The exhaust exits through the rear end’s light housing. Originally Chevrolet had thought of using the same idea for their cars, but the exhaust left a residue on the chrome which stopped that concept from going to production.  He also used the “chrome Dagmar’s”  from the Chevy’s front bumper to help carry off the theme. Add in some Chevy emblems and badging and mix up some great imagination, and you end up with one sweet look. Famed motorcycle builder Arlen Ness handiwork was even  used for the engine cover.
SEMA Show
This motorcycle parked in front of the SEMA Show, where anybody could walk by and admire the handiwork. To top it off, the builder/owner drove it out of the SEMA Show on the Friday night Cruise. The bike caught the eye of Hot Rod Magazine, who was at the cruise too. Here’s their closeup of the motorcycle.
The bike had been featured in two writes up in bikenet.com previously as well. Part One featured the frame and Part Two looked at the rear tail light housing.
You’ve got to admire the craftsmanship of the builder and the expense of carting it over to the states to be seen for one week here in Las Vegas!
Congratulations to the trade school WyoTech that brought out a 1964 Ford F100 that was given a roadster treatment by a band of their students over an eight month period. Because half of the school day is spend in classes, away from the machines, that really equates to a four-month frame on build.
Student workmanship
The students chopped off the top, making it a roadster. One student made the renderings for the “pickup” and all the students worked on various parts of the car from the body work, to even the final trim and upholstery.
It was on display by WyoTech at the SEMA show being held in Las Vegas this week, from November 5-8, 2013. Nice job by the students and good to see the future of rodding is in good hands. And nice job by the faculty staff doing the training, and inspecting.
Driver’s side view
Front end view
Rear end view of Roadster
Interior view of upholstery job
Hood down view
The truck received continuous stares, admiring glances and positive comments.
This year’s SEMA Awards for the top trending vehicle models in four categories were announced on Tuesday November 5, 2013 at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The Ford Mustang was named Hottest Car, the Scion FR-S took the Hottest Sport Compact honors, the Ford F-Series won Hottest Truck and the Jeep Wrangler received the Hottest 4×4-SUV award.
I was pulling for the Chevy Silverado and the Corvette Stingray, so I guess I struck out; there but no complaints with the Scion FR-S and Jeep Wrangler winning.
Dare to be Different
One of the fun parts of SEMA, is the over the top, just because I can, attitude of many of the cars. Enough said
At the world’s largest convention of automotive aftermarket parts and accessories, the SEMA Show –Specialty Equipment Market Association – one of the highlights is the Chevrolet display; and the chance for a sneak preview at the Media Party held on Monday night before SEMA opens.
Besides catching up with various executives and seeing some great cars, Chevrolet brings in a few celebrities to spice up the night. Fortunately these celebrities have straight connections to the cars featured at this press event.
This year NASCAR racers Ricky Carmichael (and AMA racer and X Games champ) and Jeff Gordon were there to delight the crowds. Some of the featured cars were:
Ricky Carmichael’s Chevy All-Activity Sonic concept
The All-Activity Sonic concept was introduced by Carmichael and had a cold air induction, a lowered suspension and enhanced braking.Spark EV Tech Performance concept
Ricky Carmichael’s Sonic
Chevy Spark EV Tech Performance concept
Chevy “powered up†this all-electric tire smoking mini-car, the Spark, with an instant on 400 lb-ft of torque –http://route66pubco.com/wp-admin/post-new.php more than the classic 1969 Camaro SS muscle car with a 350 V-8 – for exhilarating acceleration. It can go from 0 to 60 mph in only 7.5 seconds.
Amped up Chevy Spark
2014 Chevy COPO
It seems that Chevrolet always has a new version of the legendary COPO drag cars for SEMA, and they didn’t disappoint this year with a light blue version. Very well designed and ready for the drag strip as is. This year will feature new front and rear fascia and be limited to the fabled 69 cars.
2014 COPO Camaro
Gran Turismo C7 Corvette Stingray
A flat blue Corvette that will be featured in the latest version of Playstation’s Gran Turismo was promoted. All week at the Chevy display show goers will be able to play an advanced version of the game.
Corvette Stingray from Gran Turismo
Restored 1978 pick up
This truck was a restored beauty and featured a new crate engine package from Chevy. The E ROD 5.3 L package is a plug and play emissions compliant powertrain.
Restored Chevy Pickup with E ROD power
Jeff Gordon’s SS
His SS came with a red satin (flat) finish was an awesome car with subtle power touches. A LS3 engine and a 6 speed automatic transmission were the power plant for the SS.
Red Satin SS from Jeff Gordon
2014 Camaro Z28
The road worthy Z/28 in all black was released at this event. Featuring Brembo brakes, less weight and a LS7 engine helps make this track car a worthy competitor and lives up to its namesake.
Black Z/28
Transformers 4
Three cars from the 2014 Transformer movie were on hand to be admired; a new Bumble Bee Camaro, a Sonic and bright Green Corvette Stingray
Green Transformer StaingrayTransformer 4 Bumble Bee CamaroChevy Sonic from Transformer 4
Good times, good cars, good people. SEMA cranks up in full power mode in a few hour son Tuesday November 5th. More details at Chevy Performance.
SEMA – the Specialty Equipment Market Association – show starts officially on Tuesday November 5, 2013 in Las Vegas. Car Nirvana is spread over 2 million square feet of interior space and even more cars are positioned outside. I figured if Hot Rod Magazine can prediction what the SEMA 2013 will highlight, I can predict too.
Predictions for SEMA
I’ll be more modest and only give you five trends to be spotted at SEMA this year.
Prediction #1
Car of the Year – Has to be the Corvette Stingray. This is the after-market convention after all and there has been no more pent-up demand, than seeing the Corvette C7 hit the streets.
Corvette Stingray
Prediction #2
Flat is back. We’ve seen variations of flat paint jobs in the past, and that trend is going to explode. Both from the mainstream manufacturers but also the specialty shops. And contrary to some opinions, it takes as much prep work on a car body to spray it flat as it does for the shiny clear coats.
Prediction #3
Step up the transmissions. Used to be standard to row through four speeds, but not that Detroit is issuing out sheet metal with 7 speed transmissions to help up the EPA gas mileage, so will the aftermarket.
Sweet Trucker
Prediction #4
Truck of the year? Got to be the Chevrolet Silverado. Demand is back up for trucks, that’s where the money is and that’s where General Motors has hit a home run. It might be apolitical to have two winners from the same manufacturer, but the Silverado deserves it!
Prediction #5
Retro is back with a passion. Clothing, accessories, and cars will all be showing an old fashioned look. Woodies, rat rods, salt wagons will all be highly visible.
Stayed tuned and we’ll see how many of these predictions you might agree with after Friday and the show wraps up.
The Mecum Auction concluded their Chicago area auction last week, with the big seller being a 1963 Corvette originally gifted by General Motors to their famed car stylist Harley Earl.
Harley Earl
Harley J. Earl
Harley J. Earl spent thirty years with General Motors and retired as the Vice President of Design. He left a lasting mark during this iconic era, including working on the special Motorama era cars, concept cars, stylish sports coupes (hardtops) and two toned paint jobs with outrageous fins. His 1938 Buick Y Job is actually considered the first “concept” car produced from Detroit.
1938 Buick Y-Job concept car
A little known fact is that the Daytona 500 NASCAR trophy is named the Harley J. Earl Trophy; showing the impact this designer had in automotive circles.
1963 Corvette
While titled as a 1963, it has several touches from the 1965, like 4 wheel disc brakes, and many one-off designs including a set of custom gauges in the passenger pod. The exhaust pipes coming out the side cove is also a unique touch. It has a 327 power plant and the requisite four speed. It generally is suspected to be a mule (or test car) and hence even rarer and more valuable. The car was originally destined for the Chicago Car Show. but then re-deployed as well deserved thanks to an automotive icon.
Past Sales
This Corvette doesn’t seem to stay in one collection for long. Mecum sold it in 2010 for $925,000, and previously in 2009 for $985,000 and it was also sold by Barrett-Jackson in 1999 for $145,000 (all prices are listed without buyer’s premium).
Mecum Auction results for Chicago
During the three days of car selling frenzy, covered by Velocity TV, 965 cars were offered up for sale with 615 hammered sold (that is nearly a 65% selling rate) with over $18 million in sales. Like most auctions many cars are offered on “reserve” meaning if the bid doesn’t reach a certain set amount, the car is not sold.
Front End View 1963 Corvette
Side view of 1963 Harley Earl Corvette
Custom set of gauges for Passenger Side of 63 Corvette
Side View of Harley Earl’s 1963 Corvette
Unique side exhaust on Harley Earl’s Corvette
Harley Earls’s Corvette
So what do you think? Did the buyer get a deal?
Photos courtesy of Mecum Auctions and Barrett-Jackson Auction
At last count four cars from the Lambrecht Chevrolet Auction held last week, have surfaced on the Internet for resale. You had to figure some local shops would take advantage of their location and opportunity to flip a car. Of course all these cars are now prominently featuring their connection to the Lambrecht Chevrolet dealership, and sold through VanDerBrink Auctions.
Chevy’s Now for Sale
One seller found out that his 1969 Kingswood Station Wagon had too much rust in the frame to be unsalvageable. I’m guessing if the car had flat tires and laid down on the dirt, rust would be inevitable. Now is the time to see if someone needs just the parts and cut your losses.
1969 Chevy Kingswood Station Wagon went for $900
A 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air is being offered with a $25,000 asking price. Good profit if it sells, since it was bought at auction for $18,000. It’s a cute car but when the seller/dealer advertises it as a 150/210 AND a Bel Air Hardtop I guess you’d have to do some more research.
1959 Chevrolet sold for $18,000
A 1957 Chevy suffers the same identity problem, advertised as a 150/210 and Bel Air. So unless Johnny Cash had a hand in it, I’m guessing it is only one of those three models – and based on the VIN I’d wager it is the 210 sedan version with four doors, which is two doors too many for my taste.
4 door 1957 Chevrolet sold for $7,000
Olds too!
And not just Chevy’s are being flipped. One seller is offering a 1964 Oldsmobile Jet Star 88 two door hardtop for sale. This seller cleared off some if the dirt and dust, but you can’t deny it is rough.
1964 Olds Jet Star 88 hammered sold for $5,300
Lots of people have looked at these cars and the prices paid and scratched their head. The mileage is relatively low for fifty + year old cars, but they are in rough shape; even the “flippers†haven’t generally tried to start or verify the running condition. In this shape, you can try to get them in running condition and then enjoy the look and notoriety. But if you were planning on a full out restoration you better open that checkbook wide and start adding some zero’s, because lots of parts are missing and torn up.
Flipping Cars
I have mixed feeling on flippers. They serve a purpose and I’m all for making a buck. For someone who didn’t want to bid on line and couldn’t make it out to Pierce, Nebraska, they can still buy a rusty Chevy. I just think that these flippers needlessly raised the prices up and now need even more of a price increase in order to make a profit.
What do you think, are flipper’s a miracle or menace?
The VanDerBrink Auction of the Lambrecht Collection of classic Chevrolet’s is a week old and reality is crashing through the buying fever. The crowds have departed Pierce, Nebraska and we can now look more analytically at the cars and prices paid.
VanDerBrink Workmanship
The auctioneers at VanDerBrink did a great job in organizing these cars and gave fairly valid descriptions of the cars. Some were mislabeled as Bel Air models but all auction houses note that descriptions are guides and not to be relied on. With this many cars, some minor issues are bound to occur and VanDerBrink did a great job keeping the crowd orderly and advancing. Plus the sellers, the Lambrecht’s, must be happy with the outcome and know their name will be now known in collector circles for years to come.
1955 Chevrolets sold at the Lambrecht Auction
Let’s look at the 1955 Chevrolet’s in detail this time. The 1955 was the beginning of the “tri-five†series from 1955-1957. There were ten Chevrolet cars sold during the two days of the auctions for this model year. The cars come in three variations, the bare bones 150, a slightly sexier 210 and the fully duded out Bel Air. The VIN’s shown by VanDerBrink helped decipher which model was which and with what engine. All these cars were high mileage survivors and presumably trade-ins to Lambrecht Chevrolet. All ten cars are in rough condition and will need some extensive body and mechanical work, or kept in
a survivor mode. Remember they can only be original once!
All prices will have a buyer’s premium of 5-10% added to the listed price, based on whether the bidder was on site or not.
Sales
For the 1955 model year, six sold cars were four doors and four were the more in demand 2 doors; both a hardtop and a sedan. While perhaps more practical if you are planning on using the rear seat often, the reality is the 2 doors are always more in demand in the collector market and generally higher priced when restored. The 2 door sedan (post) went for $5,750 and the hardtop went for $9,000. There were no high dollar sales for this year with the range being from $12,000 to $1,800. The ten cars sold for an average of under $5,200  Plus none of these cars were the low or no  mileage; sold on MSO (Manufacturer’s Statement of Origin) paperwork instead of state title; which indicates that Lambrecht Chevrolet didn’t have any trouble selling those models when new!
At least at these prices, the cars are going to loving homes and not being chopped up for their body parts. Or are they…check out a future blog article.
The VanDerBrink Auction of the Lambrecht Collection of classic Chevrolet’s is nearly a week old and the buying fever has subsided. The crowds have departed Pierce, Nebraska and we can now look more analytically at the cars and prices paid.
Aerial view of Lambrecht Auction site
1956 Chevrolet
Let’s look at the 1956 Chevrolet’s in detail this time. The 1956 was in the middle of the three years of the oft referred “tri-five†series from 1955-1957. There were seven Chevrolet cars sold during the two days of the auctions for this model year. The cars come in three variations, the bare bones 150, a slightly sexier 210 and the fully duded out Bel Air. The VIN’s shown by VanDerBrink helped decipher which model was which and with what engine. One unit was a 210 station wagon. All these cars were high mileage and presumably trade-ins to Lambrecht Chevrolet. All seven cars are in rough condition and will need some extensive body and mechanical work, or kept in a survivor mode. Remember they can only be original once!
Lambrecht Chevrolet 1956 2 door sedan
All prices will have a buyer’s premium of 5-10% added to the listed price based on whether the bidder was on site or not.
Lambrecht Sales
For the 1956 model year, five were four doors, with the above mentioned station wagon and a 2 door sedan also selling. While perhaps more practical if you are planning on using the rear seat often, the reality is the 2 doors are presently more in demand in the collector market and generally higher priced when restored. The 2 door sedan (post) went for $14,500. On Saturday, when more of the high value cars sold from the Lambrecht Collection a 4 door hardtop went for $30,000.
$30,000 selling price for 4 door 1956 hard top
The fact that the auction didn’t have any of the more popular versions of the 1956 model year, suggests that if Lambrecht had accepted those models as trade in they were sold long ago. Plus none of these were the low or no  mileage; sold on MSO (Manufacturer’s Statement of Origin) instead of state title; which indicates that Lambrecht Chevrolet didn’t have any trouble selling those models when new! The average price for the seven cars was just over $7,900 and only three cars went for over $5,000.
Lambrecht’s 1956 station wagon interior
At least at these prices, the cars are going to loving homes and not being chopped up for their body parts. Or are they…check out a future blog article.
Photos – Courtesy of VanDerBrink Auctions
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