Thread: Grand National Roadster Show

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First off, I was not at the GNRS, so maybe I'm not qualified to speak on the subject....................but that never stopped me before. I have seen a lot of pictures posted elsewhere of this year's show and have come to the conclusion that I really could care less about lots of the cars displayed there. I also think the roadster that won Americas Most Beautiful Roadster is pretty ugly.

I think this show has turned into something that most people can not relate to. Yeah, there are lots of high dollar cars dressed in multi-thousand dollar paint jobs, but do they really interest any of you? Kinda reminds me of going to a Rolls Royce dealership and looking at the new models on the showroom floor........ all shiny and new,and very expensive, but who cares.

On the other hand, I have seen lots of pictures from the Suede Palace section and those cars were great. Most look like cars that could actually be driven, and be built in one of our garages. More like cars I would actually want to own.

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and that we all have opinions and all that stuff, but what do you think? Here are a couple of pictures of the winner.

Don

About the only thing I like is the color. I don't think there has ever been any fuel in the tank, just pushed on and off the trai;ler. I like my cars to be driven.
BradC

Originally Posted by BradC

About the only thing I like is the color. I don't think there has ever been any fuel in the tank, just pushed on and off the trai;ler. I like my cars to be driven.
BradC

this car was at detroit last year for the riddler , it has been started ,under its own power went forward , and backwards . then drained of fluids .
plus i agree i think the car is ugly and no style .
i think lobecks gold 40 was a better looking car .

I think it is obvious from the photos, that this car has a very high degree of craftsmanship. It also shares common traits with earlier winners, a degree of restyling, attention to detail, and of course a bold presentation. I would not call it ugly....unless you just don't like '32 highboys.....because it still has that classic shape and stance.

The problem for me is that it looks like "just another" '32 highboy, maybe a little shinier, and if I saw it at a show, all I would remember would be the seats......and that is not good!

In my personal opinion, I would say, the wheels are little too big, the seats are a negative, and the car lacks that "individual character" that I love to see. i.e. it needs something more...a simple, tasteful, but unique bit of styling or graphics, that would give is a memorable quality.

Remember, this would not be a winner if it did not attempt to show the public something out-of-the-ordinary. If "ordinary" were the requirement to win, the show promotoers would need about 10,000 trophies.

As far a "positives", I like the work on the interior side of the doors, and great craftsmanship is something I always admire. Also, gold is a "value color", which would be a logical choice if you want a quality appearance, but this light of a shade just looks like it's faded, or almost like beige, which is a "neutral color" lacking much personality.

Some people like to parrot the phrase "less is more"....but too much less is bad too. This car is competing for the most coveted prize in the history of hot rod show trophies. It should look like a car that deserves to be on top!

Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT

I think it is obvious from the photos, that this car has a very high degree of craftsmanship. It also shares common traits with earlier winners, a degree of restyling, attention to detail, and of course a bold presentation. I would not call it ugly....unless you just don't like '32 highboys.....because it still has that classic shape and stance.

The problem for me is that it looks like "just another" '32 highboy, maybe a little shinier, and if I saw it at a show, all I would remember would be the seats......and that is not good!

In my personal opinion, I would say, the wheels are little too big, the seats are a negative, and the car lacks that "individual character" that I love to see. i.e. it needs something more...a simple, tasteful, but unique bit of styling or graphics, that would give is a memorable quality.

Remember, this would not be a winner if it did not attempt to show the public something out-of-the-ordinary. If "ordinary" were the requirement to win, the show promotoers would need about 10,000 trophies.

As far a "positives", I like the work on the interior side of the doors, and great craftsmanship is something I always admire. Also, gold is a "value color", which would be a logical choice if you want a quality appearance, but this light of a shade just looks like it's faded, or almost like beige, which is a "neutral color" lacking much personality.

Some people like to parrot the phrase "less is more"....but too much less is bad too. This car is competing for the most coveted prize in the history of hot rod show trophies. It should look like a car that deserves to be on top!

once you see the car in person you will have a different view , and if the top is on..... WOW

and yes it is a 32 BUT , they have modified for the sake of change not to make the car better .

I am sure it "sparkles"! If it didn't, they would not have given him the award.

As harsh and rude as some internet personalities can be, nobody can deny that the cars that win this award are built to extreme levels of workmanship......though plenty of "self proclaimed experts" will disagree.

I was just offering some thoughts based on my own perception of the overall design.

I realized when I posted this that my views were coming from someone who couldn't turn out this degree of detail ever in his life, kinda like me criticizing Donald Trump for the way he conducts business. But, let's face it, we all do have our opinions of good/bad, pretty/ugly, etc. I like redheads, you like blondes..............

What turns me off about this car primarily are the Donk wheels and tires, and pretty much the overall bling bling look to it. Maybe the same was said in the old days when cars like Barris' Ala Kart won, because it was not a practical hot rod.

All I know is that I would have spent the majority of my time in the Suede Palace looking at all the neat cars on display there. But, that is just me........

Don

Originally Posted by Itoldyouso

Maybe the same was said in the old days when cars like Barris' Ala Kart won, because it was not a practical hot rod.

Some irony? The newly restored Ala Kart was just across the aisle from this....uh....car. And on some forums the whine is that the Ala Kart didn't win "as it should have"!

In a way there's nothing new here, depending on your view we've been down this road before. Through the late '60s, and into the '70s there were some winners of questionable taste. Exotic, spacey designs, psychedelic paint schemes, lots of froo froo...... For those of us that are more aligned with traditional style cars the light didn't shine again until 1978 when Phil Cool's '32 hiboy won the title (more irony? I heard his car was on display there this year as well). Fads come and go, and as kenny said, some stuff is done just for the sake of doing rather than for an artistic/stylistic/funtional purpose. Just like at the other end of the spectrum where some are tiring of the cookie-cutter, deep channeled, rusty sedan look (yawwwnnn!)

Anyway, here's a pic for kenny with the top on, sorry, best I could find so far.

Don, those comments were not pointed at anyone on this site. You guys are real gentlemen compared to other sites!

I have quit a couple of them, due to the rudeness. I think what bothers me the most is that it is tolerated by their moderators.

BTW...I like redheads AND blondes.....

......and brunettes, and bald women, and...

[QUOTE=HOTRODPAINT]Don, those comments were not pointed at anyone on this site. You guys are real gentlemen compared to other sites!

I knew that Jay...........you always go out of your way to make your points in the kindest way possible. I felt there would be people on both sides of this award, and maybe my term "ugly" was inappropriate too. Maybe "not my cup of tea" would have been better.

What did you guys think of this car? I think it is really sharp. Jay, just out of curiousity, what would a paint job like this cost, I mean on the frame, suspension, and all?

Don

[QUOTE=Itoldyouso]

Originally Posted by HOTRODPAINT

Don, those comments were not pointed at anyone on this site. You guys are real gentlemen compared to other sites!

I knew that Jay...........you always go out of your way to make your points in the kindest way possible. I felt there would be people on both sides of this award, and maybe my term "ugly" was inappropriate too. Maybe "not my cup of tea" would have been better.

What did you guys think of this car? I think it is really sharp. Jay, just out of curiousity, what would a paint job like this cost, I mean on the frame, suspension, and all?

Don

cost to paint something like this .... 80.000.00 pesos.

[QUOTE=Itoldyouso]

What did you guys think of this car? I think it is really sharp. Jay, just out of curiousity, what would a paint job like this cost, I mean on the frame, suspension, and all?

Don

Don, Great looking car! The cost?.....As they say...."It depends".

There are so many variables that it's hard to say. Is it "show quality", "street & show quality", how straight is it?.....or do I need a drum of bondo? Is there already paint on it? How much? Is it failing?, metal or 'glass work to be done?, etc, etc.

Something like this would probably be $2500 and up, plus materials.

[QUOTE=HOTRODPAINT]Don, those comments were not pointed at anyone on this site. You guys are real gentlemen compared to other sites!

I have quit a couple of them, due to the rudeness. I think what bothers me the most is that it is tolerated by their moderators.]


No intent here to side-track a good thread, but you're absolutely right, Jay. People here are much more civilized.

On another site I mentioned that I once had a very strong running Corvair Corsa with, among many other things, a four barrel. Some guy responded with "Scuse me, but Corsas came with four single throat carbs, not four barrels". Then another hammerhead chimed in with "obviously he (meaning me) don't know WTF he's talking about". (I interpreted this comment to mean that I had somehow strayed from the true course of rectitude).

Well, dang it, I know that. When I got the car the engine was disassembled and piled in the back seat. The whole intake system, including carburetors, was missing, so I bought a "spider" four barrel intake manifold from Clifford.

Then, on the same site, some young guy who was in the process of building up a Chrysler 413 from a motor home asked if there is anything different or unique about the motor home engine. Well, there are several differences, some of which make them unsuitable for extensive modification, so I listed them.

Then a guy jumps in the middle of me for discouraging the boy by telling him what he was attempting to do couldn't be done when he was well on the way to doing it. HUH?

Who was it that squawked at me? THE MODERATOR!

Apologies for sticking in this rant where it maybe shouldn't be.


Jim

Ken don't feel bad about not trophying, everyone on here knows your truck is a winner, both visually and engineering-wise. I've taken my T to two shows (aside from Turkey Run) and haven't trophied either, and that is ok. I tossed out a bunch of trophies that I won with my '27 when we moved our shop, because they were a pain to keep dusted.

Dan and I have talked about it. The cars that win are generally not what you or I would build for ourselves. We see it at show after show, the cars that win are done up so gaudy with over the top elements that I wouldn't want to own them. This isn't always true, but more often than not. Plus, shows are getting more attendance all the time, so it is hard to stand out in a crowd of 1000 or 2000 other cars.

What I really enjoy is what you mentioned Ken, the comments of other rodders who take the time to get down on their knees and take in all the little stuff you have done to your rod. I have had some very nice (sometimes embarrasingly so) comments from people who are nice enough to tell you how much they like your car. It is so much fun when someone asks you how you did some little aspect of the car, and/or tells you they are going to copy that on theirs. I;ve even seen one guy with a video camera running it all along the underside of my T, shooting up under the frame and floor.

As for People's Choice, that becomes a mixed bag too. The things the general public see as cool are usually the things we rodders snicker at. I have heard civilians make some of the strangest remarks about cars and the things that catch their attention (Oh look Harry, they have stuffed animals even in the trunk!! )

I also like cruises better than shows. You don't have to spend 8 hours in the sun and you can BS with lots of like-minded people in a more relaxed atmosphere.

Don

Well, I didn't sleep to well last night. I kept thinking about all the post in this thread and all the people who respond on this site. I'm going to try and respond more to treads, not that my input will help anyone more but just the friendships that develop from this place is amazing.
I can't wait for next years show, wait till those white glove, mirror laden judges see my new roadster!
Don, you are right on, the camaraderie in this sport and actually using these vehicles is the real fun.
I think I'm going to take a nap.
Ken