2012 Detroit Autorama Ridler Award Contenders More fun than the republican primary! Vote for your favorite below.   Can't get enough of the Autorama? Check out these other stories: -- Here's the winner! Skip ahead and see the Ridler Winner -- Damn Great, but Not Great 8 – Detroit Autorama’s Best -- Going Down – Basement Best at 2012 Detroit Autorama   It's about time. I've been grabbing photos from friends for long enough. It's time for a personal account of the hot rods and custom cars that make up the Detroit Autorama, especially the best of the best, the Ridler cars. For the 60th Anniversary of the Detroit Autorama, the competition is extra tough... Fact is, I couldn't figure out what cars were the "Great 8"!   Rules for the Ridler are pretty simple: The cars should show: Creativity, Engineering and Workmanship. (What they don't mention is that the winner typically shows all three of these in a way, most likely, never seen before or done in a way that'll cause mouths to hit the floor) Just a few other rules, the Ridler contenders must be showing for...

James Hetfield's 1937 Lincoln Zephyr Speechless. Hetfield showed two amazing rides at the 2012 Grand National Roadster Show. This is one. Unlike the photos I usually take, when I review them, I'm not moved like I was seeing the car first hand. Not, NOT true with this piece from photographer Tim Sutton with finishing by Coby Gewertz (of Church fame). Even more amazing? They were giving these away! Did you get one? So I asked Coby about the poster and how it was made. (Alert! Learning opportunity here...) Here's what Coby told me... Transforming a Hot Rod Photo: Rick Dore called and said he needed someone to design a poster for James' Zephyr in a hurry. I agreed to do it after hours from my day job under the condition that he had decent photography. It needed to be done in 3 days so they would have time to get it printed in time for the GNRS. He sent me 3 pics Tim Sutton had taken for Rod and Custom and away I went. I retouched all the reflections out of the car, added a new one, changed the...

Background and Details on the 2012 AMBR Winner How did editors and writers work before Google? I searched for some info on the man who started the 2012 America's Most Beautiful Roadster winning hot rod: Jack Howerton. I found this great video of "Jackie"  from back in the day: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUDD3gph8LM[/youtube] You can really see the expression of Jack's racing past in the AMBR car. Then, I found this great video by Cars.tv from the SoCal shop interviewing Pete Chapouris about the Indy Speedster following the shakedown runs. Needless to say, Pete likes it... [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cmFefotPwg[/youtube] So here it is: America's Most Beautiful Roadster: Bill Lindig's Indy Speedster If you missed them: Past Winners from the Grand National Roadster...

2012 AMBR Winner - The Indy Speedster Enjoy the pictures and for any picture, click on it to see the full-size image. America's Most Beautiful Roadster: Bill Lindig's Indy Speedster I got lucky, or was I good? I managed to find Houston's Bill Lindig while the crowds started pouring into the Fairplex on Friday of the 2012 Grand National Roadster Show. I asked for an interview and the gracious Bill did NOT say, "I'm waiting for Rodder's Journal". I started the interview by saying I think the "Indy Speedster" is this year's AMBR winner. Bill humbly replied, "If the other nine cars don't win, we will." Guess what Bill, you did it! The story of the Indy Speedster goes back 16 years. Bill's friend, Jack Howerton, is an Indy Car and sprint car driver - and builder as you can see - that wanted a race car inspired hot rod like the old sprint cars he used to drive. About 12 years ago, Jack had started the chassis, then the build kinda stalled a little, then Steve Moal from Moal Coachbuilders helped the project along, but when Bill saw it...

Ten Hot Rod Roadsters at Grand National Roadster Show 2012 It's time for you to decide... Vote for your favorite below. The Grand National Roadster Show is the best west coast hot rod and custom car show. Anyone want to argue that? Did you come here looking for the winning roadster? Winner! 2012 America's Most Beautiful Roadster - click here Start with 10 of the finest roadsters competing for the America's Most Beautiful Roadster award, then get surrounded by every other kind of hot rod, street rod and custom... But there's more! Lowriders, some sports cars and motorcycles join the show, too. With two cars competing for this year's AMBR from Texas and one down from Idaho and another from Oklahoma, it's safe to say the SoCal and western build crews are bringin out the big guns for a shot at hot rod's biggest trophy. It's gonna be a tough call on which roadster wins... what do you think? Cast your vote, but don't worry, there's never any politics with this award... Enjoy the pictures and for any picture, click on it to see the full-size image. America's Most...

Hot Rods and Custom Cars at 2012 GNRS in Pomona, CA If you're looking for the "America's Most Beautiful Roadster" Pictures Click here. Just in case you can't make it to the Grand National Roadster Show this weekend, MyRideisMe.com is bringing the show to you! Of course, if you're anywhere near Pomona, California we'd suggest you make it out in person. GNRS is running from January 27th-29th at the Pomona Fairplex. Besides showcasing a dozen of the highest-quality show roadsters you've ever seen, competing for the AMBR Award, Grand National's also has many other exhibit halls with some of the best looking customs, classics, lowriders, and more! To start things off, is James Hetfield's 1937 Lincoln Zephyr. If this auburn beauty looks familiar, its because it's the cover feature of the fresh-off-the-press Rod & Custom. With more custom features than we can name, it's conception was at the Grand National Roadster Show - so it's only fitting that it be on display here for you to drool all over. It didn't take us long to get to one of our favorite halls, the Suede Palace where this golden El...

2012 Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, CA Here's a short, top five must-do checklist of things to do when you're at the show: 1) Find it! And know your way around. Access to Gate 9 Parking from I10 traveling West and from I10 traveling East Then, a map of the Pomona Fairplex where the show is: The layout of the show changes every year, somewhat, except for the America's Most Beautiful Roadster contending cars are always in building 4 and the Suede Palace (which is building 10) a good place to stop as you enter the show. For cost info, show hours and the other boring details, go to Rodshows.com info page. 2) See the 12 Contenders for America's Most Beautiful Roadster 2011 America's Most Beautiful Roadster This is the 2011 winning 1934 Roadster owned by Daryl Wolfswinkel and built by Squeeg's Kustoms in Chandler, AZ. Here's the 2008 to 2011 AMBR winners. Can't wait? Here's the 2012 AMBR Winner! The 12 AMBR Contenders are some of the best hot rods you'll ever see... all with no roll-up windows as a true roadster must be. Need to know more...

Timeless 1951 Ford Victoria Ford or Chevy? The oldest rivalry in American car history and one most can easily tell you which side of the line they stand on. For Ameth Gonzales it was on the bow tie’s sidelines until he laid eyes on the 1951 Ford Victoria Hardtop. Ameth picked up the Vicky in Arcadia, CA back in 2002 and despite it being just over 50 years old at the time, it only had two previous owners. Better yet, the body was straight with no signs of any major accidents or rust which made it a perfect platform for a full restoration. Several features of the 51 drew Ameth to the 1951 Ford Victoria. For starters, 1951 was the first year Ford produced a hardtop and the three-piece window in the rear adds a graceful accent to the simple yet flowing bodylines. Then, the single chrome spear running the length of the body has always been a revered styling cue of the early 50’s Ford Shoebox. Once Ameth got the Vicky back to Fresno the restoration was quickly underway. However, with three coats of paint standing between him...

51 Chevy Custom SoCal Cruiser Two staples of Southern California are its top notch custom car scene and its abundance of sun-drenched females with golden hair. So what better way to showcase one of SoCal’s most recognizable custom Chevys, Ian Berky’s Minor Threat, than with quintessential SoCal Beauty Tara Studinger. With several famous early 50's Chevys produced in SoCal where the culture’s roots spawned, owner/builder Ian Berky has managed to redefine what was possible and raise the bar for any post-war era Chevys that follow. Even more impressive, this was Ian’s first crack at it! Imagine what any future builds may have in store... The Chevy was a Christmas gift from Ian’s wife, proof that yes, there are still good ones out there to help fill the garage, not complain about whats in it. When she bought the car the roof had already been chopped, but Ian would soon learn the chop was a hack job and the work that lay ahead would have caused most to throw in the towel. Eventually coming to the realization the top just was not replaceable, Ian tracked down a few parts cars...

1954 Chevy Pickup -Chopped and Dropped Author and Photographer: Mike Harrington Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. A truck is a truck, right? It’s meant for only one thing, to be beat to death on the local farm or sentenced to a life of hard labor. If only the designers of the ’54 Chevrolet truck could see how this one fared the test of time. They just might pass a peach pit. There’s a nifty little story attached to this former hay hauler and it all began south of the border and we’re not referring to the Mason Dixon line. Decades ago Mateo San Martin, living in Mexico, pieced this truck together one part at a time. Almost like that Johnny Cash song and just like the hot rodders here in the USA - a scrounged part here and there over a span of time had the truck all back and working again. Only this truck wasn’t built for any aesthetic reasons, it was built to handle life’s daily chores and experience more hard labor. But things don’t always work out the way they were intended... sometimes...

Flat Black 51 Chevy Deluxe Cruiser Author and Photographer: Mike Harrington We have all heard the expression. “I'm going to beat you till your black and blue”. I don’t know about you, but anyone I’ve ever seen with a black eye or a serious bruise, the bruise looks more black and green. Kind of like this here ‘51 Deluxe custom owned by Dead Sleds member Crow and his wife Adrianna. Now before you splatter your drawers thinking “not another black primered car!” Throttle back for moment and take our word for it... This suede sleds body work is smoother than a velvet Elvis under a black light while puffing a cigarette packed with Mexican hay. Many times a black sled will be bathed in apocalyptic black to hide the flawed body work. However, during the construction process of Crows blacktop bruiser he and club member Cepe spent a year massaging the metal on the ’51 Chevy bringing her back to life. That massaging came in the form of shaving all the prickly protrusions from the body of the Chevy. Some prefer to call them emblems and door handles, we’ll...

1933 Ford Hot Rod Pickup Author and Photographer: Mike Harrington No doubt about it, this little hot rod pickup has it in spades, unlike many of the flash in the pan gow jobs running the city streets. Gary Culmer’s ’33 pick-em-up was built with design, purpose, and reason. Purpose and reason: two themes that echoed through Culmer’s mind as he salvaged what was left of this leprous ’33 Ford cab. What was the purpose or reason of having a pickup truck that could haul nothing? It was his goal to have a functional truck that could haul engine blocks, axles, and other discarded Detroit iron. Starting with a discarded Model AA frame from a 1929 1 ½ ton truck would not be the first choice of most builders, however Culmer was undaunted. The AA frame was shortened 18-inches, and then Z’d 6-inches in the back while the front was given a 3-inch sweep and boxed. A one inch dropped Model A cross member was added to the front and finally a tow hitch was added to the rear bumper. The bed of this former hay hauler is actually from...