The General Motors Corvette Assembly Plant was packed full of community and state leaders, GM officials, media and supporters of Corvette today in hopes of good news with regards to the future of Corvette and Bowling Green. It was good news indeed as GM North American President Mark Reuss took to the podium and announced their plans to invest $131 million in the Bowling Green Assembly Plant, "This facility is particularly thrilling for me to be at because I've had Corvettes, in fact, Corvette is one of the reasons why I went to work for the company a long time ago," said Reuss.
"It's a thrill for me to be here today in Bowling Green as the bearer of good news at one of our very best facilities building" our most iconic car," Reuss said. "When I say our most iconic car, I really mean America's most iconic car."
Reuss then cut to the chase and made the announcement everyone had been hoping for, "I'm here to announce that GM will invest $131 million in Kentucky to ensure that the next generation Chevrolet Corvette will be produced by this team, in this plant, in Bowling Green - the Home of Corvette.
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TRW is known for supplying the automotive industry worldwide with a broad line of engine, steering, chassis, and general components – from valves and steering gears, to seat belts and ignitions parts for original equipment and replacement markets. In 1983, TRW was noticed for their one of a kind calendar production which highlighted a great collection of rare automobiles and unique personality prints illustrated by artist James B. Deneen.
The first automobile featured on the calendar was designed by Milton Reeves of Reeves Pulley Company, who designed several unparalleled automobiles including the eight-wheeled 1911 Reeves Octoauto. Mr. Reeves modified a standard four door Overland adding an extra axle at both ends of the vehicle. The forward pair of rear wheels was the driving wheels while the steering mechanism geared the front pair of wheels to turn at slightly greater angle. The automobile was shown at the inaugural Indianapolis 500 held in 1911. The car was over 20 feet long! Mr. Reeves claimed that by having eight tires that each tire would have more longevity.
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The Packard Standard Eight 633 offered seven body types. The new Packard Standard Eight offered new luxuries and a number of mechanical improvements that made them most outstanding. The 1929 fiscal year was a record year for the Packard Motor Car Company. Net sales were approximately $107,542,000 while net profit was $25,912,000. Both the net sales and net profit figures were the highest ever and the company's unprecedented sales volume had demanded further plant expansion in a complex which already contained seventy-nine buildings (The Packard building still stands today).
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When FAST™ made the decision to jump into the performance intake manifold market in early 2002; it took nerve, a lot of “know how” and enormous investments of time, money and engineering talent. However, to the company, the risk was worth it. After all, as the saying goes – build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door.
Due to the nature of the electronics business FAST™ has always been on the cutting edge of innovation, so the idea of going into the intake manifold business seemed to fit. And in the end, what resulted from the monumental gamble was a grand slam with the creation of the LSX™ Intake Manifold. This groundbreaking intake took the market by storm and raised the science and technology of intake manifold creation to an unprecedented level.
Superior Glass Works today introduced their new 1937 Chevy S10 Body Kits that permit the installation of their ’37 Chevy fiberglass bodies on a donor S10 pickup truck frame. The 1937-38 Chevy Cabriolet body is very true to the original, rare, design with a mildly chopped windshield and enhanced with a coupe deck lid or the optional rumble seat. Their 1937-38 Chevy Sedan Delivery body has several modifications including a chopped top and the addition of longer, coupe doors. Both have been very popular for many years, and now have been re-engineered so they can be mounted to a modified 1983-2002 S-10 pickup donor chassis. The original body lines and dimensions are retained, so no compromise was made in the looks of these classic street rods. Ideal for the street rodder who can’t find an original ’37-‘39 Chevy frame for one of these bodies, or one who wants to save a few dollars while putting together a nice driving street rod.
Carroll Shelby is an icon of the automotive world. For over 50 years his name has served as a virtual synonym for the term “automotive performance.” Shelby began his career as a race car driver and before being forced to retire due to health reasons, won the prestigious 1959 24 Hours of LeMans driving for Aston Martin. Although he was twice named Sports Illustrated’s Driver of the Year (1956 and 1957) he is much better known worldwide for his work in his second career as an automobile builder. From his first project that combined the British built two-seat AC Bristol with a Ford V8 to create the “Cobra,” to his current partnership with Ford, Shelby has always had his sights set on building the ultimate American sports car. Along the way he has created a long line of popular and extremely successful street and race vehicles bearing the names Cobra, Daytona Coupe, GT40, GT350 and GT500 Mustangs and the Chrysler Omni GLHS.
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In an era when American motorsport was brimming with larger-than-life characters, California racer Bill Thomas was a giant. Founder of Bill Thomas race Cars and creator of the Cheetah road racers famous for taking on Shelby’s Cobras, Thomas was a visionary innovator whose talents earned him a direct pipeline to Chevrolet’s racing skunkworks, a connection that in 1965 gave Thomas instant access to the factory’s new 396/427 CI “porcupine” engines. To promote the new powerplant, Thomas bought a used 1963 Chevy Nova into which he installed a lightweight tubular front subframe, a straight tube axle, leaf springs and a fiberglass flip front end. The project served as the prototype for a kit that became popular with the Nova racer who wanted to turn his little Chevy into a drag strip terror, and the finished car became known as the “Novel Nova” after the title of a Hot Rod magazine feature story by tech editor Jim McFarland.
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One of the oldest streets in Detroit, Michigan is Woodward Avenue. Woodward Avenue was named after Augustus B. Woodward, a Detroit connection since 1805. Woodward Avenue was designed to be the most important street which connects with GrandRiver, Gratiot, and Jefferson. This planning was done by Judge Augustus Woodard back in the early days when Detroit was a healthy economic base and investment capital for the emerging automobile industry.
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Zeb Morris came by his love of cars late in life, but once ignited, his passion burned bright. After a career selling medical supplies and building a cattle ranching operation with his wife Mary, Zeb decided at the age of 67 to retire and relax. Friends introduced him to the world of performance Pontiacs at such events as the Tri Power Nationals, the GTO National Convention in Dayton, Ohio and other venues, where he met the Pontiac crowd and was bitten by their passion.
In just eighteen months, Zeb had erected a dedicated building, populated it with vintage signs and collected over 30 of the finest Tri Power convertibles and Ram Air Judge GTOs in the country. The Zeb Morris Collection soon became widely acknowledged as one of the best Pontiac collections in the world. Zeb collected other make as well; he loved them all, and he enjoyed meeting and greeting all the car folks who dropped by to visit him and see his collection.
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The California Automobile Museum opens their newest rotating exhibit, American Muscle on April 9th, 2011. American Muscle celebrates Detroit's 1960s glory days of speed, sound, and style, when lightweight, mid-sized cars with big engines tore up American roads. The exhibit captures the colorful history of the muscle car, from its origins (whether you believe that was in 1964, 1955, or even 1938) to its sudden demise in the economy-conscious 1970s.
The exhibit will feature classic muscle cars including a 1964 Pontiac GTO, a 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS454, and a 1970 Plymouth Superbird, among others, and will run from April 9th through July 10th, 2011.
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