2008 Motorama Showcases 1954 Pontiac Firebird I Car Review and Specs | 2008 Motorama Showcases 1954 Pontiac Firebird I Car Wallpaper Pictures Pics

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“I vividly remember the excitement,” said Chuck Jordan, retired GM Vice President of Design. “Motorama was elegant, spectacular and provided visitors a sneak peak into the future. People loved it. To GM, Motorama was a priceless experience. I believe the design of our Motorama cars had a profound influence on America’s golden era of Automobile design of the 1950’s and 1960’s”.

In concert with GM Concept vehicles including the Buick Invica and Cadillac CTS Coupe, the 2008 Motorama at Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance will illustrate GM Design’s past, present and future as global innovators.

“Today, our designers have returned to the creative spirit of Motorama with our newest concepts,” said Ed Welburn. “We’ve got our spirit back at Design – the proof is in our vehicles”.

Vehicles to be Featured

1939 Buick Y-Job

Alfred Sloan Jr. and Harley Earl redefined automotive design in 1937 with the inception of the industries first design institution - “GM Styling”. Charged with creating a “laboratory on wheels” the Styling Groups’ focused on advanced features to reduce the roof line, streamline the overall shape and make the vehicle “lower, longer and wider” as Harley Earl would say.

The result was the 1939 Buick Y-Job. The Y-Job became the automotive industries first concept “Dream Car” and Harley Earl’s daily driver. The Y-Job’s innovative designs are still inspiring auto designers today – most notably through the recent Buick Invicta Concept.

1951 LeSabre

By 1949, Harley Earl had discovered a fresh source for inspiration – the jet plane. Enamored by proportions and technology, Earl commissioned the LeSabre.

Like the aircraft it emulates, the LeSabre is made entirely of lightweight aluminum, fiberglass and magnesium. Jet inspired cues including rear fins impart dramatic styling and presence. The LeSabre also features the first ever wraparound windshield. The LeSabre became a traveling ambassador for GM overseas and remains amongst the most famous Motorama cars.

1951 XP 300

Envisioned by Charles Chayne, head of GM Engineering at the time, the Buick XP 300 was conceived as an experiment in styling and engineering. The lightweight aluminum body and skirted rear wheel openings make the XP 300 appear as if it is floating. Coupled with a high horsepower engine, Charles Chayne himself tested the XP 300’s performance by reaching more than 140 miles per hour during an engineering test run.

1953 Cadillac Le Mans

Fueled by the space race, designers channeled their passion for aerodynamics in everything from trains to pencil sharpeners. The 1953 Cadillac Le Mans is no different. With expressive fins, chrome plated grill and famous Daomar front bumpers, the Le Mans served as a preview for upcoming production Cadillac’s and a favorite on the Motorama show circuit.

Sold to actress Marie McDonnald, The first Le Mans show car was immediately redesigned to feature 24 karat gold plated trim, thirty coats of platinum dust to the body panels, as well as adding a radio-telephone and cocktail bar to the reupholstered red leather interior. Destroyed in a fire in 1985, only a handful of parts remain of the original LeMans showcar.

1953 Chevrolet Corvette

Intended never to be more than a show car, unanimous praise for the Corvette ensured the American sports car emerged from dream to driveway. Created to rival popular European sport cars, Harley Earl and his design team went from paper to mockup in less than eight months.

Intense consumer demand and interest moved Corvette production forward. While intended to be constructed from steel, designers and engineers re-engineered tools and plans move the fiberglass prototype to production instead. More than fifty years later, enthusiasts continue to appreciate the Corvette for its unique, lightweight fiberglass construction and design.

1954 Buick Wildcat II

While sharing little in common with its predecessor, the Wildcat I, the Buick Wildcat II was recognized as the sportiest Buick build in the 1950s. Chief Designer Ned Nichols described the wildcat II as an “American adventure in tomorrow’s design”.

Enamored by two-seater fiberglass cars, Ned Nichols and Harley Earl originally created the 1954 Buick Wildcat II with two spotlights. Re-interpreting tradition, the Wildcat displays Buick‘s trademark porthole design is uniquely placed on the top of the hood. Originally displayed in blue and later refinished in gold, this dream car featured expanded front wheel wells with polished metal inner fenders finished off with wide white wall tires. The Wildcat II continues to travel and evade the rumored fate of the 1955 Wildcat III assumed to have been destroyed in a wrecking equipment test.

1954 Firebird

Harley Earl freely admitted the Firebird I’s rocket-like body was inspired by the Douglas Skyray delta wing fighter jet. One on the greatest drivers of the day, Mauri Rose, piloted the Firebird I well into triple digit miles per hour at GM’s Arizona Proving Grounds. This was one concept with performance to back up its space age styling. The sound of the jet turbine engine and the bubble canopy inspired a whole generation of future astronauts of the highway.

1956 Buick Centurion

In his first car design, a young Chuck Jordan entered Motorama with style. The Buick Centurion featured an electric razor-like front grill and deeply recessed headlight pods. Aside from the transparent roof, the most outstanding design feature was the television camera mounted in the rear, which relayed a picture to a screen on the dashboard to replace the rear view mirror. Another feature was a dial in the center of the steering wheel which controlled the gear selections for the transmission. The Buick Centurion with its two tone paint made a dashing entrance for a future V.P. of Design.

1956 Firebrid II - Titanium

Firebird II was displayed on the opening day of the General Motors Technical Center in May 1956 and was the highlight of GM’s 1956 Motorama. This space age design featured an exotic all-titanium body which required heat application of 920 degrees Fahrenheit to simply work with. Rather than welding and burnishing the metal, Harley Earl and GM Research Laboratories developed an epoxy resin that could bond titanium to body framing without weld marks. Beyond the surface area, the Firebird II featured a fully automated guidance system to navigate the “superhighways of tomorrow”.

1958 Firebird III

The third in a series of gas turbine-powered experimentals, Harley Earl took his imagination to new places with his final dream car – the Firebird III. Harley Earl was quoted as saying “I envisioned an entirely different type of car which a person may drive to launching site of a rocket to the moon”. Under twin bubble tops, Mr. Early placed the first single stick vehicle control system which eliminated the conventional steering wheel, brake pedal, and accelerator. Utilizing an ultrasonic key, the Firebird’s large, butterfly doors opened via high frequency sound waves. With nine fins, the Firebird III remains the ultimate fin car.

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2008 Motorama Showcases 1954 Pontiac Firebird I Review

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