Body mods included a chopped top, suicide-style doors, extended rear fenders and skirts, pie-cut hood, smooth running boards, and Mercedes headlights, with two-tone Prowler Copper and Chrysler Pewter paint finishing things off. The foundation included a custom frame with TCI suspension and Ride-Tech springs, along with an incredibly detailed Lincoln V12 equipped with rare speed parts, fed by triple carbs, and backed by a C4 transmission. Inspired by Terry Cook’s radical Lincoln Zephyr known as “Scrape,” Mike Shiflett worked with Tim’s Hot Rods to create this sleek and refined custom ’38 Zephyr coupe. MIKE & LINDA SHIFLETT 1938 LINCOLN ZEPHYR COUPE The car has traded hands several times since 2001 and is now in the Matranga Collection alongside our 2020 America’s Most Beautiful-winning ’55 Chevy cover car. The full-fendered beauty was built by Mike’s Street Rods and featured an LS engine, 4L60E transmission, Boyd Coddington wheels, a DuVall-inspired windshield, and a beautiful tan leather interior by Gabe’s Custom Upholstery. Nick Barron bought one of each and had them built into matching red rods. They sold 20 in total – 10 highboys, and 10 fendered roadsters. Kugel Komponents ushered in the new Millennium by offering exclusive Muroc roadster packages consisting of stylized steel bodies built by Marcel DeLay paired with custom Kugel chassis featuring independent front and rear suspensions. It involves solid engineering, well-considered design, and excellent craftsmanship – elements that will always be beautiful. That makes sense, because beauty is more than skin deep for cars of this caliber. Like other recent retrospectives we’ve done, it’s impressive to see how relevant many of these cars still look today – they really hold up. Since we’re showcasing Bob Matranga’s 2020 BASF America’s Most Beautiful ’55 Chevy this month, we thought it made sense to review AMBSR winners from the past two decades and see the path that has led to the style showcased in today’s top rides. It’s now known as the BASF America’s Most Beautiful award and retains its emphasis on being primarily a beauty contest. While the original award description specified that contenders must be pre-’49 vintage, in 2020 Goodguys decided to change the criteria to allow all street rods, trucks, customs, street machines, and muscle cars through 1987 to compete. Winning builders have included such names as Foose, Moal, Burman, and Roadster Shop. Former Ridler Award and America’s Most Beautiful Roadster winners are often among the mix of candidates, and premier builders from across the country frequently make the trek west to vie for this exclusive honor. Simply put, it has always been considered a straightforward beauty contest, where refinement, build quality, finesse and flash go a long way toward securing victory.įor two decades, the America’s Most Beautiful Street Rod contest has consistently drawn a strong crop of contenders to the West Coast Nationals every August. The Goodguys America’s Most Beautiful Street Rod honor was clearly developed to emphasize the aesthetic side of street rodding. There have historically been two sides to street rodding: the function and performance side, and the beauty and appearance side. As the oldest National event on the Goodguys calendar – and a longtime Mecca for pre-’49 street rods – the Top 12 award we developed was the America’s Most Beautiful Street Rod honor. The Goodguys West Coast Nationals in Pleasanton, California has long been considered the “Crown Jewel” on the Goodguys national event calendar, so it seems appropriate that one of Goodguys’ exclusive Top 12 awards should be determined and bestowed at this storied event. Reviewing Two Decades of Goodguys/BASF America’s Most Beautiful Winners GoodGuys - March 2021 America’s Most Beautiful Street Rod Restrospective
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