Network
With so many booths to visit and cars to see, we’re getting our workout at the 2014 SEMA Show. Part of our task? To bring you some of the coolest rides of the show, from both inside and outside the building. Here, we’ll be exploring the interior of the show and giving you the details on some of the coolest cars we come across. And don’t forget to check back every day of the show, as we’ll bring you one new Top 5 car each day!
Foose-Built 1960 Ford Starliner
With a name like Chip Foose behind it, you know this build must be killer, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. Revealed on Tuesday, opening day of the 2014 SEMA Show, it’s the perfect car to start off our Top 5 with.
Built with a 351ci Ford Windsor motor out of a Shelby GT 350, the Starliner features a full custom setup complete with a 4-speed automatic overdrive transmission, lowered suspension and 6-piston disc brakes from Baer on all four corners. Being a Foose car, it also comes fit with custom 19-inch front and 20-inch rear Foose Heritage wheels. Wrapped around the Foose hoops are 245/40/19 Pirelli P Zero Nero tires in the front and similar 275/40/20s in the rear.
Now, because Foose is an endorser of BASF paint, the car features a BASF Metallic Grey Glasurit 90-Line paint scheme set off by a custom two-tone grey and black leather interior. Fittingly, it was in the BASF booth that the car was revealed on Tuesday.
A true gem in the long line of customs from Foose Design, this gorgeous car will undoubtedly be making the show rounds once SEMA is over with many awards in its future.
1964 Buick Riviera “Rivision”
In stopping by the BASF booth, we also came across Rivision- a 1964 Buick Riviera built by JF Kustoms of Osoyoos, British Columbia, Canada. True to the BASF booth standard (check out one of their previous feature cars in last year’s SEMA Show coverage here), this too was another looker.
Now, if you think you’ve heard the name Rivision before, that’s because this car won the coveted Ridler Award earlier this year, and for good reason! After all, it features a completely hand-built body, among other things. It was also selected as one of the top 5 for the Barrett-Jackson Cup at Hot August Nights.
Looking strikingly different from your typical ’64 Riviera, Rivision features a fully revised body with a custom boattail rear end more traditionally associated with a 1971 Buick, as well as hand-formed quarters, fenders and hood. No piece of sheet metal was left untouched.
Also custom is the overall body size, which stretches 6 inches wider than the factory ’64 Riviera. The overall look is topped off with a custom grille and taillights from Curtis Speed, as well as a Rivieran Sunset Pearl R-M Onyx HD BASF paint job.
Built atop a fully custom chassis, the Buick features a twin-turbocharged 6.2L V8 LS powerplant backed by a Tremec 6-speed transmission. Curtis Speed wheels wrapped in Pirelli tires keep the car planted to the ground while SSBC brakes provide plenty of stopping power for the vibrant beast.
Inside, the car is just as glamorous, featuring PROCAR seats wrapped in Hydes Leather, a custom leather-wrapped wheel and matching center console, door panels and dash. The interior was done by Lee Baxter’s Baxter Hot Rod Interiors.
A total revision of the classic ’64 Buick Riviera, JF Kustoms’ Rivision is certainly an aw-worthy car and completely deserves all the attention it was getting on the show floor. Of course, what do you expect from the most recent Ridler Award winner but absolute greatness?
We’ve got a few more days of SEMA left and that means plenty more time to find more amazing cars. Be sure to stay tuned as we reveal our next Top 5 car tomorrow!
SKUNKWORKS’ 1964 Valiant “VIOLENT”
In keeping with the classic muscle car theme of our Top 5 cars from the interior halls of SEMA, we’d like to introduce you to “Violent”- the Trans-Am inspired 1964 Plymouth Valiant created by Hot Rod Chassis & Cycle’s new SKUNKWORKS Racing Division.
Inspired by the Raybestos purpose-built road racing and autocross GTO-R project, the SKUNKWORKS Racing Division opted to build another amazing performance car. In doing so, they brought on build partners Opel Engineering and The Paint Spot.
The end result is this fittingly-named ’64 Valiant you see here!
Built from the ground-up with a custom Hot Rod Chassis & Cycle (HRCC) chassis, Violent the Valiant features an HRCC Corvette front suspension setup with a HRCC Mk-IV suspension system out back. This is backed by a custom HRCC-built 9-inch rearend and incorporates Ridetech and Hotchkis gear.
Powering the Valiant is a 528ci Indy aluminum block with Indy Maxx Wedge aluminum heads, Hilborn stack injection and a Flowmaster-equipped exhaust system , which all come to life with the spark of an Optima battery. Fully capable of handling the car’s powerful engine is a Tremec T-56 6-speed manual transmission, which pushes the 528’s potent output to American Racing Wheels wrapped in Nitto tires. Each gear is at the driver’s command thanks to a Hurst shifter.
Performance-driven through and through, Violent even features performance-minded body components, giving the car an extra competitive edge. These components include fiberglass bumpers and hood, as well as polycarbonate windows.
The interior is definitely race-ready, with a custom cage and a number of Stewart Warner gauges inside, while it also maintains a more road-ready feel with basic carpeting, tuck and roll upholstery and tuck and roll door panel detailing. Legendary Auto Interiors LTD. helped contribute to the Valiant’s interior design.
Truly one unique performance machine, this Plymouth Valiant is certainly worth a second look at the 2014 SEMA Show.
If you’re not lucky enough to see it in person, HRCC promises to be autocrossing the car at a number of events in the future!
Ken Block’s 1965 Mustang “The Hoonicorn”
Going along with our Mustang choice from outside SEMA, we thought it only fitting that we continue the theme inside. And what better car to do that with than the Mustang that’s been the center of much excitement lately- Ken Block’s 1965 Stang “The Hoonicorn” used in the filming of his upcoming Gymkhana feature!
Competitors beware- it’s not just the car’s looks that are mean!
Built to perform, this ’65 Mustang is not your average classic pony. In fact, there’s not much of the classic Mustang left aside from the general body form. But have no fear, it’s all for good reason!
Built by Autosport Dynamics (ASD Motorsports) in Charlotte, North Carolina, The Hoonicorn is the product of over two years of work. And if this car isn’t proof that good things come with time, we don’t know what is.
Designed around Block’s intense driving style, The Hoonicorn features all-wheel-drive, as well as a Roush Yates Racing Engines 410ci Ford V8 engine and 6-speed transmission. Then there is the killer body work and paint scheme that would send any fellow performance Stang running if if knew what was best for it. Other details, well, are being kept under wraps until the seventh installment of Gymkhana hits the internet.
Pete Fejuloski’s Custom 1968 Charger
Last but certainly not least on our list of Top 5 vehicles from inside the 2014 SEMA Show is our final choice- this completely custom ’68 Charger built by Roadster Shop.
Built atop a chromoly tube chassis, the Charger was scratch built with no body panel or component going untouched. Things like the custom hood, which took over 100 hours alone to craft, bulged fenders and quarters, custom grille and tail panel, and laid back windshield, more than classify this classic Mopar as the true meaning of a custom vehicle.
Powering the beast is a twin-turbocharged Viper V10 engine, which is capable of producing 1300hp. This is backed by a Legend 5-speed manual transmission.
Going along with the Viper theme, the car’s suspension also hales from the famed Dodge sports car, with an independent suspension up front and a Viper-based rearend with a Viper center section. The suspension system is completed with Cantilever Penske racing shocks.
The wheels on the Charger are one-off pieces from Greening Auto Company wrapped in Mickey Thompson rubber. Stopping power is provided by Baer brakes.
Inside, the car is sleek, sophisticated and means business. In addition to custom leather seats, the car features hand-formed aluminum interior panels that have been expertly covered to match the seat upholstery.
There is also a fully custom dash featuring Classic Instruments gauges, a custom console and even a cage, though we doubt think this killer-looking car will ever find itself in competition on the track. None-the-less, Roadster Shop VP of Operations Jeremy Gerber told us all of the cars that come out of their shop are built to be driven and enjoyed, and no doubt enjoying it is exactly what Fejuloski is already doing!
That’s it for our Top 5 list of the best vehicles at the 2014 SEMA Show, but make sure you stay tuned right here as we continue to show you some of the coolest new products from the show and count down our top five engines and top 5 interiors!
