RidiculousRides

HIDDEN from public view for over 50 years, in the early 60s, the Golden Sahara was one of America's most famous cars. Originally built from a car that was wrecked in an accident, the first Golden Sahara was built by George Barris. It was the Golden Sahara 2, however, that was brought to public attention and cemented the vehicle as revolutionary. Four different steering options including aircraft-inspired controls; in-built television and tape recorder/player; electronic doors; vibrating massage seat; a hydraulic trunk and light-up neothane tyres made this car truly ahead of its time. A 24 carat gold trim interior, a white mink carpet and a mini bar in the back seat also goes to show how this vehicle was created to be over the top. At the height of its fame, having toured all over the U for over four years, owner Jim Street retired the car into his collection. After Jim passed away, current owner Robert Olson bought the derelict car for a reported $350,000 - and entirely restored it to its former glory. Robert told Ridiculous Rides: "The hardest part of the restoration was accurately remaking some of the parts that were custom." Robert even collaborated with Good Year to bring back the long-gone neothane tyres. "We probably spent close to $200,000 to restore this vehicle - this vehicle would easily fetch over $1 million, but to us it's priceless," Robert said.

A FAMILY has become used to turning heads while driving their fleet of 10 bumper cars on California’s roads. In this week’s episode of Ridiculous Rides, vehicles are taken from the amusement park to the open roads. But Tom Wright, a builder, hadn't planned on taking the first fairground ride he worked on to the streets. He told Truly: “The purpose at the time was to restore it to its original lustre and put it in a showroom.” However, before finishing the project he decided that he also wanted the cars to be mobile. So, Tom used his engineering skills to move them onto the open road. He explained: “I decided to convert it to a six-speed Kawasaki 550cc motor.” Making these historic vehicles roadworthy was a challenge for him, some having been out of use for 80 years. “They were sitting outside riddled with rust, 18 inches on some of the cars and had to be cut off," Tom said. The bumper cars have also been added with some special features, such as wood exteriors to reflect the area they drive through. “The wheels are custom golf cart wheels because this is a California beach community," he said. Acquiring the first car, finding the right components, making the frames and sending the bodies for paint took a year to complete. All this hard work was worth it in the end, as they are “extremely fun to drive”. When Tom takes the 10 bumpers for a spin with friends and family they turn the heads of locals. “The smiles, waves and the honks make the hobby worth doing.”

IF you’ve ever found yourself in Spokane, Washington, the chances are you’ve come across La Boata - the city’s famous car. Tim Lorentz, the owner of this unique vehicle, bought himself a speedboat for $100 and a Chrysler LeBaron for $700 and merged them together, creating a ride so remarkable that you barely notice La Boata’s tyres when it’s cruising down the highway.

OTHERS Mike and Jim Ring from Spring Green, Wisconsin, are two custom car building legends known as 'The Ringbrothers'. One of their finest builds is a 1956 Ford F100 truck which took an impressive 3,000 hours to build spread over seven months, costing $85,000 in parts alone. Powering the truck is a 415-horsepower 5.0-liter Ford Coyote crate motor which is a really good fit for the 50s pickup. With a 1956 cab, but a 1954 grill, the truck is actually a mixture of the two, however the brothers explain: “Most people will recognize it as a ‘56 just because of the cab.” Whilst this vehicle has the looks of a 50s masterpiece, The Ringbrothers are known for blending old-school looks with modern technology. The 1956 Ford F100 is not short of up to date tech either - it has power brakes, electronic transmission, fuel injection, air conditioning and even a bluetooth stereo system. “There’s a lot of modern amenities that you would probably never pick up on by just walking by it,” Jim adds. The car’s interior also sports a classic 50s look, not giving away any of the modern conveniences the brothers have added. Mike says: "It’s the little things in the interior, like for instance, the headliner looks like an old zoot suit material.” The multi-award-winning car customizers state that the pickup truck is the most American vehicle around, and say they are excited to see what people are doing with these trucks.

AN incredible lowrider, owned by 11-year-old car enthusiast Sol Archer, grabs everyone’s attention for its unique colour patterns. The car was a father and son build – Sol Archer, from Ipswich, UK, inherited a Honda Civic EF from his dad Pete Blackhurst. Pete told Ridiculous Rides: “Sol’s role in the design was to build something that he could potentially drive - small, inexpensive. Sol’s colour-blind, so it was never about picking a colour switch, it was about making it pop, making it stand out - loads of different colours, loads of patterns, loads of lines." He added: “You could be driving it to the shops, into town, or you could be at a show like this. It always turns heads because of what it looks like. But then as soon as you start playing with the switches, I think it baffles people more than anything else.” Sol, while showcasing the car at the Ipswich Festival of Wheels, admitted that he feels special being the only kid at the show with his own vehicle: “I don’t know many other children with real cars, and I think I am lucky”.

GOG off-road in a classic British family car has become a daily pastime for one New Zealand mechanic. Shane Armitage has converted a 1950s Morris Minor Traveller into a 4x4 off-roading beast that he can take on both roads and sand dunes. On first look, ‘Woody’ as the car is known, appears to be a British motor corporation classic, but is actually built on a Morris Minor shell and a Suzuki Escudo/Vitara chassis with a second Morris Minor used for donor parts. Shane, of Muriwai, told Barcroft Studios: “I use it every day, it’s my daily drive but I also really like off-roading. This combines the two together. It’s really cool, two-for-one. Everywhere you go people come up and say ‘Wow, what’s this?’" Shane was driving a 4x4 Suzuki Escudo when he spotted a Morris Minor cruising the Auckland bays and was inspired to combine the two. He bought a two-door Morris online and a second Traveller chassis which he used to make carbon fibre moulds of the roof and side panels. He then attached those moulds to the original Morris, complete with the classic wooden design seen on the original cars. The newly constructed chassis was then placed on the running gear of a Suzuki Vitara 4x4, giving it off-road capabilities. Shane said: “It’s just an all-purpose, do anything, do everything, pick the groceries up, go extreme four-wheel driving in the same day without changing vehicles. It’s a gnarly four-wheel driving beast.”

AFTER vanishing off the face of the Earth in 1936, with no clue as to its whereabouts, the one of a kind Bugatti Aerolithe has been rebuilt. The car originally debuted at the Earl’s Court Motor Show in the UK in 1935, but after its disappearance, all trace it ever existed lay in just a few photos and some blueprints of the brake pedal and radiator grill. These limitations didn’t stop classic car fanatic David Grainger and his team at The Guild of Automotive Restorers, who painstakingly rebuilt the lost car on a modified Bugatti Type 57 chassis. Using the blueprint of the radiator grill, David and his team worked out the exact dimensions, to the millimetre, of the car and then proceeded to sculpt the body using magnesium, as was done on the original. The magnesium sheets make the car extremely light and therefore increase its top speed. However, the sheets are by no means cheap, costing David $3,000 each, of which the Bugatti Aerolithe needed 15 for its rebirth. Recreating the body wasn’t the only challenge. David needed to rebuild, from scratch, the tyres to replicate the white walled Dunlop’s on the original car, as they are no longer in production. David’s team skillfully produced identical replicas of the wheels and the Bugatti Aerolithe now stands exactly as it did before, complete with fixed windows and manual brakes.

THIS FUTURISTIC sports car powered by natural gas can transform into a pickup truck. Based on a Porsche, the 911 Turbo-based Rinspeed Bedouin was created to show how a powerful car can also use renewable energy. Frank M. Rinderknecht, CEO for Swiss-based manufacturer Rinspeed has been building concept-cars for the Geneva Motor Show for over 20 years. He calls himself “an automotive futurist”, with the Rinspeed Bedouin being just one of his many innovative creations. He told Truly: “The Bedouin was created to show sustainability, powered by natural CMG gas.” The vehicle was built in 2003, at that time the batteries were still too weak to power a car like this one. By taking on this project Frank was faced with big challenges to maintain the basic shape of the Porsche. “We did not want to obstruct the original design, but to compliment it," he said. “Then we had to fit all the technology in a relatively small amount of space." The Bedouin still provides the luxuries of a sports car, with soft leather seats, engraved with thousands of crystals. Of course, the main feature of this innovative creation is how the backside can be transformed at the touch of a button into a pickup truck, a rare find in the motoring world because of the cost of manufacturing. Frank explained: "It's cheaper to have like two different vehicles instead of combining two in one, but it's still in the people's heart to have a car which serves many purposes.”

THIS stunning Chevrolet Bel Air has been the pride and joy of the same owner for more than 60 years. Grace Braeger, from Wisconsin, US, bought the car for $2,250 in 1957 and never imagined she would still have it all these years later. During her ‘active years’, Grace drove the Chevrolet all over the country and through Canada, racking up over 122,000 miles. Now, she uses the dependable vehicle to go to church, shopping and appointments. Grace said: “What I love most about this car is what fun it is to drive it.” Nicknamed 57 Lady, the car regularly encounters admirers with people taking photos or giving Grace the thumbs up as she drives along. Someone even tried to steal the car in the late 1970s but Grace confronted them. She said: “As soon as I got to the vehicle, the light went on. And somebody was getting out the other side. And I yelled, who are you? And he was gone in the dark.” Grace would only consider serious offers for the car and hopes the future owner recognises the value in it. What is the secret to its longevity? Grace said: “When it needs something, you take care of it. You replace it, you always try to keep it clean and you try to keep it waxed. And you go by the manual."

CHATSWORTH California, what looks like a parking lot full of rusting cars, is actually home to some of the most original custom-built rides in the world. The vehicles that leave the 'Icon' workshop under the 'Derelict' brand are unique reimagined classics. Dated vehicles in awful conditions are revamped, making them fit for modern day driving. However, the company never restores the shells, giving these vehicles their trademark rough and rusty look. Founder Jonathan Ward told Truly: "Derelict will never repeat the same build twice, each one is a singular high-functioning sculpture." The first ever Derelict build, still owned by Jonathan, is a 1951 DeSoto Wagon mashed up with a Chrysler Town & Country. By combining elements from the two cars, the Derelict DeSoto is completely authentic on the outside, but modern on the inside. Modern A/C units and bluetooth audio connectivity are some of the modern-day features of this one-of-a-kind masterpiece. But why keep the original shell? "I wanted something alternative but imperfect, so that I don't have to worry about it - I don't want to be that guy who is super stressed out about that first scratch," said Jonathan.

EVER wondered what happens when you put an electric motorcycle motor into a rat rod? Well, one car fanatic has the answer. Rich Benoit, a YouTuber from Gloucester, Massachusetts, has created something that he says has never been done before. Rich told Truly: “No one has ever taken an electric motorcycle motor and put it in a car - it’s beautiful.” Rich spent six weeks building his “work of art”, weighing between 12 and 1300lbs and measuring 11ft long. At the heart of the 1930s Ford Model A is an electric motor from a wrecked motorcycle, complete with a custom made transmission adapter and a multi gear transmission from an old Chevy. Rich grafted the electronics on the bike and then put them on the rat rod, completing the interior with third row seats from an old dodge caravan. The acceleration enables the car to go up to 80mph, something Rich isn’t sure is the best idea. Part of the thrill for Rich is never knowing what will happen when taking the rat rod out for a spin: “Is something going to fall off or blow up? I really have no idea!” Rich enjoys proving the naysayers wrong who believe a small engine wouldn’t be able to pull the car. “My favourite thing about this is definitely the look you get from people who expect a big honking engine to be in front,” he said. “I feel like it really captures the spirit of hot rodding.”

THE DANCG bed trucks are making a comeback. Alex is the shop fabricator and foreman of Hoppos, one of the United States' premier lowrider customs shops, but his real passion is for the little-known world of bed dancing. This is when drivers install their trucks with jaw-dropping hydraulics that allow them to raise them high in the air, spin around and dance. Alex explained how his love for the trucks evolved: "We have been operating for over 30 years. My dad is the owner, I’m following in his footsteps now.” They are based in Ontario, which Alex believes is the heart of the dancing bed trucks trend: “California still holds it down for custom vehicles," he said. The business is one of the main manufacturers in Southern California for hydraulic equipment. Hoppos manufacture the product for the dancing beds - the hydraulics, the cylinders and the pumps, then ship the components worldwide for other enthusiasts. Dancing bed trucks is an automotive trend born in the late 80s, where small pickup beds would be installed on hydraulics and put on dancing competitions at shows. Alex sees it as “an expression of one’s self.” Now with the craze making a comeback, Alex and his team are leading the charge with two generations of experience behind them. “We originally started in the mini-truck world, today the trucks are starting to boom again. Luckily, we had the knowledge from back then, now we're building some of the nicest mini trucks out there.”

A CAR trader specialising in Jaguar E-Types have taken what they describe as “the best car ever made” and given it a bespoke update that is fit for the modern world. The company, Evolution, have been restoring E-types for over 12 years and have used new technology to improve this 60s car while retaining its classic exterior body. Alex Cluderay, who works for Evolution, said: “This really is a car forever for the future. We’ve engineered, redesigned and fixed their problems.”

BIG, fast and powerful - this monster truck is a champion. Raminator is the world’s fastest monster truck having set a Guinness World Record of 99.1mph. Tim Hall and his brother Mark first got into monster truck racing in 1987. They established Hall Brothers Racing and since then the team has been beating out the competition. Tim, CEO and chief mechanic of the team said: “In the pit area, we're fierce enemies from the green flag to the checkered flag. But then after that everybody's friends again.” With a new Raminator under construction, the team hopes to continue their success. Tim said: “Maybe someday we'll be in the monster truck Hall of Fame.” Mat Dishman one of the team’s drivers said: “Racing monster trucks, it's a blast every time you pull up the line it is an adrenaline rush, you know, it doesn't matter who's beside you in the other lane.” So how will the Raminator fare in today’s 4-wheel Jamboree event?

THIS HISTORIC Hot Rod dates all the way back to the 1940s California dry lake bed races - and it's still alive and well today. Completely built from 1932 Henry Ford steel, it represents the history of the American Hot Rod. The car went through many modifications before being bought by current owner Joe Locher. The most major change was a complete rebuild in the 1970s, by Dave Comina of Bennett Coachworks. Surprisingly, not much was done to the engine, which was in good shape. Any modifications at the time were mainly to make the vehicle safer, such as squaring up the chassis and reconfiguring the length of the arms for steering. Perhaps the most controversial change is the cosmetic fire stripes added in the 70s, which Hot Rod purists disagree with. While driving the Hot Rod around, however, Joe Locher receives a lot of attention: "You get a lot of reactions, almost everyone does something - usually it's waving, honking, thumbs up."

A CUSTOMISED Cadillac Escalade has been turned into a one-of-a-kind super slammer. Starting life as a $108,000 (USD) 2021 stock car, lowride super-fan Jake McKiddie stepped on the gas to get the modifications done quickly. Jake told Ridiculous Rides: “We did this in eight or nine weeks. We didn’t waste any time putting a full bumper chassis on it, it was a lot of cutting to get it down that low.” With the extreme lengths to get the level just right, Jake admits it took a keen eye, and a lot of cash, to get it finished. He added: “The amount of money it took to purchase it on top of doing the modifications to it, it just screams money. Working all the electronics to get it to run and drive again was pretty difficult.” The hard work paid off though, as Jake admits it’s a car which causes a lot of head turns. He told Ridiculous Rides: “Most people haven’t even seen a brand new Escalade, much less when they see this one, and it’s laid out on the ground with 30-inch wheels on it, it just blows your mind!”

A MODIFIED micro-car that weighs just 345kg has become one of Australia’s most loved cars. The Goggomobil Dart was developed in Sydney by the company Buckle Motors Pty Ltd and is now supposedly worth around $50,000 (USD). Despite being just 4ft wide and having a top speed of 63mph, it has since become a company mascot and is known to turn heads in the street. Chris Boribon said: “So cute, micro-sized, it’s different, it’s quirky. People love it. It needs everything it can to cut through the wind. Some people call it a lawn-mower engine but it is 300cc, two-stroke, three-cylinder.” The original Dart was designed in 1958 and went on sale the following year, with around 700 examples produced up to the time that production ceased in September 1961. Chris added: “You don’t get anywhere fast. You feel like you’re in a sports car but you’re going 30 miles an hour.”

BILLY Holton regularly turns heads on his local roads when he’s out driving his hot rod. 35 years ago, Billy and his wife Marcy started a hot rod garage on Marcy’s family farm in Helix, Oregon: “We built a hot rod shop in the middle of a wheatfield. Build it and they will come…. They did!” Despite being located 20 miles from the nearest town, their garage has become something of an oasis for hot rod fanatics, allowing Billy to turn his passion for all things engines into a full time career. Billy loves rebuilding cars and his pride and joy is a restored 1953 Willys Jeep Pickup, a labour of love that he started working on back in 2003. However Billy wasn’t just content with a straightforward restoration and installed the jeep with a Ford 302 V8 Engine, giving his ride a top speed of 120MPH and 350+HP. Not one to do things by half measure, Billy told Ridiculous Rides why he installed his pickup with such an iconic, powerful engine: “I’ve never been into smaller engines. There's guys that put in D6’s and stuff. If you're going to do it, do it big!” Billy loves taking out his jeep and catching some of the serious speed it can generate from its powerful engine saying: “I believe the engine is this car's heart and soul. If the engine in this car was more tame, milder, it wouldn’t be as much fun!”

GENE Langmesser, from California, bought a brand new Corvette, stripped it down and put ‘1500lbs of clay on it’ to add parts of a ‘57, ‘58 and ‘59 Chevy to make his infamous Chevy 789. The concept car designer ‘wanted to create a classic, old school car with today's technology’. The front end of a ‘57 Chevy Bel-air, the middle of 1958 Chevy Delray Ragtop, and the Iconic “Bird in Flight” rear-end of the ‘59 Impala have been merged for the ultimate homage to 1950’s Americana that took an incredible 5,000 hours to perfect. Gene admits he loves the reaction from driving it. He told Ridiculous Rides: “You go to a gas station and it takes you 25 minutes to get gas, and you’re almost feeling rude trying to leave because people are still gawking at the car and taking pictures.”

THE STIC body of this 1949 Ford has been born again using the engine and electronics of a 2008 BMW 335i. John, from Sahuarita, Arizona, bought the two vehicles, which were heading for the scrap yard, for a total of $3,400 (USD). John told Ridiculous Rides: “The 49’s compact body made it a really good fit for a modern car. We could just drop the frame over the BMW’s chassis.” Working with five of his friends, John and his team have worked on the car over the last year and a half. John added: “People’s reaction has been amazing! The old American body style, mixed with German engineering, makes it relatable. This car has something for everyone!”

GENE Langmesser, from California, bought a brand new Corvette, stripped it down and put ‘1500lbs of clay on it’ to add parts of a ‘57, ‘58 and ‘59 Chevy to make his infamous Chevy 789. The concept car designer ‘wanted to create a classic, old school car with today's technology’. The front end of a ‘57 Chevy Bel-air, the middle of 1958 Chevy Delray Ragtop, and the Iconic “Bird in Flight” rear-end of the ‘59 Impala have been merged for the ultimate homage to 1950’s Americana that took an incredible 5,000 hours to perfect. Gene admits he loves the reaction from driving it. He told Ridiculous Rides: “You go to a gas station and it takes you 25 minutes to get gas, and you’re almost feeling rude trying to leave because people are still gawking at the car and taking pictures.”

THE RUSTIC body of this 1949 Ford has been born again using the engine and electronics of a 2008 BMW 335i. John, from Sahuarita, Arizona, bought the two vehicles, which were heading for the scrap yard, for a total of $3,400 (USD). John told Ridiculous Rides: “The 49’s compact body made it a really good fit for a modern car. We could just drop the frame over the BMW’s chassis.” Working with five of his friends, John and his team have worked on the car over the last year and a half. John added: “People’s reaction has been amazing! The old American body style, mixed with German engineering, makes it relatable. This car has something for everyone!”

BILLY Holton regularly turns heads on his local roads when he’s out driving his hot rod. 35 years ago, Billy and his wife Marcy started a hot rod garage on Marcy’s family farm in Helix, Oregon: “We built a hot rod shop in the middle of a wheatfield. Build it and they will come…. They did!” Despite being located 20 miles from the nearest town, their garage has become something of an oasis for hot rod fanatics, allowing Billy to turn his passion for all things engines into a full time career. Billy loves rebuilding cars and his pride and joy is a restored 1953 Willys Jeep Pickup, a labour of love that he started working on back in 2003. However Billy wasn’t just content with a straightforward restoration and installed the jeep with a Ford 302 V8 Engine, giving his ride a top speed of 120MPH and 350+HP. Not one to do things by half measure, Billy told Ridiculous Rides why he installed his pickup with such an iconic, powerful engine: “I’ve never been into smaller engines. There's guys that put in D6’s and stuff. If you're going to do it, do it big!” Billy loves taking out his jeep and catching some of the serious speed it can generate from its powerful engine saying: “I believe the engine is this car's heart and soul. If the engine in this car was more tame, milder, it wouldn’t be as much fun!”

A CUSTOMISED Cadillac Escalade has been turned into a one-of-a-kind super slammer. Starting life as a $108,000 (USD) 2021 stock car, lowride super-fan Jake McKiddie stepped on the gas to get the modifications done quickly. Jake told Ridiculous Rides: “We did this in eight or nine weeks. We didn’t waste any time putting a full bumper chassis on it, it was a lot of cutting to get it down that low.” With the extreme lengths to get the level just right, Jake admits it took a keen eye, and a lot of cash, to get it finished. He added: “The amount of money it took to purchase it on top of doing the modifications to it, it just screams money. Working all the electronics to get it to run and drive again was pretty difficult.” The hard work paid off though, as Jake admits it’s a car which causes a lot of head turns. He told Ridiculous Rides: “Most people haven’t even seen a brand new Escalade, much less when they see this one, and it’s laid out on the ground with 30-inch wheels on it, it just blows your mind!”

THIS stunning Chevrolet Bel Air has been the pride and joy of the same owner for more than 60 years. Grace Braeger, from Wisconsin, US, bought the car for $2,250 in 1957 and never imagined she would still have it all these years later. During her ‘active years’, Grace drove the Chevrolet all over the country and through Canada, racking up over 122,000 miles. Now, she uses the dependable vehicle to go to church, shopping and appointments. Grace said: “What I love most about this car is what fun it is to drive it.” Nicknamed 57 Lady, the car regularly encounters admirers with people taking photos or giving Grace the thumbs up as she drives along. Someone even tried to steal the car in the late 1970s but Grace confronted them. She said: “As soon as I got to the vehicle, the light went on. And somebody was getting out the other side. And I yelled, who are you? And he was gone in the dark.” Grace would only consider serious offers for the car and hopes the future owner recognises the value in it. What is the secret to its longevity? Grace said: “When it needs something, you take care of it. You replace it, you always try to keep it clean and you try to keep it waxed. And you go by the manual."