Aug 9: Foose Design

He could have been a corporate star. He could have joined a big automaker and been the trend setter for years to come. He could have been feted at all the major autoshows. But no, Chip Foose, decided to go his own way and design unique cars for himself and for his clients, without being weighed down by a crushing structure. If you watch any "car TV", you might have come across his show Overhaulin, where some lucky stiff loses their sentimental old ride for a week, while it is transformed into a work of custom car art, which they could never have done themselves or afforded to have someone else do it for them.......

Often hokey, but the end products were worth waiting for and maybe to shed a tear?

One common thread that runs thru all Chip Foose creations is that the end result highlights the good points of the original design or improves on them. Nothing wild, like the old George Barris creations, which were often the definition of poor taste. Simple, but striking......

......with custom rims and custom paint. Not obvious in these renditions, but the end result was also chopped, ie: a couple of inches were taken out of the car's height, in order to better emphasize its lines.

Although most Foose designs were carried out on North American cars, they weren't restricted to them as you can see by this VW Bug that was done for one of his TV shows.........

How much of a mark has Chip Foose made on this segment of the market? Plenty. I sure wouldn't say that he is overexposed, but his name and quality of his work is known throughout the industry. And he comes across as a genuinely nice guy. While all the other reality TV shows featured infighting, Overhaulin never went in that direction. A welcome change.

While he could have been a corporate star, he wouldn't have a line of custom model kits with his name on them.........

I've made this one and the look of the end product is stunning. Classic without taking anything away from the new Sting Ray.

One of Chip's latest creations is subtle in the extreme.......

This rework of a 1965 Chev Impala was done for a Canadian client. How subtle? Glad you asked. To begin with a brand new Corvette was bought, the body thrown away and the chassis modified to fit under this larger car. How much larger? Well, this '65 Chevy was huge, so here is where the creativity and the artwork comes into play. This car was changed in almost every dimension, so that although it is 14" shorter, it tricks the eye to see where the cuts were made. Everywhere is the answer, but this car just looks right. So right in fact, that it won the very prestigious Ridler Award at the 2015 Detroit Autorama........

By the way, buying a new Vette for the chassis, will give you an indication of just how much the Canadian client was willing to spend for his very unique ride.

So what is Chip Foose up to these days? There is a story behind his latest project. Way back in 1935, a wealthy industrialist with connections to Cadillac, was planning to have a custom coupe made for himself and his wife. The designs were done, but for some reason this car never came to fruition. Flash forward to 2016 and Chip Foose. A client has commissioned Chip to build this beautiful design.......

Now this is a work in progress........

........but shortly this car will emerge from Foose's studios fully formed and gorgeous, looking every bit like a 1935 Cadillac, but with the reliability of a new car. And you were wondering how to spend your lottery winnings? When you have $100's of thousands at your disposal and Chip Foose's imagination, well, my friends, the sky's the limit.

So yes, Chip Foose, could have been all those things that I mentioned in the first paragraph, but lucky for us he went his own way. And lucky for those clients who have the coin to give him a call when they feel the need.

Until next time......