The Allure of the Automobile Exhibit at the High Part 16, the 1959 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray

1959 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray

This was one of my favorite cars in the show - the iconic Corvette Sting Ray concept car. This convertible boasts a 327-cubic-inch (5.4 L), fuel-injected V-8 of 375 hp (280 kW), and was built on a 1957 Corvette SS chassis (the SS was built as a Le Mans contender but the AMA banned manufacturer-sponsored racing so it was used as a test-bed only). Many of the features of the '59 influenced the '63 model. It was also a technical test bed for several features, including the four-speed manual tranny, the de Deon rear suspension and use of aluminum. This car is simply stunning!

Next up, the 1961 Ferrari 250 GT Comp./ 61 Short-wheelbase Berlinetta

-- John

The Allure of the Automobile Exhibit at the High Part 15, the Cadillac Eldorado Brougham

1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham

I can't believe that the '57 Brougham actually made it into production, but at $13,074 — twice the price of any other 1957 Eldorado and slightly more than the Rolls-Royce "Silver Cloud" model of the same year, my thought is that there probably weren't very many made. The most outstanding feature to me is the brushed stainless-steel roof - move over John Delorean! This four-door hardtop also came with rear-hinged rear doors, an air suspension, probably the first ever power seats and just about every feature that GM offered at the time - it even had small bottles of perfume. I also love the bits of chrome used throughout and the slightly understated fin (if you're familiar with later years you'll know what I mean!).

Next up, the 1959 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray.

-- John

The Allure of the Automobile Exhibit at the High Part 14, the Tucker Model 48 Torpedo

1948 Tucker Model 48 Torpedo

Looking more appropriate on the set of "Mad Men" than as part of this group of Modernist Automobiles, we continue with another US manufacturer in this entry, the Tucker Model 48 Torpedo. To be honest, I knew very little about this car and history before watching the Jeff Bridges movie "Tucker: The Man and His Dream" released in the late 80s - a fantastic movie by the way and well worth watching. But then again, any movie that also has Martin Landau playing a role is worth watching, right? In any case watch the movie if you want to learn more about this really special car, that had many feature innovations that we totally take for granted today only 30-40 years before the rest of the automotive world caught up to make them commonplace. My apologies for the lack of a whole body shot - the way this car was tucked (pun intended) against the wall prevented me from getting one, especially with the crowds of people.

Next up, the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado Brougham.

-- John

The Allure of the Automobile Exhibit at the High Part 13, the Dodge Fire Arrow III

1953 Dodge Fire Arrow III

We finally start getting into some automotive designs by US manufacturers with the Dodge Fire Arrow III. Dodge looked to the Turin, Italy-based firm of Ghia who utilized designs by stylist Luigi Segre for this modernist masterpiece. Powered by a Hemi V8 the Fire Arrow had plenty of steam to impress even the most jaded automotive expert. I'd love to have this as a weekend car for tooling around Atlanta in typical Mad Men style - me wearing the thin lapeled black suite and skinny tie...

Next up, the 1948 Tucker Model 48 Torpedo

The Allure of the Automobile Exhibit at the High Part 12, the Jaguar XK-SS Roadster

1957 Jaguar XK-SS Roadster

I've always had something of a soft-heart for Jaguars - one of my dream cars is an early model E-Type roadster and at one point I owned and restored a Jaguar MK2S (long gone now but not forgotten). In any case the XK-SS sort of heralded the modern Jag's appearance along with the D-Type (precursor to the E-Type) - this example was really stunning. I wish I had gotten better images but most came out too blurred to publish (and my apologies for the inferior images I've posted here - they really don't provide justice to this fine lady).

Next up, the 1953 Dodge Fire Arrow III.

-- John

The Allure of the Automobile Exhibit at the High Part 11, the Mercedes-Benz 300SLR

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SLR

One of nine SLR roadsters designed by Rudolph Uhlenhaut, the MB 300 SLR was created to compete in the World Sports Car Championship and won it handily in 1955. Sadly Daimler-Benz decided to withdraw completely from racing the following year after a 300 SLR crashed in the 1955 LeMans 24-Hour race, killing eighty spectators.

This is the first roadster version of the famous 300 SLR gull-wing coup I've ever seen - the coup is often listed in the coveted "Dream Car" category and yes, the doors are cool - however to me the roadster has the streamline modern lines that pull it away from the pack - what a beauty! I had the privilege of doing some body-work on a 190SLR - there's very little comparison to that more common model.

Next up, the 1957 Jaguar XK-SS Roadster

-- John