Rhythm - Rolling Art - retro supercar built from scratch

[iNVisionPROTOTYPES]

Greetings,

What do you get when you combine influences from an SR71 Blackbird with styling cues from classic American muscle cars and classic European sports cars - yet modern?

My name is Nick and I would like to share with the members of this forum an all steel vehicle that has taken 8000hours (over 8 years)to bring to fruition. The goal was to create a vehicle that would appear to be a factory prototype released in the late 60's. We call her 'Rhythm'. She has been built entirely from scratch - flat sheets of sheet metal pounded and rolled into what you see - and licensed as a fully functional custom car.

Its has a mid-engine reverse rotation hotrodded Chevy V8 mounted 2 seat cruiser. All the running and marker lights are retrofitted with LEDs and are sequentially controlled on the rear deck when the turn indicators are on - just as the Ford Cougars had back in the day.

Here are some photos of Rhythm.

Attention to such details as the overall proportions were crucial to achieve a classic, yet modern appearance. Being mid-engined, modern supercar proportions had to lead the design while front and rear overhangs were increased to bring a classic look into play. This theme also influenced the type of wheels chosen for Rhythm. The initial design had 18's in the front and 19's in the rear but where changed to the smaller diameter rim and larger sidewall. While they appear small compared to today's standards anything larger didn't fit the classic theme. Paint was one of the most difficult decisions as I'm a huge fan of blues and the choice came from a most unexpected source. One evening while finishing off a bottle of wine I looked through the bottom of my glass and knew that the Merlot would be the final colour. Creating the actual colour is a story in itself.


With an overall height of just over 46" and a width of 80" at the rear it makes for a very interesting ride for the occupants. The closest thing I can compare it to is 'fighter vision' (as in fighter jet) and you really need to use your side mirrors to maneuver in traffic. It's a real head turner.


The interior is finished with a mat finish on the paint and trimmed off with brushed stainless panels inset into the dash that flow into the doors. The handcrafted foot pedals are shaped like a one sided teardrop to resemble the exhaust tips thereby completing the theoretical flow of power from the foot to the exhaust. Although not in the picture, a heads up display is located above the rear view mirror indicating vehicle vitals in addition to the gauges. Cruise control and A/C are also fully functional. Hey you need to be able to drive in comfort.


First time out at the Last Chance Car Show in Welland, Ontario was a lot of fun especially when the sun hit the paint. Btw..and the cross hairs in the top hood scoop are NOT functional - just another one of those fighter jet influenced details. The mirrors are mounted on extension brackets - again with no visible fasteners. The extension brackets were handcrafted to appear as if the scoop was a tapered tube that had sections ahead and behind the bracket cut away to leave a trough.


The power behind the vehicle...literally!



Rhythm, which I started when I was 19years old was a great exercise in design and fabrication.

Cheers,

Nick

[sgraber]

WOW Nick! That is an amazing car! You did all of that metal bodywork yourself and built a custom frame underneath it!!!!? I am totally amazed. The car has some really cool lines too. I like the way you mimic some of the 60's jet design that was used by the big studios, yet you've taken those ideas and explored them in even more dramatic fashion. It's a real work of art.

I would love to see some of your build photos sometime.

[model_citizen]

I'm a regular on the sketching portion of the site, and when I ran across your sketch, I noticed the link to an actual car. I've never been over here, but I may visit again. This is awesome. I like seeing concept become a reality. Obviously your sketch came first, but I very rarely see sketches get built into real working cars. This is a really cool concept. I would upgrade the rims to something a little bigger, but other than that I kind of like it. Although, the curves seem overexaggerated a bit. It reminds me of the first Batmobile, yet it still retains a feminine flair. You should be like George Barris and design customs for movies. Perhaps it would make a good transport for a superhero female from that era. Might I ask how much materials and fabrication would cost on a project like this, and I was also wondering what possessed you to do this? It says design school final exam all over it. You should post it on jaylenosgarage.com. He might have you come on his show. *G*

http://www.geocities.com/onemodelcitizen

[iNVisionPROTOTYPES]

Originally Posted by model_citizen

...and I was also wondering what possessed you to do this? It says design school final exam all over it.

Thanks very much, really appreciate that. This vehicle started out in two ways...by my father suggesting that I take a more serious approach to go-kart building and the fact that I couldn't find a decent classic car to restore for the right $$$.

So I began design and fabrication of Rhythm when I was 20years old ... as a fun hobby and intentions to be driving it within 2 years. Well 8 years and over 7800 hours later here we are. The only design lessons I've had were from my father on perspective, proportions, elements of fabrication - so no actual classroom lessons. I learned everything on my own...from design, chassis fabrication, sheet metal work, bodywork, paint and finishing.

My initial goal was to design a vehicle that would appear factory produced...from the late 60's - early 70's...yet have a modern twist. Through research, I stepped into the heads of old school american and european designers and developed the features accordingly. So far, it's been quite a success. People have come up to us on the street thinking it was a factory released prototype...and actually argued with me when I mentioned that we are the ones that built it. It's all fun in the end!

With respect to cost...I have yet to add up the pile of reciepts, tho I can say...it cost quite a bit... and with time...I can't really put a price on "hobby time".

Regards,

Nick

[iNVisionPROTOTYPES]

Hi guys!

iNVision Prototypes is now online! We would like to invite all of you to check out what we offer. So when you get a moment drop by at www.invisionprototypes.com

[iNVisionPROTOTYPES]

It's been quite a while since I've posted anything new on Rhythm ... The last thing was really about the V8 powerplant upgrade - something we've been enjoying immensely.

A photo taken earlier this spring cruisin'.


Regards!

The Team @ iNVision Prototypes