BOLD RIDE
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The nature of the hot rod is to buck the trend, to be different. These unique, custom vehicles span the gamut from ’32 Fords to modern day muscle cars, and everything in between. But some are a bit zanier than others, and well…this would be one of them.
Meet the “Wine Barrels” hot rod, an eye-catching custom car inspired by (and constructed with) vintage wine barrels. The wild creation was designed by Canadian show car builder Gerry Nimz in the 1970s, and until recently its whereabouts have been unknown.
But now the quirky Wine Barrels hot rod has emerged from its private collection and onto the eBay auction block in Germany, and you don’t have to be a wine connoisseur to enjoy it.
According to the vehicle’s owner, Nimz’s wacky hot rod made its debut in the late ‘70s at the Canadian International Auto Show, where it garnered a large amount of attention from passersby…and understandably so. Over the next few years it was then toured around to various U.S. events, capturing attention at each locale, before it and a group of other wild North American hot rods were showcased in Germany at the 1981 Jochen Rindt Show (today’s Essen Motor Show).
Yet again, the Wine Barrels hot rod was a crowd favorite, and one entrepreneurial collector purchased it on the spot, along with a few of the other hot rods. It’s easy to see why.
Up front, the hot rod’s cab emulates a giant wine barrel, while in the rear bed, four oak barrels reside over an immense set of racing slick tires. Inside, the driver’s seat is appropriated from—surprise, surprise—another oak wine barrel, and fluffy Flokati rugs cover the floor. That circular windshield? It’s said to be over 20 square feet in size, and crumple zones…well, those are non-existent.
Mounted midship is a 1970s 5.0-liter Chevrolet small block V8, which draws air through four big carburetors and chucks it out a set of side-pipe exhaust. 230 horsepower is the ‘70s performance result, which travels rearward through a TH350 automatic transmission.
The current owner does offer one proviso, however. Befitting its show car status, the Wine Barrels hot rod looks gleaming but it hasn’t been run in over 30 years, which means there could be more than just a little aged wine sloshing around beneath this custom car. Nevertheless, it certainly isn’t the type of thing you see everyday.
The nature of the hot rod is to buck the trend, to be different. These unique, custom vehicles span the gamut from ’32 Fords to modern day muscle cars, and everything in between. But some are a bit zanier than others, and well…this would be one of them.
But now the quirky Wine Barrels hot rod has emerged from its private collection and onto the eBay auction block in Germany, and you don’t have to be a wine connoisseur to enjoy it.
According to the vehicle’s owner, Nimz’s wacky hot rod made its debut in the late ‘70s at the Canadian International Auto Show, where it garnered a large amount of attention from passersby…and understandably so. Over the next few years it was then toured around to various U.S. events, capturing attention at each locale, before it and a group of other wild North American hot rods were showcased in Germany at the 1981 Jochen Rindt Show (today’s Essen Motor Show).
Yet again, the Wine Barrels hot rod was a crowd favorite, and one entrepreneurial collector purchased it on the spot, along with a few of the other hot rods. It’s easy to see why.
Up front, the hot rod’s cab emulates a giant wine barrel, while in the rear bed, four oak barrels reside over an immense set of racing slick tires. Inside, the driver’s seat is appropriated from—surprise, surprise—another oak wine barrel, and fluffy Flokati rugs cover the floor. That circular windshield? It’s said to be over 20 square feet in size, and crumple zones…well, those are non-existent.
Mounted midship is a 1970s 5.0-liter Chevrolet small block V8, which draws air through four big carburetors and chucks it out a set of side-pipe exhaust. 230 horsepower is the ‘70s performance result, which travels rearward through a TH350 automatic transmission.
The current owner does offer one proviso, however. Befitting its show car status, the Wine Barrels hot rod looks gleaming but it hasn’t been run in over 30 years, which means there could be more than just a little aged wine sloshing around beneath this custom car. Nevertheless, it certainly isn’t the type of thing you see everyday.
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