Remembering Gene Winfield
March 5, 2025
THE AUTO BUILDER
Featured
Naked Ambition: Bare Metal Builds at GNRS 2025
At GNRS 2025, bare metal builds were everywhere. Let’s be real— some of these builds aren’t finished. They’re just out here flexing. Builders are putting their raw, unpainted cars and trucks on display like they’re staring in the mirror, admiring their own reflection. We saw last year’s AMBR winner in bare metal, and it was absolutely stunning. This year? There were a few builds that could easily walk away with the trophy—if and when they ever get finished.
Homebuilt Hauler With An Attitude
It often takes a serious challenge to test a person’s capabilities. After years of driving a string of performance cars, Terry Short wanted something different sitting in his North Tonawanda, New York, garage. So, he set out and found this ’55 Chevy big-window pickup in an apple orchard. He just knew he had met his challenge.
Terry Short’s ’55 Chevy pickup has a just-right rake, a monochromatic finish on a super-smooth body and a potent big-block Chevy. All these elements combine to make this Hot Rod Red truck a perfect cruising machine. Short’s goal was to build a truck that if you couldn’t see it, then you could certainly hear it coming. Though the roof went unchopped, the remainder of the body was extensively reworked and is devoid of chrome accessories.
DUPONT DEUCE
For many of us, the culmination of money and time spent on our street rods comes through experiences with our friends, whether it’s at the corner drive-in on the weekend or at a national event with thousands of people. It’s there we can share stories, laughs and the fruits of our labors, namely, the cars that bring us together in celebration of history, creativity and realized possibilities.
Spotlighter
The Cavalcade of Customs Thrills at the 2025 Detroit Autorama
Stunning Builds, Fierce Competition, and Pure Automotive Passion
If you weren’t at the 2025 Detroit Autorama, you missed out on a pure, unfiltered dose of horsepower, chrome, and custom car insanity. From February 28 to March 2, Huntington Place (yeah, the old Cobo Hall) became ground zero for everything loud, fast, and meticulously built. And smack in the middle of it all? The Cavalcade of Customs—a no-holds-barred showcase of the wildest, cleanest, and most mind-blowing custom rides the country has to offer.
Author
The Auto Builder Staff
Photography by Julie & John Aschenberg
A Showroom Full of Dreams (and Horsepower)
Walking through the Cavalcade of Customs was like stepping into a gearhead fever dream. Every car on display had something special—whether it was an over-the-top candy paint job, some wicked metal fabrication, or a fire-breathing big-block crammed under the hood. The lineup had everything from old-school hot rods to cutting-edge builds, all dialed in to perfection. If you’ve ever spent hours in the garage, dreaming up the ultimate custom machine, this was the place to see those dreams turned into reality.
Awards, Glory, and Bragging Rights
Of course, it wouldn’t be Autorama without competition, and the Cavalcade of Customs brought out some of the best builds vying for top honors. The Ridler Award? Yeah, that’s the big one, and the competition was as brutal as ever. Every builder brought their A-game, hoping to take home a trophy—and eternal bragging rights.
More Than Just Cars—It’s a Culture
But here’s the thing—Autorama isn’t just about cars. It’s about the people who build, drive, and love them. The Cavalcade of Customs isn’t just a show floor full of metal and rubber; it’s a gathering of the hardcore, the obsessed, and the passionate. Swapping stories, sharing techniques, and getting inspired for the next big build is what this scene is all about.
Until Next Year…
As the last engines rumbled out of Huntington Place, one thing was clear—the 2025 Detroit Autorama delivered once again. If this year’s Cavalcade of Customs was any indication, 2026 is going to be even bigger, wilder, and packed with more horsepower than ever. So if you missed it this time, don’t make that mistake again. See you in Detroit next year!
