First thing I did at SEMA yesterday was walk on to the show floor and check if our custom Ford Flex was really there. You see, last time I saw it, the interior looked like an explosion in a computer factory: wires dangling everywhere, bare metal exposed, seats and panels missing. That was Saturday afternoon.
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I wasn't too worried -- after all, the guys swarming around the car at Galpin Auto Sports were the same crew who regularly pulled off down-to-the-wire builds on "Pimp My Ride." But it was a little tricky explaining to the folks at Ford that they couldn't have any photos or videos of the Motor Trend Flex yet because it wasn't -- er -- actually finished, even though it needed to be on a truck to Las Vegas in less than 24 hours.
The Motor Trend Flex is one of a swarm of custom Flexes here at SEMA -- big, boxy, and unconventionally elegant; Ford's new crossover is the perfect blank canvas for all manner of automotive artistry. Our colleagues at Hot Rod have done one in matte red with a silver metalflake roof and Moon discs, evoking the classic Hot Rod/Motor Trend haul vehicles that worked the Bonneville Salt Flats in the '50s and '60s; the guys at Heavy Hitters have one that's been turbo'd and slammed, with licorice-strip tires on 24-in. wheels, and a Chanel-meets-German-bordello interior.
The vision for "our" Flex was simple: ground-based private jet. We wanted a classy, understated exterior, and an interior with clear differentiation between the "cockpit" and the "cabin." Right from the beginning this was intended to be a luxury ride for two -- removing the second and third row seats, and replacing them with a pair of airline-style recliners was a key element of the concept brief we gave to the team at Galpin Auto Sports.
Why Galpin? Well, Galpin and Motor Trend go way back. Located in what was the heart of the booming postwar hot rod and custom car scene, Van Nuys-based Galpin, the world's highest-volume Ford dealer, began selling mildly customized cars in the 1950s. The very first "Galpinized" car -- a 1952 Ford with a Lincoln front end and Mercury bumpers -- appeared on the cover of the June 1953 issue of Motor Trend. Later, Galpin did land-office business installing aftermarket sunroofs, kickstarted the custom van craze, and began fitting out 4x4 vehicles with everything from winches and wheels to lights and rollbars.
Galpin Auto Sports, which offers everything from straightforward wheel and tire swaps, to major performance, interior, and bodywork upgrades, builds on that tradition, but has been turbocharged into a stand-alone operation following its debut as the home of the fourth season of MTV's "Pimp My Ride." If anyone could deliver our ground-based private jet in the limited time available, it was these guys.
The first design brief was conducted inside the semi-stripped shell of a triple-black Flex Limited. I explained I wanted just two seats in the rear, and a clear differentiation between interior trim at the front of the vehicle, and the rear. It was during the discussion about in-vehicle entertainment that a defining decision was made -- there would be a hard partition between the two cabins, and the giant TV screen mounted in the center would allow passengers to view the road ahead, or see the driver, via remote cameras. Finding a place for the on-board fridge drove a second major decision -- the right-hand front seat would be removed, and a luggage storage area would be fabricated around the fridge. The cockpit would retain the standard Ford black trim, but the Limited's woodgrain highlights would be changed to glossy piano black. The rear cabin would be fully leather lined, in a combination of pale cream, tan, and dark brown.
The concept for the exterior was straightforward. I wanted all the chrome trim to be changed to match the brushed-aluminum look of the Flex Limited tailgate panel. I wanted aftermarket wheels that would also have the brushed-aluminum look, and I wanted ultra-dark tint on the windows to link the black roof and body, and to emphasize the Flex's unique form. Oh, and I wanted the Ford Blue Oval badges redone in black.
I spent a half hour or so walking around the car yesterday as the staging crews worked to set up the hundreds of SEMA Show stands, and I have to say I think the Galpin Auto Sports guys nailed it. The Motor Trend Flex looks restrained and sophisticated on the outside. Open the doors, though and ...wow! It's like a secret world in there.
The Motor Trend Flex has been attracting plenty from the passing crowds since the SEMA Show opened. Rapper, singer, actor Nelly even swung by for a quick guided tour earlier. We'll give you all a closer look at the car once we get it back from SEMA, into a studio, and properly photographed. Stay tuned.
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t fascinated by cars. My father was a mechanic, and some of my earliest memories are of handing him wrenches as he worked to turn a succession of down-at-heel secondhand cars into reliable family transportation. Later, when I was about 12, I’d be allowed to back the Valiant station wagon out onto the street and drive it around to the front of the house to wash it. We had the cleanest Valiant in the world.
I got my driver’s license exactly three months after my 16th birthday in a Series II Land Rover, ex-Australian Army with no synchro on first or second and about a million miles on the clock. “Pass your test in that,” said Dad, “and you’ll be able to drive anything.” He was right. Nearly four decades later I’ve driven everything from a Bugatti Veyron to a Volvo 18-wheeler, on roads and tracks all over the world. Very few people get the opportunity to parlay their passion into a career. I’m one of those fortunate few.
I started editing my local car club magazine, partly because no-one else would do it, and partly because I’d sold my rally car to get the deposit for my first house, and wanted to stay involved in the sport. Then one day someone handed me a free local sports paper and said they might want car stuff in it. I rang the editor and to my surprise she said yes. There was no pay, but I did get press passes, which meant I got into the races for free. And meet real automotive journalists in the pressroom. And watch and learn.
It’s been a helluva ride ever since. I’ve written about everything from Formula 1 to Sprint Car racing; from new cars and trucks to wild street machines and multi-million dollar classics; from global industry trends to secondhand car dealers. I’ve done automotive TV shows and radio shows, and helped create automotive websites, iMags and mobile apps. I’ve been the editor-in-chief of leading automotive media brands in Australia, Great Britain, and the United States. And I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. The longer I’m in this business the more astonished I am these fiendishly complicated devices we call automobiles get made at all, and how accomplished they have become at doing what they’re designed to do. I believe all new cars should be great, and I’m disappointed when they’re not. Over the years I’ve come to realize cars are the result of a complex interaction of people, politics and process, which is why they’re all different. And why they continue to fascinate me.Read More