It\u2019s a very popular show with designers; and considering this year\u2019s motif, I figured it would be cool to hear from those who have Dodge in their blood.<\/p>\n The 1989 Dodge Viper R\/T 10 prototype was definitely a standout. The original Viper is a talisman of sorts for Dodge.<\/p>\n \u201cSeeing the original Viper concept car. It\u2019s one of the reasons I\u2019m at the company today as I remember seeing it when it was introduced. And, my involvement with the gen 5 Viper would never have happened if not for it. Every time I see it, it hits me.\u201d This from Mark Trostle, head of design for Dodge and SRT\u00ae<\/sup>.<\/p>\n Ren Stone, a designer whose work on the Hellcat Charger\u2019s mean exterior was integral in its development, told me before about why he wanted to join FCA\u2019s design team, and it had everything to do with seeing a Viper sitting in a dealership down in Miami, Florida, as a kid. And it all started with this red prototype.<\/p>\n There was a \u201967 Plymouth GTX that grabbed Ren too, just as it had me and my wife, Darla, although for different reasons. The incredible \u201cSilver Bullet\u201d is a piece of Woodward history. It began as a regular Belvedere GTX that Chrysler sold to a mechanic named Jimmy Addison as a sort of secretly factory-backed street\/strip car. I dig it because it ran mid tens in street trim! Darla loved the gorgeous silver finish. Ren went outside of the box: \u201cI\u2019ve got this thing for black engine bays, especially on non-black cars. I hope one day we can have all black engine bays again. The contrast allows for the engine to look like a jewel being presented to you. It looks so special, especially with a HEMI\u00ae<\/sup> Orange engine block sitting in there.\u201d That HEMI, by the way, is a built-to-the-tilt 487-cubic-inch monster.<\/p>\n Sitting next to the GTX was an earlier car of the same ilk, and one of Mark\u2019s favorites, a 1965 Plymouth Belvedere Super Stock R051. \u201cTo me, the (current Dodge Challenger SRT) Demon is a modern version of this car!\u201d These cars were built to kill the NHRA\u2019s Super Stock class. The sheet metal was actually acid dipped, there were no rear seats, and it had aluminum door hinges and lightweight bumper brackets to help drop pounds. The factory lightweight also had a HEMI 426 set to destroy.<\/p>\n FCA\u2019s head of global design, and former Dodge boss, Ralph Gilles, was really into the wild things that looked like they might take flight at any given moment. \u201cI loved the rocket-inspired cars, the Cadillac Cyclone and the Chrysler Turbine!\u201d While the Cyclone was inspired by jets and rocket design like so much of Harley Earl\u2019s work in the \u201950s, the Chrysler is actually powered by a jet engine. The Turbine car is one of 9 surviving examples of Chrysler\u2019s mid-century research and development on turbine-powered automobiles. Did you know they used to drive them cross country, and even loan these cars to the public as part of that program? At the first Cars and Coffee at the Chrysler Museum a couple of years ago, the organizers kind of gave a nod to that tradition, as Ralph gave rides in the Turbine car to some lucky folks.<\/p>\n In explaining his draw to the jet-era cars, Ren gave this apropo response, \u201c…jets represented America\u2019s industrial supremacy and people\u2019s excitement for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n Darla and I didn\u2019t stay too long, as the heat index wasn\u2019t kind. Still, the show was fascinating! EyesOn Design is also a terrific organization, here\u2019s a bit more on them and what they\u2019re working to accomplish.<\/p>\n \u201cEyesOn Design has raised over $4 million for the Detroit Institute of Ophthalmology<\/a> (DIO), the research arm of the Henry Ford Health System<\/a> Department of Ophthalmology. The DIO supports the visually impaired and blind of southeastern Michigan and organizes two leading world research congresses. A benefit for Henry Ford Health System’s Detroit Institute of Ophthalmology, EyesOn Design is a major source of funding for the DIO’s research, education and support group programs for the visually impaired. The DIO is a division of the Department of Ophthalmology of the non-profit Henry Ford Health System.”<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.dodgegarage.com\/news-api\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/eyes-on-design-001.jpg\")
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