1964 Orbitron

The Orbitron is a bubble top show car built by Ed "Big Daddy" Roth in 1964. The car was designed by Ed "Newt" Newton. Newt designed the Orbitron to look like a slingshot dragster with space-age influences. The car's distinctive nose incorporated a set of red, green, and blue lights. The lights were intended to function like television tubes, which, when illuminated together, would create a strong white light beam. Dirty Doug and Dick Cook assisted Ed in the building process.

Under the hood, the Orbitron featured the engine from Ed Roth's own 1955 Chevrolet daily driver. The 283 motor was painted blue and dressed up with Corvette valve covers and three chromed Stromberg 97's. The engine was hooked to a Powerglide two-speed transmission. The rear end came from a 1956 Chevrolet. The frame was hand-made out of 2x4 inch rectangular tubes. The front of the frame featured a handmade four-bar setup with a cross-leaf spring on a suicide perch. The front axle was a dropped early Ford V8-60 tube axle with finned Buick drums and Lincoln brakes. Everything was chrome plated by Model Plating in Bell Gardens. The car ran on Astro slotted chrome wheels wearing single-groove Inglewood whitewall cheater slicks and Cal Custom fake knockoff caps.

Source: CarStyling; Wikipedia; WheelsAge