‘fabulous Fiberglass’ Class Debuts At Eyeson Design

For the first time at EyesOn Design, handcrafted postwar fiberglass specials will debut in a class called “Fabulous Fiberglass” on Sunday June 21^st, 2026 at Ford House in Detroit, Michigan. The class is being curated by Geoff Hacker and Mike Puma of Undiscovered Classics. The cars on display will represent a wide range of sports cars, sport customs, boulevard cruisers and even an economy car designed and built by the legendary sports and race car manufacturer Allard Motorcars.  Cars lined up to be on the field include:

• 1952 Glasspar G2: Designed by Bill Tritt of the renowned Glasspar boat company of Costa Mesa, California. The Glasspar G2 was first shown to the public at the Petersen Motorama in 1951 and soon captivated sports car enthusiasts across America with a feature in Life Magazine in early 1952. With less than 100 produced, two restored G2s are expected on the EyesOn Design field.

• 1953 Maverick Sportster:  An incredibly rare, postwar American boulevard cruiser famed for being America’s last boattail speedster. Designed by retired aeronautical engineer H. Sterling “Smoke” Gladwin Jr., it was built using early fiberglass composite technology. Just three examples exist today.

• 1953 Woodill Wildfire: The Wildfire is a pioneering American sports car famous as one of the first fiberglass-bodied cars in the world, predating both the Chevrolet Corvette and the Kaiser Darrin. Conceived by Dodge and Willys dealer “Woody” Woodill in Downey, California, it became a cultural icon of the 1950s “do-it-yourself” automotive movement and appeared in such movies as Johnny Dark, Knock on Wood and Written on the Wind. Less than 100 were produced and two restored examples are expected on the field.

• 1954 Allard Clipper: A surprising entry into the postwar automobile market by renowned Allard Motor Car company, the Clipper was targeted to the economy and family market in Great Britain.  Approximately twenty were built and three survive today. This is the only example in the USA and is making its second appearance since it completed restoration last year.

• 1955 Almquist Sabre: The Sabre is an incredibly rare, early American fiberglasssports car produced during the “forgotten fiberglass” hand-built car boom of the 1950s. Designed to be lightweight and highly customizable, it allowed enthusiasts to build their own sleek, European-inspired roadsters or track cars using various donor chassis and engines.

• 1958 Thor: One of America’s earliest VW-based sports cars, the Thor was conceived and designed by two friends, Nik Gudmunds and Jerry Ball, and named after Nik’s father Thor. Two cars were built and both survive.  The Thor was most recently displayed at the Edge Motor Museum in Memphis Tennessee and the Savoy Automobile Museum in Cartersville Georgia.

• 1959 Byers SR-100:  Italian-inspired sports car design by Jim Byers that first debuted in El Segunda, California in 1955.  In February 1957, the SR-100 was featured on the cover of Road & Track Magazine with John Bond, owner and editor of the magazine, touting the car as “The Most Beautiful Sports Car in the World.”  This recognition pushed both sales of the cars and Jim Byers’ company to introduce a second sleek design called the CR-90.

• 1961 Var:  A one-off sports car designed and built by three friends in Ohio. They formed a partnership with plans to offer two uniquely designed sports and race cars – the Var and the Piranha.  Both prototypes were built, but only the Var exists today.  The search continues for the lost Piranha prototype.

• 1966 Novetta: A one-off custom-built creation by Steve Briscoe, the car serves as a “greatest hits” homage to the small-bore independent sports racing cars of the late 1960s.  Fresh off a museum appearance in 2025 at the Savoy Automobile Museum in Cartersville, Georgia, the Novetta embodies the best of both design and craftsmanship for a car of its era.

• 1975 Meyers Manx SR: Designed by Stewart Reed for legendary Dune Buggy entrepreneur Bruce Meyers of Meyers Manx fame. The Meyers Manx SR came out with a sleek, futuristic design and innovative forward-hinging or “scissor” doors pre-dating the same door type used on the Lamborghini Countach by four years. The Manx SR continues to be one of the most popular designs of its era.

• 1976 Cimbria: The Cimbria is a rare, exotic-looking fiberglass sports car with distinctive gull-wing doors and a low, sweeping profile. Designed by automotive enthusiast Joe Palumbo and manufactured by Milwaukee-based Amore Cars, its styling was based on the Sterling sports car which made its USA debut in 1973.

Fabulous Fiberglass Symposium: Saturday February 20th, 2026

In addition to the cars on display, a symposium focusing on “Fabulous Fiberglass” will be held on Saturday June 20^th 2026 from 9am to 11am. The forum is hosted by Geoff Hacker and Mike Puma of Undiscovered Classics. During the talk, they will review the early postwar history of fiberglass sports cars in America and how the use of fiberglass contributed to the number of companies and the rapid variety of designs created. Discussions will include not only the history of the cars on the field but some of the fiberglass specials designed and built in Detroit Michigan.

You can learn more about the EyesOn Design Show, the forums and other events by visiting their website at www.eyesondesign.org

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