As is probably the case with many of you, 2009 was quite a challenging year. There have been a few bumps in the road relative to our proposed move, but on the whole we’ve made good progress on many fronts and look forward to 2010 with a great deal of great anticipation. I can also reflect with great pride on being named to the HRIA (SEMA’s Hot Rod Industry Alliance) Hall of Fame as well as the Washington State Hot Rod Hall of Fame. I am overwhelmed at being in the company of many of the industry’s all-time greats. I can only thank the staff here at AME and our valued customers for making this happen.
At the 2009 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Art Morrison was named to the Hot Rod Industry Alliance Hall of Fame. Making the presentation were HRIA Chairman Dennis Overholzer (left) and HRIA Chairman-elect Rick Love (right). The HRIA is the SEMA council that serves the hot rod industry. photo by Bill Holland
One key accomplishment this past year was the introduction of the longawaited 1949-1954 Chevrolet chassis to our GT Sport line.
Featuring an all-new suspension design, the slalom course times our prototype achieved were nothing short of spectacular. Street Rodder magazine also used this chassis under their 2009 Road Tour car -- which has racked up over 20,000 miles this past year going from one end of the country and back again.
As it has all of the body mounts, bumper mounts and engine/trans mounts already fixture-welded in place, it is a great swap for the home builder and one that will dramatically enhance the ride and drivability of this readily available and still affordable car. For those with a 1st Generation Camaro and are looking to go the full frame route, we now have something for you! While we have had the Max-G Musclecar chassis for a few years now, we wanted to make things easier for all the home-builders out there. Utilizing our front and rear subframe design and connecting the two together we now have a full frame option without the hassle of having to remove your whole floor. It is the same basic concept as our front and rear subframes with the addition of our subframe connectors, but this chassis features a unique tapered rail design to connect the subframes together and to add critical strength to the driver’s cabin.
For those who are looking for custom ride heights, unique suspension options or anything out of the ordinary the standard Max-G Musclecar chassis will still be the way to go.
While Art Morrison Enterprises is best known for building individual chassis to customer specs, AME is also capable of producing chassis and components in bulk quantities for private label applications.
Towards spring of 2010 we will be coming out with an all-new chassis for the Chevelle. There have been lots of requests from our customers on a replacement, and this has become a priority for our engineering team. Due to the OEM floor design it has been a real challenge, but we have come up with some creative solutions to create a more rigid, better fitting chassis. Our biggest concern was to not have the chassis hang too far down below the pinchweld on the body. With the design we have come up with the rail profile mimics the stock chassis and will be barely visible below the pinch weld. In addition to an increase in torsional rigidity over stock, the chassis’ suspension will be a dramatic improvement.
With our reengineered front suspension and our proven triangulated 4-bar rear suspension your 1968-72 Chevelle will drive like a modern day sports car. We will also have numerous options available for this chassis as well including steering rack upgrades, splined sway bars and Penske Racing Shocks. In an effort to give you more performance options with all of our chassis lines, we have teamed up with some new partners. Penske Racing Shocks is on board with their line of performance coil-overs. Whether you are looking to update a chassis you already have or want to build a track-day killer we can set your chassis up with some serious racing shocks.
Woodward power steering racks is also a new supplier with their manual and power rack and pinion steering giving us the ability to engineer some new track widths. Again for those looking for the ultimate in steering or a power unit in an unconventional size we will now be able to serve you. In addition to this, we are offering splined sway bars in a number of chassis and subframe configurations to help you fine-tune your chassis to its maximum level of performance.
We hope to consolidate all of our operations under one roof this year, but will be taking a different route than originally planned. Stay tuned to www.artmorrison.com for the latest details on our progress and moving dates.
In closing, if it wasn’t for you, our customer, we wouldn’t be in the position that we are in today. We work very hard to stay at the cutting edge of suspension design and chassis technology and to provide you with the best combination of performance and value. We appreciate your business and value your comments. Whether it is an idea for a new product or a way we can improve what we have, please feel free to share your comments with us. Your support is appreciated and please keep us in mind for your next project. Thank you!
This cool clock came from being named to the Washington State Hot Rod Hall of Fame. It will reside in an honored place at Art Morrison Enterprises’ facility.
