Tag: Joel Rosen

Vintage 1969 Baldwin-Motion Phase-III SS-427 Supercars PDF Catalog Booklet

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SUDDENLY It’s 1969! A Blast From the Past Baldwin-Motion Supercar Catalog

You can download your PDF booklet HERE.

My automotive coming-of-age started in 1965 when I saw a 1965 Sting Ray in a local Chevrolet dealer’s showroom. By the time the Mako-Shark-inspired 1968 Corvette came out, I was a full-blown motorhead. I thought the Mako Shark-II was the most beautiful car ever made. Although the 1968 Corvette wasn’t exactly the Shark show car, I loved it!

I was just in junior high school and was the only one in my family with an interest in performance cars. My way of keeping up with the burgeoning muscle car scene was through “Hi-Performance CARS Magazine”. My local small-town pharmacy had a huge newsstand rack with almost every car magazine published. And I knew what week the various titles came out.

One day in early 1969 on the newsstand, I spotted the screaming yellow Corvette on the cover with the cover copy saying something like, “Baldwin-Motion Phase III SS-427 Corvette Supercar!” As much as I loved the new Corvette, I loved the Phase III Corvette better! It had flared wheel wells and deep-dish Cragar Mags shod with FAT L60-15 tires. Atop of the stock 427 hood bulge was a ’67 Stinger hood scoop and a Pontiac hood-mounted tach. Finishing the setup was a set of 1965-1967 Corvette side pipes. WOW!

In the back of the magazine, there was an ad for a Baldwin-Motion catalog, for one dollar! I sent away for it and a few weeks later, my carpals and I were pouring over the catalog and bench racing how we would order our own personal Baldwin-Motion Supercar!

I still have that catalog today. So, before it gets lost or fades and falls apart, I thought I should make a PDF version to share. The 1969 Phase III SS-427 Corvette started at around $7,000, or around $51,000 in 2021 dollars. Today these cars are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. As Marty Schorr told me once, “Joel and I had no idea these cars would be worth this much, and over 50 years later, people still love them!”

As Marty used to say in his editorials in CARS Magazine, “Nuff said!” – Scott

PS – You can access the entire collection of Corvette E-Booklets and the Duntov Files HERE.

Hanspeter Boehi’s REBORN 1965 Mako Shark-II Corvette – VIDEO

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Hanspeter Boehi from Muenchenstein, Switzerland builds a spot-on replica of the most important concept Corvette ever!

Dateline 2-4-18, Photos by Hans Peter Bohi and GM Archives – This article first appeared in the April 2018 issue of Vette Magazine.

The 1965/1966 Mako Shark-II set down the basic look and proportion for all Corvettes going forward. To understand the Mako Shark-II, we have to get into the mind of GM VP of Design, Bill Mitchell. His task was to see the future and then pull it into reality through his designers and stylists. Mitchell didn’t “draw” a single line of either the Sting Ray or Mako Shark-II, but he knew what he wanted.

The 1982 Collector Edition Corvette finned aluminum wheels are a dead-ringer for the wheels used on the Mako Shark-II and are shod with period-correct Firestone racing tires.

Here’s how Bill commanded his troops; he wanted, “…a narrow, slim, center section and coupe body, a tapered tail, an all-of-a-piece blending of the upper and lower portions of the body through the center (avoiding the look of a roof added to a body), and prominent wheels with their protective fenders distinctly separate from the main body, yet grafted organically to it.”

Mitchell was almost there with the 1962 Monza GT. After the design was nailed down, a full-size, non-running version was built and shown to management in March 1965. It was unanimous; the Mako Shark-II HAD TO BE the next Corvette.

While many of Mitchell’s designed cars had a heavy Italian accent, the Mako Shark-II was a one-of-a-kind original and after 50-plus years is still as head-turner, as Hanspeter’s replica proves!

Continue reading “

Hanspeter Boehi’s REBORN 1965 Mako Shark-II Corvette – VIDEO” →

1969 Baldwin-Motion Phase-III GT Corvette SOLD for $95,000! – VIDEO

Published on by Scott

A genuine Corvette supercar, a Baldwin-Motion Phase-III GT Corvette has a new home!

Dateline: 1.12.18, Image – Mecum Auction – One of the 10 Baldwin-Motion Phase-III GT Corvettes went “On The Block” today at the 2018 Mecum Kissimmee Auction. This was the only Phase-III GT Corvette built with the Shelby Mustang-style B-pillar scoops. The car was also featured many times in Marty Schorr’s “Hi-Performance CARS Magazine”, as well as “Corvette Fever” and “Chevy Rumble”.

Back in the day, this was a SUPER expensive custom car. In 1969 a fully-loaded 427/435 Corvette cost just over $6,000 – as much as a Cadillac! A Phase-III-GT could easily cost over $12,000! Continue reading “

1969 Baldwin-Motion Phase-III GT Corvette SOLD for $95,000! – VIDEO” →

The Motion Performance Experience – Part II

Published on by Scott

An Intimate Conversation With Martyn “Marty” L. Schorr and Joel “Mr. Motion” Rosen – Co-Founders of the Baldwin-Motion Supercars
Dateline: 8.10.17 / Photos:  Martyn L. Schorr & K. Scott Teeters’ Baldwin Motion Magazine Archives, Mecum Auctions, Dan McMichaels, & Google Maps – Part one of my 2013 Far Out Radio conversation with Marty Schorr and Joel Rosen is in the July 2017 issue of Vette Vues can be enjoyed HERE. The year 2017 marks the 50th Anniversary of the Baldwin Motion Experience. Before we get into the rest of my 2013 conversation with Marty and Joel I’d like to share an anecdotal story about setting up the interview.

I have known Marty Schorr since 1976, just after he started “VETTE Quarterly”, the first Corvette-only, newsstand publication. I’ve had numerous conversations with Joel since around 2000 and always found him to be polite, but very reserved. When I asked Marty if he’s like to me on my radio program he said, “Sure, I’d be happy to.” When I asked Joel, he said, “Well, okay, but I don’t really have that much to say. How long is the interview?” I told him I did a one-hour show and without the commercials and bumper music, we have around 45 minutes to talk. He said, “Oh… I really don’t have that much to say, Scott. Really.” So, I assured him that if he ran out of things to say, Marty would fill in the rest. When the show started, Joel was reserved, as usual, but quickly loosen up. Before I knew it, he was seriously bench racing! As the host of the show I carefully watch the clock. When I said, “Well guys, we’re just about out of time, Joel said, “What! We just got started!” That’s just what happens when car guys get to bench racing.
Continue reading “

The Motion Performance Experience – Part II” →

An intimate conversation with Baldwin-Motion Phase-III Chevy Supercar Creators, Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen – Pt.1

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Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen set the story straight and tell how the Baldwin-Motion Phase III Supercar Experience came together. (4 Videos)

Dateline: 7.19.17 – This interview appeared in the July 2017 issue of Vette Vues Magazine. Part 2 coming soon! – Marty Schorr is the former editor of CARS Magazine, the founder of Vette Magazine, and is the current editor and chief of CarGuyChrolicles.com, and PMPR, an automotive public relations form. Joel Rosen is the former owner of Motion Performance, on Long Island, in New York, and currently owns and runs Motion Models, a world-renowned, scale military model company in Florida.

In June 2013 I had the pleasure of interviewing Marty and Joel on my radio program, “Far Out Radio.” And now, you get to read the story from the guys that made it happen – Marty Schorr and Joel “Mr. Motion” Rosen. The guys created a legend and we’re still talking about it over 50 years later!

You can enjoy Part 2 of this conversation, HERE.

Scott: Marty, Joel, welcome to the program.

Marty & Joel: Scott, we’re here, we’re here! (laughs)

Scott: Great to have you here all the way from Florida. You never thought it would go this long, did ya? (laughs)

Joel: I never thought I’d live this long!

Marty: (Laughing) We never thought it would go past the 1970s!
Scott: Really? And here you are, my goodness. So, now that I have you both here, I’m curious before we get into the story, have you ever been on a radio program like this together, talking about what you have done?

Joel: Oh yes, we’ve done a few programs and some television shows. A number of television shows.

Marty: Yea, we’ve done it and we’re still not tired of each other, which is amazing. (laughs)

Joel: That’s what he says! (both guys laughing)

Scott: It sounds like you are both soul brothers to me. So, were you guys bench racing over some beers, or which one of you came up with the Baldwin-Motion idea first? How did this all get started? Continue reading “

An intimate conversation with Baldwin-Motion Phase-III Chevy Supercar Creators, Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen – Pt.1″ →

Motion Performance Survivor Story: Dave Ankenbauer’s 1972 Phase-III 454 ZL-X Corvette

Published on by Scott

Vietnam Vet and Paraplegic, Dave Ankenbauer got one of the BADDEST Baldwin Motion street 454 Phase III Corvettes ever built!

By K. Scott Teeters.
Photos by Dave Belk and the Family of Dave Ankenbauer

Dateline: 6-22-17 (This story was first published in the March 2012 issue of Vette Vues Magazine) – Dave Belk is a car guy with a taste for supercars – Baldwin Motion supercars that is. Belk is the owner of QC Networks, manufacturer of school gymnasium supplies, in Wheatland, Iowa. Car guys love to troll the internet, looking for interesting cars for sale. That’s how Dave found his latest supercar, a one-owner, Baldwin-Motion 1972 Phase-III 454 Corvette that had been in a garage since 1985 – nearly 26 years! What Belk didn’t realize was that he had just entered into the world of a most unusual and unique young man that is no longer with us.
Our young patriot’s name was Dave Ankenbauer, from Covington, Kentucky. In 1969, at the young age of 18, Ankenbauer enlisted into the United States Marine Corps and after basic training, it was off to South East Asia, Vietnam in-country. Dave Ankenbauer was a decorated foot soldier and a good sharpshooter. About a year into his service, Dave was shot in the back during a fire fight and left paralyzed. Needless to say, Dave also received a Purple heart. Dave Ankenbauer’s sister, Darla Sharp Ankenbauer described her brother this way. “He was extremely fearless, outgoing, and a huge risk taker. Right after he was paralyzed, Dave took a trip to Thailand, by himself. He was worry free and a very giving person. He was a true free spirit – a man’s man.”

Continue reading “

Motion Performance Survivor Story: Dave Ankenbauer’s 1972 Phase-III 454 ZL-X Corvette” →

Corvette Timeline Tales: Aug 16, 1969, Astoria-Chas 1967 L88 Corvette Sets A/Sports Production Nat’l Record

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August 16, 1969 – AHRA Summer Nationals, at the New York National Speedway, John Mahler drives the Astoria-Chas 1967 L88 Corvette to a A/Sports Production class record.

Dateline: 8.16.15 – Charlie Snyder was a car crazy Long Island teenager who came of age when Joel Rosen and Marty Schorr launched their Baldwin-Motion Phase III Supercars. Schorr was also editor of CARS Magazine, so the enterprise also got plenty of ink via road tests, how-to tech features, and advertising. Snyder bought a new Marlboro Maroon ’67 427/435 Roadster and quickly turned in into a street racer, then a drag car.

4-Astoria-Chas-1967-Corvette-SM

Unfortunately, Charlie was drafted and killed in Vietnam, but his friends back home fulfilled his dream by setting a national record with his “Ko-Motion Astoria-Chas” Corvette, with an 11.04 @ 129-mph run. Later, John Mahler ran a 10.47 et at a local track. Then the car was trailered to Chas’ sister’s house, garaged, and covered for the next 31 years! The car was eventually sold to businessman Glen Spielberg who was just a wee lad living on Long Island when Charlie’s car was spending lots of time at the Motion performance shop. Spielberg bought the car from the Snyder family with the promise that he would never restore or race the car. Continue reading “

Corvette Timeline Tales: Aug 16, 1969, Astoria-Chas 1967 L88 Corvette Sets A/Sports Production Nat’l Record” →

Buy A Part of Motion Performance History – Motion Moray Eel on eBay!!!

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The One-and-Only Motion Moray Eel Can BE YOURS For $600,000!

Motion-Moray-Corvette-1-72
Dateline: 7.19.15  Little did Joel Rosen and Marty Schorr know back in 1967 when they started their Baldwin-Motion Phase III Supercars experiences that almost 50 years later the cars they offered would become SO valuable! Lots of Phase III Motion cars were built and only Joel knows for sure the exact number. However, Rosen’s real passion was for the Phase III Corvettes, and more specifically, his “Shark” Corvettes.  Continue reading “

Buy A Part of Motion Performance History – Motion Moray Eel on eBay!!!” →

Dr. Rollings’ 1971 Phase III GT Corvette “The Most Expensive of All the Motion Corvettes”

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Baldwin Motion Phase III GT Corvette Survivor!!!

ICS_II_No-204-1971-Rollings-Phase-III-GT-TNDate: 5.2.14 – Time has been kind to the Baldwin Motion Supercars. Today, complete and restored Motion cars are very valuable. Yenko cars have the pedigree of being COPO cars, but unlike the Phase III cars, they could not be personalized. Enter Joel Rosen, Marty Schorr, and the Baldwin Motion experience.

Rosen was the owner of Motion Performance in Baldwin, New York and Schorr was the editor of CARS Magazine (and founder of VETTE). The young men conceived of offering custom-built supercars through local dealer, Baldwin Chevrolet. Rosen knew how to build a Chevy muscle car into a dependable, supercar, with performance over-and-above the factory level. Joel spun the wrenches and Marty spun the spin. Schorr kept the sizzle hot with CARS Magazine “special road tests,” in-your-face ads, special features, and catalogs. A Motion supercar was guaranteed to run the quarter-mile in 11.5-seconds with a qualified driver. When a customer took delivery of their Phase III supercar, they were driving a custom-made supercar. It was all very heady stuff.

Rosen’s higher vision was to offer an American GT machine based on the big-block Corvette. Joel started with his basic 500-plus horsepower Phase III Corvette and added custom bodywork that included a fastback rear window that opened up the rear cargo area of the C3 Corvette. The car was christened the “Phase III GT.” A “regular” Phase III Corvette was already a beast, but if you wanted the next level, the Phase III GT offered all the performance hardware, plus unique, head-turning custom bodywork. The Phase III GT Corvette was Rosen’s vision of the ultimate Motion car for customers with deep pockets. Rosen expected to produce 10-to-12 Phase III GT Corvettes a year, but only made 12 cars from ‘69 to ‘71. Continue reading “Dr. Rollings’ 1971 Phase III GT Corvette “The Most Expensive of All the Motion Corvettes”” →

The Baldwin Motion Experience with Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen on Far Out Radio!!!

Published on by Scott

Dateline: 4.24.13

Listen to Archived Show – Click Here

Schorr-Rosen-FB-Graphic-72It’s a Friday Night Car Show at Far Out Radio! Our guests are Marty Schorr and Joel Rosen. Marty is the former editor of CARS Magazine, founder of VETTE Magazine, editor and chief of CarGuychronicles.com, and owns PMPR, an automotive public relations business. Joel Rosen is the former owner of Motion Performance and currently owns and runs Motion Models, a world renown scale military model company.

Back in the ‘60s, Marty Schorr was the editor of CARS Magazine and Joel Rosen was the owner of Motion Performance. Schorr and Rosen became friends and Motion Performance was CARS Magazine’s “special projects” shop. The two creative guys came up with a Chevy supercar concept, not unlike Carroll Shelby’s Ford Shelby Mustangs, only at a local level.

Baldwin Chevrolet was a local Mom & Pop Chevy dealership on Long Island. Schorr and Rosen pitched the concept of offering supercar versions of new Chevy muscle cars purchased through Baldwin Chevrolet. Rosen designed a near-bullet-proof parts package and took care of the assembly. The team created the Baldwin Motion “look” and Schorr took care of the branding, advertising, catalogs, and PR.

Rosen spun the wrenches and Schorr spun the spin. The cars had drop-dead, in-your-face aggressive good looks to go with their ground-pounding performance – all with a 100% Chevy warrantee!

The guys created a legend that still being talked about 45 years later! Survivor Baldwin Motion Supercars are today VERY valuable.

Continue reading “The Baldwin Motion Experience with Marty Schorr & Joel Rosen on Far Out Radio!!!” →

NEW Motion Performance Corvettes Tribute Art Print

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Dateline: 1.29.1

A Salute to the AWESOME, highly collectible, Baldwin Motion Corvettes

In November 2011 there were a few automotive bomb shells dropped on the MCACN Muscle Car Show. Namely three unique Baldwin Motion Corvettes. One Survivor Phase III 454 Corvette, one restored Motion Mako Shark Corvette, and one garage/barn find Corvette, the ‘76 Can-Am Spyder.

The survivor car is known as the “Ankenbauer Phase III 454 Corvette. The car is currently owned by Dave Belk and is just an amazing Motion survivor car. I have a feature story on this Motion Phase III 454 Corvette coming out in Vette Vues Magazine in a few weeks. After publication, I’ll post the story here. The car is jaw-dropping and the owner’s story rocks!

Dan McMichael is a collector of Motion Corvettes. His latest finished Motion car is the 1970 Motion Maco Shark Corvette. There are many configurations of the Mako design. Both Silva and Motion produced customer Macos AND sold the body kits. This car was built by Motion Performance, according to the customer’s specifications. The restoration of this car is said to be “STUNNING!” From the photos I’ve seen, that adjective is spot on.

And Dan McMichaels scores a second stunner. This might be the most amazing Corvette barn find ever. The car was discovered by Maryland State legislator Rick Impallaria when he was clearing out cars and hardware after evicting a tenant from the auto body shop he was renting. Stashed away was the hulk of an unusual Corvette. Rick was told that the car might be the remains of a Motion Can-Am Spyder Corvette. Rick did some inquiries, including to our sister site, www.BaldwinMotionReport.com, as to what the Corvette community thought this hulk might have been. Turns out it was one of three yellow Can-Am Spyder Corvettes built. And now it’s Dan McMichaels. If anyone will “do right” by the Can-Am Spyder, it’ll be Dan! Continue reading “NEW Motion Performance Corvettes Tribute Art Print” →

1974 Maco Shark Corvette Build Project

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Dateline: 1.21.1

So, you want to build yourself a Maco Corvette? Get your work clothes!

We were very pleased with the response to our Mako Shark Attack Week from the beginning of January 2012. I first saw the Mako Shark-II back in ‘66 and thought it was the most stunning car I’d ever seen. It looked like what I had imagined “cars from the future” would look like. Obviously, I wasn’t the only one that was touched, moved, and inspired.

The Cliff Notes version of the Mako Shark-II story is this. Chevrolet blows minds with the non-running Mako Shark-II at the  New York World’s Fair in 1965. The crowds went wild and told Chevrolet, “We want one!” And Chevrolet said, “We’ll get right on it!” The running Mako Shark-II with it’s big 427 big-block engine was just “out’a sight!” But when the Mako Shark-II-inspired ‘68 Corvette came out, some said, “What’s that? That’s not a Mako Shark!” One guy took it upon himself to build his own Mako Shark-II body for the new Corvette. John Silva’s “Maco Shark” Corvette body kit filled the void that Chevrolet created. Silva’s Maco kit got the attention of Motion Performance’s Joel Rosen, who had recently unleashed his Phase III GT Corvette, and was looking for something even more exotic to offer his Motion customers. Rosen and Silva made a deal and the rest is history. Motion and Silva made a few turnkey Maco Sharks and sold LOTS of body kits and parts.

Same basic body kit as the photo on the top. Who knows what happened, but something went terribly wrong with this poor Maco Shark.

The kit car industry has come a long way since the ‘60s when Meyers-Manx, Fiberfab, Silva, Motion, and others were selling kits. The nature of kits cars is that most are never completed, with electrical issues usually being the number one issue. What it comes down to is that for a kit car to turn out great, you need excellent craftsmen and a fair amount of cash. A fully-functional kit car can be as complicated as a manufactured car. Continue reading “1974 Maco Shark Corvette Build Project” →