2006 Chevrolet Aveo

The Chevrolet Aveo replaced the Chevrolet Metro (formerly the Geo Metro) as the small car in the Chevrolet lineup, starting at under $10,000 and available as either a 5-door hatchback as shown, or as a 4-door sedan.

2006 Chevrolet Cobalt SS

For 2006, Chevrolet expanded the Cobalt's line with the naturally-aspirated Cobalt SS. All Cobalts were powered by double overhead cam inline 4-cylinder engines, but the SS sedan (shown) and coupe were powered by a 171-horsepower 2.4-liter, an upgrade over the standard 140-horsepower 2.2-liter. The SS coupe was also available with a supercharged 205-horsepower 2.0-liter.

Lobby Displays at the 2006 Portland International Auto Show

These assorted vehicles were displayed in the lobby of the Oregon Convention Center during the 2006 Portland International Auto Show in Portland, Oregon. 

This pair of Chevrolet Camaros were representing the Portland Police Bureau. The unmarked one in the background even had standard-issue Oregon license plates for extra stealth.

Here is a customized version of Chrysler's Hemi-powered, rear-wheel drive sedan, the 300, made to resemble a Bentley. It was even placed with the Bentleys out in the lobby. Pretty convincing.

Here is another customized Daimler-Chrysler product from the lobby, a Dodge Magnum.

This Lotus Elise was representing Dream Cars Northwest, Inc., a Portland company that rents luxury and exotic cars.

This customized Willys Jeep was in the lobby and may have been the oldest vehicle in the show. Its exact year is hard to determine, both due to the customizing and the fact that Jeeps do not change much from year to year, but it appears to be a CJ-3B.

This model of Jeep was introduced in 1953 and was built into the late 1960s.

Also on display in the lobby was this preview of NASCAR driver Dale Jarrett's next #88 car: a Ford Fusion, replacing the Taurus.

1957 Chevrolet Drag Car

Looks can be deceiving. Although it appears stock from the outside, this 1957 Chevrolet drag car owned by Pete Hodges is powered by a 540 cubic inch Merlin engine, coupled to a high-performance transmission and a Ford rear end. It is a combination show-and-go car. It took first place at the 2005 Portland Roadster Show, but also covers the quarter mile in 11.10 seconds.

2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06

The fastest and most powerful production vehicle ever produced by General Motors at the time, the new Corvette Z06 challenged the exotic sports cars of the world with the 505-horsepower LS7 7.0 liter V8, a 0-60 time of less than 4 seconds and a top speed of nearly 200 miles per hour, all at a bargain price: starting at $65,000.

For those on a tighter budget, the standard Corvette, with only a 400 horsepower 6.0 liter V8, started at about $20,000 less.

2006 Chevrolet SSR

Before there was the HHR, there was the SSR, Chevrolet's pickup-truck based answer to the Plymouth Prowler. The limited-production SSR is powered by the Corvette-based LS2 6.0-liter aluminum V8 and features a power retractable hardtop.

2006 Chevrolet HHR

Apparently Chevrolet couldn't let Chrysler's PT Cruiser go unchallenged forever. Enter the Heritage High Roof, or HHR. The HHR's styling is based on a 1940's Chevrolet Suburban crossed with the limited production SSR, though it is actually based on the Cobalt, available with the same 2.2-Liter & 2.4-Liter double overhead cam inline 4-cylinder engines as the Cobalt sedan with slight boosts in horsepower.

2006 Chevrolet Impala SS

 

Chevrolet revised their large sedan this year, and added the performance version, the Impala SS. The SS is powered by a 303-horsepower 5.3 liter aluminum V8 with displacement-on-demand, instead of the 2 more conventional V6s available in the lower models.

1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Townsman 4-Door Wagon

While Ford and Plymouth had all-new cars for 1957, the now-iconic 1957 Chevrolet was simply a substantial facelift, the last year of what is now known as the “Tri-Five” models introduced in 1955. The 1957 Chevrolet added two more engine options not available in 1956, for a total of seven, including five versions of the Chevrolet 283-cubic-inch V8 ranging from 185 to 283 horsepower, the most powerful featuring Ramjet mechanical fuel injection. Chevrolet offered a variety of station wagons for 1957, but the Bel Air line had only the exclusive 2-door hardtop Nomad and the 4-door 6-passenger Townsman shown here at the 2004 Clatskanie Heritage Days Car Show.

1932 Chevrolet Series BA Confederate 3-Window Deluxe Coupe All Steel

In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Chevrolet used a different model name for each year; the 1932 Chevrolet Series BA Confederate replaced the 1931 Chevrolet Series AE Independence. For 1932, the 194-cubic-inch “Stovebolt” six-cylinder inline engine featured a new downdraft carburetor and higher compression to produce 60 horsepower, up from 50 the previous year, and was now mated to a 3-speed Synchro-Mesh transmission with a Simplified Free Wheeling feature that allowed the car to coast while not pressing the accelerator. The 1932 bodies by Fisher featured a sloped non-glare windshield with no external visor above, and the hood louvers were replaced by opening vents. In 1932, the Confederate line featured two trim levels, Standard and DeLuxe. DeLuxe models are distinguished by chrome hood vents, chrome cowl lamps, and two spare wire wheels mounted on the running boards. This highly customized example at the 2004 Clatskanie Heritage Days Car Show features the cowl lamps of a DeLuxe model despite its painted vents and no spare wheels on the running boards. The 1932 Chevrolet still featured a great diesel of wood framing; many of these cars had all the wood replaced with steel framing when rebuilt as “hot rods” like this one.

Chevrolet LUV

The Chevrolet LUV pickup was a rebranded Isuzu that was introduced in America in 1972 to compete with the compact pickups by Datsun and Toyota, as well as the Ford Courier, which was a rebadged Mazda. The LUV was powered by a 1.8-liter 4-cylinder engine, rated at 75 horsepower through 1976, then rising to 80 horsepower in 1977. Originally featuring quad headlights, the LUV was restyled in 1978 as shown here, and four-wheel drive was introduced in 1979. A second-generation was introduced in 1980 alongside its Isuzu counterpart, which made its American debut in 1981. The LUV was replaced in America by the domestic-built Chevrolet S-10 in 1982, but the LUV continued in South America with the name being passed on to subsequent Isuzu designs into the 21st century. The example pictured here features aftermarket modifications including a rear axle with dual wheels and a flatbed.

1971-1972 Chevrolet Blazer

The Chevrolet Blazer was introduced in 1969 as a variation of Chevrolet's full-size pickups, which had been redesigned in 1967. An early sport-utility vehicle designed to compete with the Jeep CJ series, the International-Harvester Scout, and the Ford Bronco, the Blazer was larger than its competition, despite riding on a 104-inch wheelbase, shorter than any of Chevrolet's full-size pickups. Though introduced as a four-wheel-drive-only model in 1969, a two-wheel-drive version was introduced in 1970. The Blazer also featured a removable hardtop that covered the cab and bed; this one is shown with the hardtop removed. The Blazer had the same styling as Chevrolet's full-size trucks; the "eggcrate" grill on this example indicates it is from 1971 or 1972, the last two years of the Blazer's first generation. Originally, this Blazer would have been powered by either a 250-cubic-inch or 292-cubic-inch in-line 6-cylinder engine, or a 307-cubic-inch or 350-cubic-inch "small block" V8 engine, with the choice of a three-speed Hydromatic automatic transmission or a three-speed or four-speed manual transmission. The vanity license plate on this customized Blazer at the 1999 Eagles car show in Rainier, Oregon, indicates that is it now powered by a 427-cubic-inch "big block" V8 engine.

1952 Chevrolet Styleline Deluxe Sport Coupe

1952 was the last year for Chevrolet's 1949 redesign, which had seen only minor changes after 1950. As in the previous two years, 1953 Chevrolets were powered by a standard 92-horsepower 216-cubic-inch in-line six-cylinder engine with a 3-speed Synchro-Mesh manual transmission, or an optional 105-horsepower 235-cubic-inch in-line six-cylinder engine with the two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. The Styleline Deluxe Sport Coupe, as shown here at the 1999 Eagles Car Show in Rainier, Oregon, has always been outshined by the more exciting, but also more expensive, Styleline Deluxe Bel Air hardtop coupe. The Sport Coupe, however, was over 100 pounds lighter than the Bel Air, and looked almost identical below the bottom of the windows. Style was king in the 1950s, though, and the stylish Bel Air outsold the more conservative Deluxe Sport Coupe more than two to one in 1952. Even today, it seems one is far more likely to see a Bel Air than a Sport Coupe at a car show, which makes this Sport Coupe that much more special.

1998 Chevrolet Camaro

The fourth generation of the Chevrolet Camaro was introduced in 1993, and In 1998 the Chevrolet Camaro was given a facelift, with aerodynamic flush headlights replacing the recessed headlights that had been a Camaro trademark since the previous generation debuted in 1982. The Camaro's base engine was still the 200-horsepower 3.8-liter V6, but the Z28 and SS featured an all-new aluminum-alloy 5.7-liter LS1 small block V8. The LS1 has the same bore spacing as the LT1 it replaced, but is shorter and lighter, with longer intake runners, a winged oil pan, a .500-inch lift hydraulic roller camshaft, wider camshaft journals, and a coil for each cylinder. The LS1 is rated at 305 horsepower in the Camaro Z28, but with the ram air induction of the Camaro SS is boosted to 320 horsepower, enough to accelerate the Camaro SS from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 5.3 seconds and reach a top speed of 161 miles per hour.

1984-1987 Chevrolet M1009 CUCV Blazer

The Chevrolet M1009 CUCV Blazer was built for the United States Armed Forces from 1983 to 1986, in the 1984 to 1987 model years. Intended as a light support vehicle for the military, the M1009 differed from Chevrolet's civilian 3/4-ton four-wheel-drive K5 Blazer in several ways. Most notably, they were powered by a 155-horsepower non-emissions 6.2-liter Detroit Diesel V8 engine with a TH400 3-speed automatic transmission, and featured a hybrid electrical system that used 24 volts under the hood for the starter, dual alternators, NATO jump start receptacle, and military radio hookups, while retaining 12 volts elsewhere. They also had heavier suspension springs and, as limitary vehicles, they naturally lacked civilian features like radios and air conditioning.

The example pictured here was a retired military surplus vehicle that was acquired by the Rainier Fire Department in Rainier, Oregon, in the 1990s. It is pictured here in the 1997 Rainier Days in the Park Parade on July 12, 1997.

1997 Chevrolet Camaro

The fourth generation of the Chevrolet Camaro was introduced in 1993, and 1997 was the last year of the original styling before a major facelift. For 1997, the Camaro's base engine was a 3.8-liter V6, with the Z28 featuring a 275-horsepower 5.7-liter LT1 V8 that would accelerate the Camaro from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 6.1 seconds and reach a top speed of 155 miles per hour. 1997 was the 30th Anniversary of the Camaro, and a limited-edition 30th anniversary model was available for the Z28 in Arctic White with Hugger Orange stripes, patterned after the 1969 Camaro Z28 Indianapolis 500 Pace Car.

1997 Chevrolet Corvette

The fifth generation of the Chevrolet Corvette was new in 1997, which was big news as the previous generation dated back to 1984. The new Corvette was slightly wider and taller, and had a significantly longer wheelbase that added to the Corvette's stability. The old quad-cam V8 was replaced by a new aluminum-alloy LS1 small block V8 that produced 345 horsepower with a traditional overhead-vale pushrod design thanks to cylinder heads redesigned to maximize airflow, a composite induction system, advanced engine management and electronic fuel injection. For the first time, the Corvette featured a rear-mounted transaxle and was available with a standard four-speed automatic transmission or an optional six-speed manual. The Corvette could accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 4.7 seconds and reach a top speed of 175 miles per hour. Additional features included antilock brakes, traction control, a tire pressure monitor and run-flat tires. A convertible would debut six months after the coupe.

1963 Chevrolet Chevy II Nova 400 Convertible

Chevrolet's compact Chevy II was introduced in 1962 as a counterpart to Ford's Falcon, which had been easily outselling Chevrolet's air-cooled rear-engine compact Corvair since 1960. The Chevy II was a conventional front-engined car like the Falcon, and was powered by an in-line 4-cylinder or 6-cylinder engine. The Chevy II outsold the Falcon in 1963, though that would be the only time. The Chevy II's top trim level was the Nova 400, which was also available as a convertible, as seen here.

This 1963 Chevrolet Chevy II Nova 400 convertible was in the Days in the Park parade in Rainier, Oregon, in July 1996.

1948 Chevrolet Limousine/Car Hauler

OK, this isn't anywhere near a stock production vehicle, but it is pretty darn cool:


This Limousine/Car Hauler is based on a 1948 Chevrolet truck cab that has been stretched 11.5 feet, but the chassis is a stretched 1986 Chevrolet 1-Ton pickup chassis. Underneath the 16-foot car hauler bed is a 442-horsepower 502-cubic inch Chevrolet V8.

Inside the stretched cab is a lot of comfortable seating including captain's chairs in the front and a bar area in the back. It's hard to imagine a classier way to tow a classic car to a car show.

2010 Chevrolet Camaro SS

I've already discussed the 2010 Chevrolet Camaro in an earlier post, but here's a look at the SS version of the 2010 Camaro, spotted at Cruisin' Sherwood on June 13, 2009.

Standard equipment for the Camaro SS includes the 400-horsepower LS3 V8 engine with 400 foot-pounds of torque and a six-speed manual transmission. Options on this example include ground effects, 21-inch black wheels, and sunroof. The window-tinting and blackened emblems are aftermarket.