Foose Creates Special F-150
Customizer retains edginess as he moves to mainstream
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - The North American International Auto Show this month will be a coming out-party, of sorts, for car customizer Chip Foose.
"I'ver been to the show before, many times of course," said Foose, in an interview from Foose Design, his California company. "But my role has never been publicly announced. This time it will be."
Foose will be in Detroit to unveil a special edition Ford F-150 pickup for which he had free rein to reinterpret the design. This follows the recent debut of a similarly conceived Foose Mustang. The Mustang, which is being manufactured at a rate of 80 a month, has been sold out at Ford dealerships, he said.
Foose, the rare customizer actually commissioned by a manufacturer to produce a special edition model to sell at its dealerships, likens himself to others whoo put their stamp on cars, like the performance maestro Carrol Shelby, who created the new Ford Shelby GT500, and the Eddie Bauer retail company, which put its name on Ford SUVs.
The Mustang's initial success seems to have given him the opportunity to do more with Ford. He was in Detroit recently meeting with the company to discuss developing more products.
Foose's contribution has been in design only, but he said future Foose vehicles would be likely to have performance modifications(that retain Ford's warranty coverage) as well.
"There are a lot of opportunities there, too," he added.
Foose, 43, was still a student in 1989 when a hot rod design he sketched caught the ey of Chrysler's design staff. Foose's creation led to the Plymouth(later Chrysler) Prowler. That made him something of a prodigy in the design community, and his ideas have led to some industry-changing models for customizers.
The past couple of years, he's been the star of "Overhaulin'," a Learning Channel show on which older cars are picked at random for a full-body makeover. He recently announced, in addition to his Ford collaborations, a partnership to produce a limited run of Hemisfear, a more faithful rendition of his original Prowler design - and this time it will have a Hemi in it.
"They just chose the wrong motor, "Foose said of the car, which was sold only a V6. "They just didn't capture the heart of the enthusiast with a V6. If they had put a V8 in that car, it would have been an incredible selling vehicle.
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