Firebird 2
This concept car dates from 1956. Called the Firebird 2, it was the second spectacular model created by the GM studios (still headed by Harley Earl) for the GM Motorama mobile exhibit that made the round of North America’s largest cities. Less of a “jet on wheels” in appearance than the Firebird 1 (a miniature effigy of which adorns the Harley Earl trophy awarded each year to the winner of the NASCAR Daytona 500), the Firebird 2 was also fitted with jet engines.
1959 Cadillac Cyclone
Here’s another incredible concept car from Harley Earl and his design team. The Cadillac Cyclone was produced for display at the GM Motorama of 1959. Unlike the Firebird, the Cyclone came with a 390cc V8, and it was intended as a preview of Cadillacs of the future. It would be one of the last concepts produced by Earl, who retired in 1958 and died in 1969. As for the Motorama, it ceased to be in the early 1960s.
