GM Firebird – land-based incarnation of the jet-powered Douglas F4D Skyray – Reading Room – Motor

“Firebird inspires me with its origins. At our 1953 Motorama show, the main dream car was the Le Saber. And right following it was shown to company officials for the first time, I went on a plane trip. I opened the magazine and saw a picture of the new Douglas Skyray jet. This is an amazing ship, and I liked it so much that I ripped out the picture and stuffed it into the inside pocket of my coat. The GM rep who accompanied me came over to congratulate me on the Le Saber. “But what will you do next year?” – he asked. At that moment, I had absolutely no idea, but I patted my pocket where the Skyray image lay: “It’s right there.” It was a joke, I was just answering his questions in a similar manner. And then bingo! The result, as you can see, is the Firebird, a road replica aircraft.”