Boyd Coddington, car-building maestro, passes away

More sad news: Boyd Coddington, whose amazing autos earned him the title "The Stradivarius of car-building," died Wednesday of complications after a recent surgery.

Here's the "Fire Roadster," which Coddington fabricated for Michael Anthony, the bassist for Van Halen. It was designed by Brad Fanshaw, who also created that purple guitar stuck to the car's side.

Remembrances of Boyd Coddington at Edmunds blog. A collection of his cars at the Petersen Automotive Museum.

--Veronique de Turenne

Details of the Southern California icon's remarkable life from Dennis McLellan.

--Photo - Scott Williamson

Comments

[Jim Apple,Jr.]

Im shocked!, as we all are. I always looked forward to having a brief,casual chat with him at a car show usually at the NSRA Nats. Im just a fan of his rolling masterpieces. To me Boyd is The Hollywood Star I wanted to meet.

[Bruce Geiger]

I received a SEMA Update and a friends father had passed away Lil' John Buttera and also heard that Boyd was dead as well. It was good to watch his show because it motivated me on my custom projects to get back out to the shop - no matter what I was working on. He will be remembered through his cars as they roll on into the future. BG / HotArt.