Boyd Coddington Passes Away

Iconic hot rod builder Boyd Coddington died yesterday, February 27, 2008, at a hospital in Whittier, California. He was 63. The cause of death was not given at the time but it is reported that Coddington had been in and out of hospital on several occasions recently.

Known primarily to custom car fans for such vehicles as the Aluma Coupe and ZZ Top's Cadzzilla, and for his line of high-end billet aluminum wheels, he gained fame with the general public through his television show American Hot Rod. Coddington and his shop won the coveted America's Most Beautiful Roadster award seven times, as well as the DaimlerChrysler Design Excellence Award twice.

Coddington was also inducted into the SEMA Hall of Fame, the Grand National Roadster Show Hall of Fame, the National Rod & Custom Museum Hall of Fame, the Route 66 Wall of Fame and the Street Rod Marketing Alliance Hall of Fame, and was voted 1988 Man of the Year by Hot Rod magazine. Chip Foose and Jesse James are just a couple of well-known past employees of Boyd's shop.

Boyd's vision for hot rods was legendary and his presence will be missed in the hot rod world.