“There was no long-range marketing plan”, says Joel Rosen in the new Motorbooks title Motion Performance: Tales of a Muscle Car Builder by Martyn L. Schorr, and like so many legends, things just seemed to take on a life of their own for Motion Performance.
Mr. Schorr brings the Motion Mystique to life with his in-depth, highly entertaining and enjoyable book. This is a book that reads about as fast as the cars Joel “Mr. Motion” Rosen put together. The author begins with a little history lesson about auto racing, going back to 1904, when the cars from Buick Motor Division were cleaning up at the tracks. We are treated to some racing history about the Duesenbergs, Stutz Bearcats and the Hudson Hornets (the Hudsons won 27 of 34 NASCAR Grand Nationals!), and the inspiration that a young Joel Rosen would draw from these cars. Interestingly enough, the exponential growth in speed and power over the years from these early supercars would be mirrored in his own brand of high-powered muscle.
Joel Rosen and a Motion Corvette
In the mid-1950’s, Joel became tired of the lack of hands-on experience offered in his college engineering courses, decided to join the Air Force and hone his talents working on airplanes. Shortly after his discharge, Joel opened his own auto shop and in his spare time competed in gymkhana and hill-climb racing with his wife. They raced a Corvette and did very well, but it was a street Cobra that brought major attention to his tuning talents prior to his alignment with Chevrolets. It was Joel’s magic touch in dyno tuning that created a name for his shop, and soon, there was little time for wrenching on the neighborhood grocery getters… It was performance-only from then on.
A Baldwin-Motion 427 Camaro
Having a keen entrepreneurial spirit, he struck a deal with Baldwin Chevrolet to “built to order” street cars with a money-back guarantee. His success with the big block Camaros found buyers waiting in line across the U.S., Canada, Germany, Iran and Switzerland to mention a few…. and the list of Motion supercars was as impressive. Motion-prepared engines were finding their way into Novas, Chevelles, Vegas, full size Biscaynes and Corvettes. The success of all the Chevrolets brought interest from Pontiac and Oldsmobile as well, and even an Iso Grifo sporting a 427!
Joel Rosen was not a one-trick pony. His love of horsepower led to building super fast boats at Motion Marine, as well as performance street VW’s and dune buggies at Motion Mini Car. Overcoming the obstacles placed before him by the oil embargo and the Clean Air Act of 1970, Joel ventured into building Mako Shark Vettes, IROC Grand Ams and Monte Carlos well into the 1980’s. In 2005, he debuted an all new Camaro at the annual SEMA show in Las Vegas.
The book documents the vision and keen determination of an automotive genius. We are treated to a bevy of photos which add to the enjoyment of the story. You get the feeling that you are one of Baldwin Motion’s satisfied customers… As my father put it, “I know my left foot kept looking for the clutch pedal. For anyone who has ever raced or even dreamed of racing this is one book you should own.”
Phase 3 Motion Camaro
Truly a great addition to any high performance lover’s bookshelf, the book is one of those rare works that brings the historical, emotional and factual ingredients together in a slick package. It has some great “repeat” value, meaning you’ll find yourself cracking it open again and again… if not just to enjoy the great collection of photos and car features. Truly a wonderful documentation of something uniquely American.
PHOTOS CREDIT/COURTESY MARTYN SCHORR
Motion Performance
Motion Performance
Tales of a Muscle Car Builder
Martyn L. Schorr
Illustrated. 176 pp.
Motorbooks
$35.00
