American Hot Rod

Hot Rod Guru Boyd Coddington Dead at 63

Hot rod guru Boyd Coddington has died. The former American Hot Rod host was just 63 and the cause of his death has not been disclosed.Coddington, who became famous for his innovative car designs — and even created wheels for ZZ Top rocker Billy Gibbons — worked at Disneyland during the day, but went car-crazy at night, designing custom rides that eventually got national attention. His Discovery show introduced a larger audience to his creations, getting the engines revving among viewers who, he said, "are people who lived in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s and loved these cars." In the wake of the death of the guru — and in the absence of any car design know-how — we can still watch that other custom car-building TV series — where they might want to take a few cues from the expert. — Anna Dimond