The Ron Aguirre Photo Collection

This is the earliest known photo of Ron's Corvette. Taken in 1957, the car is just days old and Ron has just brought it back from Ed Roth's shop where it received its first custom paint job. At this point the car has been lowered a bit, side pipes have been installed, and the stock hubcaps are still on. Butch, Ron and Dave are standing behind the car. The photo is taken outside Orange Julius up the hill in Crestline. Ron is wearing his Krankers of San Bernardino club jacket. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

Ron's buddy Dave Phieler with the Corvette outside Advance Mufflers in San Bernardino. This version has been lowered down to a once-inch clearance and fit with custom hubcaps made from Dodge caps and Edsel three-bar spinners. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

An interior shot of the X-Sonic. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

The chromed and detailed engine compartment of the X-Sonic. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

The X-Sonic as it sat around 1960/1961. The tuck and roll is now removed from the body sides, the headlights are tunneled, and fins are added to the lower part of the front and rear fenders. This was the last version of the X-Sonic before it was fit with a bubbletop. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

Another photo from the 1960/1961 photo shoot. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

The first bubble topped version of the X-Sonic drawing a crowd at the 1961 Tridents Rod Custom Autorama indoor car show. The show was held April 18-32, 1961 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

A photo of Ed Cholakian with the X-Sonic at the 1961 Tridents Rod Custom Autorama indoor car show. Ed was a friend of Ron. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

Circa 1961-62, we find the X-Sonic fresh from Larry Watson's paint booth, boasting a groundbreaking Gold Metalflake finish. Before the buffing that would reveal its depth, the car's raw sparkle hinted at the masterpiece it would become. "Once buffed, the flake looked like it was a mile deep in clear," Ron reminisced. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

The X-Sonic as it appeared when it was featured in Popular Customs Winter Issue 1963. The Platinum Pearl paint job with Royal and Oriental Blue Shading was applied by Larry Watson at Watson's House of Style. Photo courtesy of Ron Aguirre.

Photos of the X-Sonic taken in October of 1958 shows it running two Scavenger Pipes. By 1959, two more Scavengers had been added. Taken late in 1962 or early in 1963, this photo shows that all four pipes were still on the X-Sonic. Photo from The Ron Aguirre Photo Collection.

Ron Aguirre of Rialto, California was a pioneer in the field of hydraulic lifted cars, and in the late 1950s he built a custom Corvette, known as the X-Sonic. The X-Sonic was for many year acknowledged as the first car ever using hydraulics to raise and lower the front suspension. The X-Sonic was also the first show car featuring a bubble top plastic roof. After fighting bone cancer for a while, Ron Aguirre passed away Thursday, May 26th, 2011. Before he passed away, he shared his photo collection with Kustomrama so we could share it with the world.