Senior vs. Junior: Cadillac Bike Winner
This predicament between an angry father and his estranged son leads to a charitable donation.
Creative Occasions
First aired on the Discovery Channel in 2003, American Chopper is probably best remembered for the volatile and argumentative Teutul family. Punctuating the show, in particular, was the dysfunctional relationship between Paul Senior and Paul Junior. When not at odds, father and son would engage in more creative competition. Their head-to-head Cadillac-themed bikes were one of those occasions.
Photos courtesy of Paul Jr. Designs and OCC.
Bike Fight
The reality television series featured Orange County Choppers (OCC), a family-owned custom bike business formerly located in Newburgh, New York. OCC's contentious dynamics eventually saw Paul Junior fired in late 2008. Paul Jr. Designs opened in 2010, paving the way for the TLC network spin-off, American Chopper: Senior vs. Junior—a continuation of the never-ending fight over who built better bikes.
Performance Theme
American Chopper was a hugely popular show while it aired. Family differences aside, the series almost single-handedly gave rise to the sometimes questionable, but enduring, theme bike trend. In what was dubbed an 'epic showdown,' Junior and Senior went head-to-head in 2011, with interpretations of the Cadillac V-series—the high-performance end of the General Motors luxury sedan.
Commissioned Freedom
The Cadillac Build-Off episode launched the short-lived Senior vs. Junior series. In a somewhat scripted showdown, both OCC and Paul Jr. Designs were invited to General Motors headquarters to unveil their builds. Paul Junior reflected in hindsight, “We had the same client, and they commissioned both of us to build a bike.” He also added that they were given “a lot of creative freedom.”
Design Cues
As with every American Chopper build, the theme rationale was made obvious. Paul Junior explained, “We immediately gravitated toward the CTS-V. [It] has the lines, the power, and looks, so a lot of our design cues were pulled from the CTS-V.” Of special interest, the hot rod bike features a 100 cubic-inch 'Bottlecap' motor from Crazy Horse Motorcycles, located in Auburn, Washington.
Face to Face
Paul Senior went for a decidedly 'old school' bobber look with his Cadillac-bike rendition. He too reflected on the Detroit, Michigan showdown. “They made us meet in the center, bikes face to face. I had to talk about my bike and then I had to hand him the mic and he talked about his bike. It was very civil.”
Identical Rendition
Paul Senior was quick to qualify that he did not see it as a build-off. He stated, “It was just a bike that we both built for Cadillac.” The OCC bike had a more angular look and a centered rear exhaust modeled off a CTS Coupe. Senior added, “The wheels, lights, grilles are identical to the car.” The OCC rendition was fitted with a potent 160 horse-power S&S engine.
Charitable Cure
Both bikes were put to a social media vote, with Paul Junior coming out way ahead. Despite the angry father and estranged son predicament, the Cadillac bike build-off had a charitable conclusion. At the auction, Junior's bike fetched around $112K, and Senior pulled in a respectable $50K. In the end, over $160K was donated to the muscular dystrophy cause, CureDuchenne.
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