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Kid Rock's Chevy Silverado is a working-class hero [w/video]

Rock stars are known for their swagger, and Kid Rock brings a mountain of that confidence to his design for this chrome-festooned 2016 Silverado 3500HD at the SEMA show. Inspired by his song Born Free and a visit to the pickup factory in Flint, MI, the styling is meant to celebrate the folks that build these trucks everyday. The Silverado sparkles like a beacon under the lights at the SEMA Show thanks to its black metallic-flecked paint and acres of chrome. The shiny stuff covers the custom grille, exhaust stacks, 22-inch wheels, and side steps. In a patriotic nod, silver Stars and Stripes run down the side to offer a little contrast to the dark body. Further emphasizing the pickup's huge size, a trailer carries a pair of Gibbs Sports Quadskis that are decorated to match the truck. Kid Rock takes inspiration from – get this – acid-wash jeans for the interior by combining Sky Cool Gray leather seats with metallic-looking inserts. Appropriate for a musician, there's also a custom Kicker stereo in there, and Made in Detroit logos adorn the door sills and glovebox. Related Video: Show full PR text SILVERADO 3500HD KID ROCK CONCEPT CELEBRATES FREEDOM Boldly styled custom 'dually' truck honors working-class Americans LAS VEGAS – Inspired by his hit song "Born Free," musician Kid Rock collaborated with Chevrolet to design a customized 2016 Silverado 3500HD "dually" that celebrates freedom and honors American workers. The truck was introduced today at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, where it joined other personalized Chevy truck concepts designed to showcase the depth and breadth of the brand's pickup truck lineup. Michigan-born Kid Rock visited the Silverado HD assembly plant in Flint, Mich., to meet with the members of UAW Local 598, who built the truck, before driving it to Chevrolet's design studio to share his ideas for its customization. "The Flint plant – and everyone on the line – is the backbone of America," said Kid Rock. "I wanted the design for the truck to be bold, but with features and elements that wouldn't be out of reach for working-class guys." As a result, his Silverado features several enhancements, including a custom chrome grille with the Born Free logo and an enlarged Chevy Bowtie emblem, chrome exhaust stacks and patriotic graphics that flow across the body sides. A unique execution of the patriotic motif was an idea he expressed at the start of the project.

Looking back on our favorite cars of Mad Men

The second half of the seventh and final season of Mad Men debuted this week, set to cap a run of public and critical acclaim. A decade's worth of interesting cars also made for good television, if you were paying attention. Vehicles didn't often steal the spotlight from Don, Betty, Roger, Joan and the gang, but they added meaningfully to the tone and beauty of the series. We sorted through the wheeled extras from Mad Men's archives, and choose some of our favorites to highlight. The list consists of cars that had at least a small impact on the plot of an episode, though certainly there are worthy gems hiding in just about every street and driving scene. Check out our subjective top five, and then let us know which of the Mad Men cars would be on your list. 1962 Cadillac Coupe DeVille – Season 2 Don Draper's Cadillac Coupe DeVille, all 500 feet of it, shows up in a few seasons of the show, but it's the first appearance that sets the tone. A Cadillac salesman, cut from the same cloth as Draper, asks what Don drives right now. "A Dodge," Don admits. "Those are wonderful if you want to get somewhere," allows the salesman, "this is for when you've already arrived." For a man on the move up corporate and social ladders that's a powerful message, and a pitch-perfect car. 1961 Lincoln Continental – Season 3 The most stylish Lincoln Continental ever is perfect set dressing for the mod show, of course. Though it's interesting that the car isn't cast as dapper Draper's ride, but rather his father-in-law's. Grandpa Gene does what all great grandfathers are bound to: lets his granddaughter Sally drive the big Lincoln while he works the pedals. Generational bond secured, in fine fashion. When you go back through the first three seasons of the show, you'll notice that Continentals show up more than once, too. There's nothing quite like them to evoke the best of the early '60s. 1963 John Deere 110 – Season 3 The only non-standard passenger vehicle on the list, no self-respecting gearhead/Mad Men fan should quibble with the inclusion of the John Deere 110 riding mower. For starters, the Deere is lovely to look at; a miniature version of the American Heartland icon in its green and yellow duds. The 110 appears as if milled from a solid block of steel, just the opposite of today's sleek, plasticky lawn minders (we're scouring Craigslist for one to bring home). The John Deere also has dear ramifications to the plot, too.

2016 Chevrolet Volt Beauty-Roll

For those of you paying attention, we've really ramped up the old Autoblog video game these days. Our new series Car Club USA joins Translogic and The List, and there are more Daily Drivers and Short Cuts than ever. But sometimes, all you care about is the car. The Autoblog Beauty-Roll video series has one goal: bring you glossy video images of cars, and nothing but. We're collecting moving pictures of all the cars we test, inside and out. Each episode comes with a hit of engine sound – start-up and with a few revs – to round out the package. Set your resolution to max, kick it into full-screen, turn up the sound, and enjoy today's subject, the 2016 Chevrolet Volt. Oh, and if you'd like more Beauty-Roll, click here to see the back catalog.