Plans to install car tower sculpture next to Granville Bridge cancelled | Daily Hive

'Trans Am Rapture': Plans to install sculpture of stacked crushed cars next to Granville Bridge cancelled

Trans Am Rapture at its previous location on Quebec Street. (meunierd/Shutterstock)

The City of Vancouver announced this afternoon it has put a stop to plans to reinstall Trans Am Rapture — a well-known public art installation previously known as “Trans Am Totem” — at the south end of the Granville Street Bridge, citing concerns over its size and scale in relation to the site.

This also follows complaints by local residents in recent weeks after the new permanent location for the sculpture was publicly revealed. Some residents also created an online petition opposed to the installation, which has collected nearly 260 signatures to date.

On June 25, Daily Hive Urbanized reported Trans Am Rapture’s new location — within the grassy area in the large informal green space at the southwest loop of the bridge. At that point, construction crews had already excavated a hole and begun the concrete foundational work ahead of the previously planned completion and reveal in late Summer 2025.

You might also like:

This bridge loop is prominently located between West 4th Avenue and West 5th Avenue, and next to the Anderson Street entrance into Granville Island. The large installation would have also been highly visible for passing vehicle, pedestrian, and cyclist traffic on the Granville Street Bridge, which saw the opening of its new Granville Connector walking and cycling pathways last week.

However, following a review by the City Manager’s Office, City staff have been directed to re-examine previously considered sites and explore new potential locations that can better accommodate the massive artwork, which weighs more than 25,000 pounds.

The towering 33-ft-tall sculpture features five crushed, salvaged cars — all perched on top of an old-growth cedar tree trunk.

granville bridge southwest loop trans am rapture

New permanent location of Trans Am Rapture at the southwest loop of the Granville Street Bridge. (Google Maps)

trans am rapture granville bridge southwest loop 1

Construction progress on the foundation for Trans Am Rapture at Granville Street Bridge’s southwest loop, as seen on June 19, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

trans am rapture granville bridge southwest loop

Construction progress on the foundation for Trans Am Rapture at Granville Street Bridge’s southwest loop, as seen on June 19, 2025. (Kenneth Chan)

While the original site will no longer host the sculpture, the City states the concrete pad at the location previously intended for Trans Am Rapture will be repurposed for a future, smaller-scale public art installation. They also emphasized the municipal government’s commitment to celebrating the sculpture and ensuring it finds a permanent home.

When the Trans Am Rapture was first installed in 2015 at its original location on the median of Quebec Street in Northeast False Creek, it was intended to be a temporary piece as part of the Vancouver Biennale’s 2014-2016 exhibition.

It was made permanent in 2019 when lululemon founder Chip Wilson’s family donated US$250,000 for its retainment in Vancouver’s urban landscape. Through a $1.5 million donation, Wilson is also known for previously securing the Vancouver Biennale’s “The Amazing Laughter” (Laughing Men) statues at English Bay in downtown Vancouver’s West End as a permanent fixture.

trans am rapture vancouver quebec street

Trans Am Rapture at its previous location on Quebec Street. (meunierd/Shutterstock)

JBdV/Shutterstock

Trans Am Rapture at its previous location on Quebec Street. (meunierd/Shutterstock)

In an interview with Daily Hive Urbanized in March 2018, Marcus Bowcott, the local artist behind the piece, said having Trans Am Totem sponsored by the Vancouver Biennale was “out of the blue – unexpected.”

“The Vancouver Biennale’s sponsorship has been great and there’s been tremendous public engagement, beyond anything we could have imagined,” he said at the time.

In 2021, Trans Am Rapture was dismantled for much-needed cleaning, maintenance, and bird-proofing, and to prepare the Quebec Street site for the 2022 Formula E race track — an event that ultimately never took place.

Since it was dismantled, the sculpture was thoroughly decontaminated and cleaned of all remnants of bird droppings and nesting materials. In recent weeks, ahead of its previously anticipated installation next to the bridge, the cars were in the process of being repainted, and a new internal armature — a supporting framework to hold up the cars — was being designed and built.

trans am rapture car sculpture july 2025

July 2025 final preparations for the rehabilitation of the Trans Am Rapture. (Marcus Bowcott)

In the online petition, those expressing opposition to the installation of the sculpture at this location called it an “eyesore,” took issue with how it would block views of the North Shore mountains, and expressed concern that the informal green space within the loop would eventually become toxic from birds nesting and guano droppings.

City staff further stated today that they will provide updates in the future on identifying a new permanent home for Trans Am Rapture.

When the sculpture was removed from Northeast False Creek in 2021, City staff noted in an internal memo at the time that they were seeking a location where the piece could be displayed for at least 10 years.

You might also like: