Ed always felt that the failure of the car was due to the engine being hidden. When the Orbitron debuted in September of 1964, the car turned out to be a failure at shows. The second version of the car was also painted by Larry Watson of Watson's House of Style, this time in a secret formulation of a gold Murano with blue. As the car got scratched in transport, it was only shown once in this condition. The first time it was done in candy blue over white pearl. The Orbitron was painted by Larry Watson of Watson's House of Style. The bubble measured almost 64" from front to back, and a little over 57" from left to right. The Bubble Top used on the Orbitron was blown by Acry Plastics. The seat was a bench type with simple tuck and roll. Light blue fur was used in the compartment. The interior of the car was done by Joe Perez. It also had a Dixco tach on the column, a pair of Stewart-Warner gauges mounted in the center console, a Hurst shifter, a Moon gas pedal and a TV mounted in the center console. The car featured a Cragar steering wheel that was hooked to a 1940 Ford steering box. The driver’s compartment was placed at the rear of the vehicle, with the driver sitting behind the rear wheels similar to the setup of a slingshot dragster. The car ran on Astro slotted chrome wheels wearing single-groove Inglewood whitewall cheater slicks and Cal Custom fake knockoff caps. Everything was chrome plated by Model Plating in Bell Gardens. Front axle was a dropped early Ford V8-60 tube axle with finned Buick drums and Lincoln brakes. The front of the frame featured a handmade four bar setup with a cross leaf spring on a suicide perch. The frame was hand made out of 2x4 inch rectangular tubes. The engine was hooked to a Powerglide two-speed transmission. The 283 motor was painted blue, and dressed up with Corvette valve covers and three chromed Stromberg 97's. Under the hood, the Orbitron featured the engine from Ed Roth's own 1955 Chevrolet daily driver.
Dirty Doug and Dick Cook assisted Ed in the building process. The lights were intended to function like television tubes, which when illuminated together would create a strong white light beam. The distinctive nose of the car incorporated a set of red, green and blue lights. Newt designed the Orbitron to look like a slingshot dragster with space age influences. The car was designed by Ed "Newt" Newton. The Orbitron is a bubble top show car built by Ed "Big Daddy" Roth in 1964.
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