Automotive Niche Site Redesign - $300 Prize

I'm looking for a new design for my VIN Decoder site, Decode This! After a very successful logo contest I'm looking to Sitepoint's designers to provide a professional automotive-themed site that draws upon the collector car and muscle car hobbies.

Decode This! (logo included in contest)

Tagline:
The Universal Classic Car VIN Decoder

Desired Color Scheme:
Red or Blue as primary colors

Desired Style:
Automotive themed based on a classic car and muscle car feel. I'm looking for a clean, professional look, not a cartoony appearance.

Accepted File Formats:
Adobe PSD with layers and fonts included

This contest is for an uncoded template for the web site Decode This! (http://www.decodethis.com) A web site that provides free
VIN (Vehicle Identification Number) decoding for classic cars. An example of the service it provides can be seen by visiting: http://www.decodethis.com/9T02G123456 where 9T02G123456 is the VIN code for a '69 Mustang Boss 302.

The current web site is functional and active, but the design leaves a lot to be desired. I recently held a contest for having the logo redesigned which went quite well. Now we need to
redo the web site itself.

CSS-Friendly Design

Very Important: The winning design must be CSS-Friendly, meaning all navigation should be convertible to CSS styles. This means don't use graphic-heavy navigation.

Logo

I want to use the logo that was just designed. I am including a high resolution version of the logo for this contest. There are two color variations (red and blue) of the logo and to be honest I haven't decided which one I like better. I'll accept designs based on either color as a primary color of the web site. The placement of the logo in the mockups is just my idea;

I'll accept modifications to it's location, but it must be prominent in the final winning
version.

Content

The site's content is changing slightly (note the difference in the home page) but the main
information will be maintained. You can visit the current site (http://www.decodethis.com) for example data.

Don't worry about the existing Search box at the bottom of the page. That will not be carried
over to the new design.

Theme

I'm looking for a design that's easy to read yet has enough graphical elements to convey a car
theme. The design (as does the logo) should have a 60s Muscle Car or collector car feel to it. It should be eye catching and professional, yet have an edge to it that is the theme of the site.

Layout

Note: Please focus on the Decoder page, as it is the focal point of the site. Once the design is approved for the Decoder page the other pages are really based on that template.

I am looking for 3 pages to be laid out: A home page, Interior Page, and the Decoded page. As
the majority of my traffic currently uses a screen resolution of 1024x768 or less it should fit horizontally within that boundry. I have laid out sample outlines of each of these pages.
They all have a similar base construction with really only the content area and right column
differing across the pages. The current site is developed with ASP.NET and Master Pages if
that helps you in your design.

The VIN Decoder Block is maintained across all the pages of the site. People type in their
VINs there and are taken to the Decoded page to show them their exploded VIN information. The
Important News block is just there for site-wide notices.

"Decoded" Page

The Decoded VIN page is the most challenging in the design. It's the bread and butter of the
site and it displays all the important information about the VIN that the user entered. In the mockup I have all the blocks that must be displayed here; it's up to you to put them together in a more attractive format than the current design. The Ad Block in the content area of this page is really up for grabs. I currently am using Adsense here, please feel free to change this to any reasonable size for your design.

Navigation

The current clumsy navigation must change. I'm looking for a main menu across the top with the following elements:

-- Home | VINs | Models | Community | News | Features | Articles ---

Each main menu choice will have a secondary menu across the left column.

The Sub Menu for "Models", for example could be:

-- Ford | Chevrolet | Chrysler | Other --

"Home" might be:

-- Recent VINs | Blog | About Us | Site Map --

Any questions please PM me, I'll be happy to clarify my needs.

I reserve to end the auction early if an winning design is evident. I leave a lot of feedback, so expect a lively process!

Files:

1. Red and Blue Logo (PNG) - I can supply the logo in
.AI, .EPS, or CorelDraw format if necessary
2. Home Page Sample (JPG)
3. Interior Page Sample (JPG)
4. "Decoded" Page Sample (JPG)