Lead Zephyr

This is another one of Boyd Coddingtons creations and was inspired by Terry Cook’s Lincoln-Zephyr coupe, better known as “Scrape,” which he was quoted as saying “an especially high quality ride that caught my eye from far away. I had to go over and look at it.”

The Zephyr has a Art Morrison chassis and fully independent suspension but front and rear with air suspensions allowing the ride height to be controlled from within the car. This allows the car to mantain a breath-takingly low appearance whilst parked but still allow it to be used in everyday situations.

The car has Wilwood disc brakes and a set of one-off Boyd billet wheels and meaty Goodyear tires to keep it rolling and stopping and it is powered by a 514 cubic inch Ford engine fitted to an A06 automatic transmission. This gives a massic 600 hp which is a long way from the 110 hp the original flathead V12 delivered.

Lead Zephyr

Lead Zephyr

The super-smooth sleek body is a unique creation that has been fabricated by hand by the talented guys that work at Marcel Delay’s workshop. The fastback rear end reflecting the more traditional Lincoln-Zephyr of the late 1930′s but the body has a much slicker and faster feel to it. The car is painted in DuPont Char-cool over Boyd Mellow Yellow which complements and accentuates the cars art-deco and streamlined profile.

Lead Zephyr (source:HubGarage.com)

Lead Zephyr (source:HubGarage.com)

The interior of the car has an Ididit steering column and a bespoke leather-wrapped Boyd Coddington steering wheel that Boyd has signed. The dashboard has been fitted with a specially made set of gauges as well. The center mounted intrument cluster is reminiscent of the original cluster but has a much more contemporary theme making the car feel like it is a rework of a classic rather than a restoration.

Lead Zephyr

Lead Zephyr

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

This car was built for the “American Hot Rod” television series in featuring with Boyd Coddington and his team in conjunction with Hershey’s Chocolate for collector’s edition chocolate that was inspired by Elvis Presley. The promotion was the largest in Reese’s history and was centered around a peanut butter and banana flavored candy. These two flavors were two of Elvis Presley’s favorite sandwich fillings.

The suspension features 2″ drop spindles and both the front and rear are fitted with adjustable shocks. The wheels are Boyds Billet Smoothie’s with Goodyear tires wrapped around them.

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

The interior features a full Gabe Lopez custom leather, power windows, Vintage air conditioning, remote access doors, a custom dashboard and much more. Fitted inside the trunk is a customised candy cooler to stop it melting on those sunny days!

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

The car features a 540 cubic inch big block Chevrolet engine delivering about 600hp and the power is delivered to the rear axle through a Turbo 400 transmission.

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

1957 Cadillac Coupe De Ville (source:HubGarage.com)

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion’

This is Roger and Nancy Ritzow’s 1956 Chrysler 300B named “Passion” and built by Rad Rides by Troy. Roger and Nancy are not strangers to creating award winning rides and have owned several rides including their 1932 Ford roadster that was named as Goodguys’ 2004 Street Rod of the Year.

The main reason for building the Chrysler was that the ’32 Roadster was impractical for some situations due to its lack of boot space and they wanted something that was practical, had lots of power and enough room to take friends out when required. They put their requirements forward to Troy at Rad Rides who suggested a 1956 Chrysler to which the couple agreed.

The Chrysler started out as a standard white model with minimal rust that was acquired for around $11,000.

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion' (source:dpietzuch on Flickr)

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion' (source:dpietzuch on Flickr)

Rad Rides created a bespoke chassis for the car to sit on and then fitted modified Dodge Viper suspension components to it with steering supplied by the Viper steering rack. A paddle shifter was also build into the steering wheel to allow easy gear changes.

Within the interior the original seats were reshaped and reupholstered by Jim Griffin of Griffin Interiors. It was upholstered with beige leather and a recreation of the original rose-colored cloth upholstery.

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion’

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion’

As requested the engine was upgraded to a 2008 Dodge Nextel Cup R5 with twin turbos fitted under each front fender with an intercooler that was custom made by Griffin radiators. This very discrete set-up delivered around 1,000 hp to the rear wheels via a 4L80E Bowler transmission.

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion’

1956 Chrysler 300B ‘Passion’

The body has been sprayed in custom BASF colors called “Nancy Rose” and “Charley Brown,” as well as “Petal Pink” by Charley Hutton and Scott Schnedoth and looks amazing.

'32 Ford three-window coupe

This is Phil and Debbie Becker of Dwight, Illinois’s all-steel 1932 Ford 3-window coupe that was built by Dave Lane of Fast Lane Cars. Dave Lane is well-known for his high quality workmanship and style and single-handedly takes on projects. The quality and flare exhibited by this project was recognised this year when the coupe won the Goodguys 2011 Classic Instruments Street Rod of the Year award at the Goodguys 14th PPG Nationals that was presented by Bridgestone in Columbus, Ohio.

The car is powered by a 350 cubic inch small-block chevy fitted to a Gearstar 700R-4 transmission. The power is then transferred to the wheels using a Winters V8 quick change rear-end. The chassis is completely bespoke with transverse leaf-springs at the front and rear fitted with Bilstein shock absorbers at each corner. The Daytona Wire Wheels measuring 15 x 4 1/2 at the front and 17 x 8 at the rear where painted to match the inside of the car.

'32 Ford three-window coupe

Bug Jam 25

This year’s Bug Jam was held on 23rd July 2011 and failed to disappoint as usual. Bug Jam is one of the largest UK based VW events and held at Santa Pod Raceway. This was Bug Jam’s 25th anniversary and the main features of the show are the Show and Shine, Music and Drag Racing on the Santa Pod Drag Strip.

I found the collection of photos below posted by RossB on the Club Lupo website which you can see by clicking here.

Bug Jam 25

Bug Jam 25

Bug jam 25

Bug jam 25

Bug Jam 25

Bug jam 25

I haven’t seen a windscreen modified like the camper below on a bay window camper like the one shown below. If you click on the picture you’ll see it has been modified to pop-out like one you would normally find on a split camper. I love the bumpers too – they’re pretty cool.

Bug jam 25

Bug Jam 25

Don’t forget that you can see a lot more pictures over at Club Lupo at the following location I would recommend a look!

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

This is George Poteet’s ’32 Ford Sedan Delivery built by David Lane at Fast Lane Rod Shop. George Poteet is well-known for choosing up-and-coming garages and shops to build some very cool rides and this is definitely no exception.

This wasn’t the first time that Dave and George had worked together but this time they wanted something a little different. After much deliberation they decided to go against the grain and instead of modifying a commercial vehicle to be more like a car to go the other way and create a commercial vehicle from a car. They started by thinking about the differences that Ford would have made if this had been a factory built delivery vehicle and went about changing the proportions of the car. These changes aren’t immediately obvious until you start looking at the proportions of the car, for instance the b-pillar has been moved by 1 1/2 inches. You can see where the changes were made in the pictures below, the line in the rear panels was cut like this to give the neatest final result.

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

The original dashboard cluster was replaced with a larger set of Classic Instrument gauges but the fitment of the new cluster was far from easy since the dashboard needed to be extended slightly to ensure they all fitted correctly.

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

Kelly Page did an incredible job of manufacturing all the wooden components for the interior of the car. The curves were created by clamping an laminating several pieces of wood together in layers.

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

1932 Ford Sedan Delivery (Source : FastLaneRodShop.com)

If you want to see more pictures and information about the sedan then I would recommend heading over to the Fast Lane Rod Shop website and looking at the well-documented build there. You can jump straight to the build page by clicking here.

1967 Nova “Innovator”

This is Alex Covington’s 1967 Nova named “Innovator” and build by Roadster Shop’s Jeremy and Phil Gerber. The original plans that Alex had for the car changed somewhat after talking to the guys at the Roadster shop who suggested a hi-tech, low slung futuristic street machine combining an American classic with cutting edge innovation and masterful build quality which I think you will agree they succeeded in creating. The Nova recently won the Goodguys 2011 Optima Batteries Street Machine of the Year award.

As you can see from the pictures below there isn’t a panel on the Nova that hasn’t been reworked or redesigned in some way. The attention to detail is excellent from the 3/4 inch roof chop to the new rocker panel profile. The headlight, taillight and grill assembly has also be completely redesigned and had fabricated and accented using charcoal, silver and bright yellow.

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

The Nova is powered by a 700hp GM LSX engine that is sitting in another hand-fabricated master-piece featuring machined panels and a custom air intake. The rear suspension has a 3 link set-up with a Watt’s link fitted to a Roadster Shop Fast Track chassis. The suspension also uses Afco remote reservoir air shocks to give a comfortable ride.

The hand-crafting also follows through to the interior with a completely bespoke dashboard and center console and futuristic illuminated head-liner.

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

The photo below was taken on the Nova’s maiden voyage and this was literally the first time the car had been driven. The Innovator worked perfectly giving the fastest time in the competition of 35.3 second lap time. This is testament to the excellent job the guys at the Roadster shop had done in creating the beautiful car.

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:pro-touring.com)

1967 Nova “Innovator” (source:good-guys.com)

If you are interested in seeing the complete build of this car there are some very detailed photos on the pro-touring website and you can see the entire thread by clicking here.

Joe Proski's 1950 Mercury

This is Joe Proski’s 1950 Mercury that he recently completely updated. Joe is the original athletic trainer for the Phoenix Suns and has a passion for both sports memorabilia and customized cars. Unfortunately in order to fund the restoration and updating of the Mercury he had to sell some of his cars and memorabilia including his wife’s Chevrolet Impala SS, his own orange Buick Riviera and coveted Don Hutson jersey.

The Mercury was recently name “Goodguys 2011 Mother’s West Coast Custom of the year” which is a most deserving title after the 2 1/2 year rebuild and sacrifices that he and his wife made.

The modifications to this sled include frenched head and tail lights, a 3 1/2 roof chop and fitting the engine and the suspension are from an Oldsmobile.

Joe Proski's 1950 Mercury

Joe Proski's 1950 Mercury (Photo: Goodguys)

Joe Proski's 1950 Mercury

Joe Proski's 1950 Mercury (source:streetrodderweb.com)

If you want to see a few more pictures there are some on the Street Rodder website which you can see by clicking here.

1939 Ford Crown Standard

This is Micky Helfin’s 1939 Ford Crown Standard hot rod that he build himself although the interior work was given to Tracy Weaver of Recovery Room Hot Rod Interiors. Micky Heflin owns his own Hot Rod company called Heflin’s Hot Rods which is situated in Benton and owns 4 other cars.

Micky recently entered this car in for the People’s Choice Award that is run by Hot Rod and Restoration magazine and won the top prize over 12 other fantastic cars from the Indianapolis area. The award was presented to Micky during a banquet sponsored by Goodguys and Hotrod and Restoration Magazine.

The power for this rod is delivered by an LS-1 engine mated to a 4L60-E transmission that was sourced from Street & Performance. Those terrific wheels are supplied by Boyd Coddington and are Junk Yard Dog wheels measuring 18 x 7 in front and 20 x 10 at the rear.

1939 Ford Crown Standard

1939 Ford Crown Standard

1939 Ford Crown Standard

1939 Ford Crown Standard

The interior of the car complements the exterior DuPont Hot Hues’ Factory Pack of “Hot Rod Black” and “Dragon Fire Red” perfectly.

1939 Ford Crown Standard

1939 Ford Crown Standard

Possessed built by Scott's Hot Rods

This Roadster is called “Possessed” and was build by Scott’s Hot Rods for Mike and Dianna Dingman and won the coveted “America’s Most Beautiful Roadster” award in 2010. This isn’t the first time that a car build by Scott’s Hot Rods has won the award as they also won it for “Undisputed” in 2008 which you can read about here.

Every panel on this car has been hard-formed by the team at Scott’s Hot Rods with the idea being to employ the techniques used by coach builders of the period to create the desired look. The body of possessed has been stretched by a whopping 13 inches with 10 inches in the front and 2 inches in the doors.

“This was my bucket list car,” said Dingman. “I’ve always wanted to build a car to compete for this award. I had always wanted to build a car—a Ford, of course—that could express my ideas of what an early Ford roadster would have looked like if Ford had built a coach that competed with the Bugattis and other high-class cars of that style and era.”

Possessed built by Scott's Hot Rods

Possessed build by Scott's Hot Rods

The power for this roadster is delivered by a modified and fuel injected 392 cubic-inch engine that was sourced through a relationship that Mike Dingman had with Ford. The paint was applied by Alan Palmer at his custom paint and body shop in Camarillo with paint supplied by BASF called “Burnt Umber” and over the top of that was spray 5 layers of clear laquer.

Possessed built by Scott's Hot Rods

Possessed built by Scott's Hot Rods

Even though Mike called in every favor he was owed the build of this car still amounted to around $500,000. If you are looking for more pictures of this car or other projects by Scott’s Hot Rods then head over to their website and take a look around by clicking here.