|
This 57 is a ground up build. I finished it in 2012 and have been driving it, weather permitting, since then. The car has a bad ass sinister look to ity that catches a lot of attention wherever I take it. It' s popped up all over the internet over the last couple years so it might look familiar to you. Recently I was invited to meet with Gene Winfield and the Chop Shop Crew at the Boston Autorama and show Gene how I did the chop and we duplicated it right at the show last month. There' s an article at hotrod.com in the "Events" section. Ebay won' t let me paste a link here for some reason . CHASSIS The original frame was a boxed "California frame" and was in good shape. not wrecked or rusted. I put 8" C notches in back. I cut the frame at the firewall and swapped in an 81 Camaro sub frame and welded it in about 4" up so the car has a built in slam even with 20" wheels up front I can cruize with the front end dropped and the suspension is operating in it' s sweet spot, in mid range, .. The Camaro subframe is 4" too wide for the 57 so I cut 2" out of the crossmember and 1" out of each upper and lower control arm to get the right track width. Then I opened up the front spring pockets to 8" diameter to handle 7" Slam Specialties air bags. All steering components, bearings, bushings, etc are new. All steering linkage including the power steering box are new. The whole 4 wheel disc brake system is new, dual diaphram master, prop valve, lines, calipers, rotors, pads, all new. New PPV "plastic" 20 gallon gas tank, lines, pump, and Corvette regulator. The rear end is an 8.8 Ford with 373 gears, locker, disc brake unit with new bearings and seals. S & W coil overs and Comp Engineering 3 link. The car has power steering and power brakes. The wheels are American Racing Torque Thrust M' s. 20' s in front, 22' s in back. There' s a 7 gallon compressed air tank and a ViAir 450 compressor for the air ride system DRIVETRAIN The engine, trans and PCM are a pull out from a 2002 Camaro with 30, 000 miles. All I needed to do was fluids, filters, flush the fuel rails, clean the injectors and rewire the harness. The PCM was sent out to be reflashed. The programming was only to eliminate EGR, VATS downstream O2 sensors, etc. The operating perameters for the engine and trans are left at the original settings.P/S pump was modified to work with the Saginaw style steering box. New A/C compressor and Cold Air system designed specifically for the 57 Chevy. All A/C lines and components are new. New Painless 21 circuit wiring harness.The engine is a 320HP version and runs well, no problems. The trans shifts as it should and has no problems. BODY The body was very clean when I got the car. It needed some minor repair but it is solid. No rust underneath. The floors are solid, inner and outer rockers and floor braces are all clean and painted with red primer. The trunk floor was cut out and modified to clear the C notches and dropped rear and allow a 20 gallon tank. There are 40" tubs in back that go up to the package tray. Plenty of clearance for the 22" wheels and 31" tires. The front is also tubbed The roof is a blend of some 57 and some 59 Chevy parts. There is a 1 1/2" chop on the front windshield which is a cut down 57 windshield. The side rails are and back glass are 59 and the roof skin is 57. Rear glass is 59. The hood was smoothed out by cutting the 57 skin off of the hood frame and welding on a 58 Chevy hood skin. The rest of the body is stock. The front fender on the passenger side popped a rust bubble about the size of a nickle all the way down on the bottom behind the wheel opening. Don' t know what happened there but I' m not messing with it. The left fender is clean. I noticed when I was building the car that the left fender had a new lower half. It was done right so I used it. The doors are both very clean originals. Both quarter panels are replaced with new full panels. One piece top to bottom. The hood and deck lid are also clean originals. The paint is an industrial primer that has UV protection in it.There hasn' t been any fading since I painted it. The bumpers, grille, and hood bar set are new aftermarket. I had good originals but rechroming them would have cost more than double what the new ones cost. I hated to do it but I got the new ones. The side trim is OEM stainless. INTERIOR The seats are used 2006 Monte Carlo. Console and shifter are from a Ford Fusion. Carpet is new and interior door trim panels are custom made. Headliner is new and all the interior garnish mouldings are cut, welded and installed. Rebuilt GM tilt column. Gas and temp gages are rebuilt originals and speedometer is
|
