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| This is how the vehicle arrived at our shop. The owner had started to dismantle the car as it had been modified in the past with a late model 4 cylinder engine and automatic transmission. The new power train would consist of a 350 Chevy crate motor, Turbo 400 auto and a Ford 8inch rear end. Independent front suspension, power windows, air conditioning and many other upgrades were to be added. |
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| Here the body is removed from the chassis so we can start on the suspension. Later preparations to the doors revealed a fire department logo under the paint from a town in Alaska . |
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| In this photo, the Horton front suspension is in place as well as the 4 link rear. The whole car is sitting on our surface table so we can mock up everything else like the firewall, air conditioning etc. |
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| Here you can see some of the work inside. We installed a tilt column, Vintage Air heat, AC and defroster unit along with a Ron Francis wiring harness. |
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| To complete the creature comforts we installed power windows. |
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| This is the Horton independent front suspension that is based on the widely used Mustang 2 design. Steel tubing bars are installed in place of the fully adjustable coil over shocks for set up purposes. |
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| This is the new rear suspension we installed in place of the original leaf spring. We installed a 4 link suspension with a panhard rod and coil over shocks to complete the suspension upgrade.
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| Model A bodies are not designed to take such a large engine. We recessed the firewall 4 inches to fit everything under the hood.
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| This photo is approximately 2 years after the previous photos. We performed all the chassis work and the customer took the vehicle home to finish. This is at his garage and shows the finished paint
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| The motor is a brand new 350 crate engine with a ton of polished aluminum accessories.
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| A rear shot showing the gas filler door installation. A roll pan with LED taillights will be installed soon.
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| This final shot is also at the customer's home shop. I get the impression he likes Model A's.
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Here we see
the car in its final assembly stages. Headlights and a
windshield are all that remains to be done. The air conditioning
is all charged up and blowing cold, tests drives have taken
place, all that is needed now is better weather! |
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The body
work is flawless and the owner picked a nice maroon metallic
color that works great on this body style. Tinted windows add a
limousine look. |
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In a
previous photo we saw a trio of model A’s with a grey car
sitting up on a work table. This is the chassis for that car
which is very near completion. The owner of the previous car is
helping his son build this car. It will be high boy style, [no
fenders] very much like the yellow car in the movie American
Graffiti. It is powered by a healthy small block Chevy and a 4
speed, with a narrowed Ford 9 inch rear and giant rubber.
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Here we see
the body installed on the owner built frame. They did a great
job even though it is painted shiny black. We have steel wool to
knock the shine off. [ha ha] |
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What a
great pair of cars! Wouldn’t you love to see this pair in your
shop? I know I would. |
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| The maroon car is finished. The black
car is close. Father and son cruising, is there a better way to
spend a summer. I don’t think so. Nice job guys! |
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