The Valley Custom that Never Was…

I made my way down to LA this weekend for some fun car activities, including attending a few shows and seeing my long-distance car buddies. I also made my way over to Rod Emory’s shop in North Hollywood, which has been on my list to visit for along time. For those of you not up to speed, Rod builds killer Porsche 356 custom creations from the ground up, that have bagged him international fame and a long list of deep-pocketed clients. If his last name sounds a bit familiar, his dad is Gary Emory who started Parts Obsolete and was credited with building the very first Porsche 356 ‘Outlaw’ car that Rod took the torch from. Did I mention his Grandfather is Neil Emory, of Valley Custom in Burbank? Yeah, that Emory…

Once I picked my jaw off the floor from all the rare 50s Porsche’s sitting in bare metal at Rod’s shop, I spied something distinctively American jammed in the far corner. A 1939 Ford convertible that’s been chopped and severely channeled, with raised wheel arches and a liberal shave of any brightwork. Rod says its one of the last Valley Custom creations that his grandfather Neil started in 1959 not long before the shop closed, and was supposedly featured in a ‘how to’ channel your car article. Later Rod’s Uncle Don finished the bodywork and painted it, and that’s where it’s sitting at; Waited for a top frame and to be finished up. Emory even has a perfect condition, bone stock ’50 Ford Business Coupe sitting next to it, which he plans to channel and customize in the vibe of Ron Dunn’s ‘Monte Carlo’… Whoa.  It’s just that these darn little German cars keep getting in the way.