Features 1948-52 "style" customs with modern suspensions and drivelines

yea,,me too,,,i just had to bust his balls a lil..... but my fleet (avatar pic) will fit soon... im going to graft it to a 99 chevy blazer 4door.. so ill have tilt, cruise, ac, power windows,pwr brakes&steering and all...4.3 v6 auto and maybe 21-25mpg... but hide it well,,and keep my stock steering column and wont have to buy anything hopefully..

 

THANK YOU KEMPMAN......

how about a picture of that fleetline big enough to look at on a phone....that's why i can't tell the difference between a chevy and ford pickup.......
I'm comming to relize there are not many people out there that uderstand this period of cars unless your into it. can't wait to build a period correct car.....

 

My next car will be period correct custom.

 

Had mine out and went to a friend's workplace to get his advice on swapping my radiator.

He's got a '96 Vortec engine converted to carb + 700R4. His is in primer I think he's going to do a dark color, will look bitchin' with WWW's and some skirts.

I think I'm going to do a 700R4 swap now too:

 

I know what Cleatus is saying though, having a car with a period correct drivetrain has a lot of charm. I'd never want a 216 with a 3 speed, but something like a Caddilac 331 or an Olds Rocket would really be cool to have, and can be just as reliable as a small block.

At the same time, having a 350 is nice when youre on a budget.

I can see both sides of the spectrum.

When I replaced the straight 8 and hydromatic in my Pontiac with a 305, I definately missed the little quirks and tradition of having an old motor.

 

Here is my 49 pickup, malibu clip, s10 rear, supercharged 5.3. Towing ls1 powered dragster. 4000 miles on truck since fathers day. Once to Bowling Green, once to the HAMB drags. I drive the snot out of it. 496.7 hp at the wheels, 18.5 mpg on the hwy. I love the old engines but I have gotten to the point I would rather drive than bend a wrench.

 

that's another nice car. you wont regret a 700r4, the 200 4r swap made a world of defferance in the truck out on the highway....
a little hint a 200 is the same size as a glide or th 350, the 700 fits where a th400 lives....

 

that has to be fast with almost 500 horse at the wheels....the dragster has to be a lot of fun....but sorry, the stance, wheels. tires and no body mods put it a couple years past what we're looking for here...

 

Not trying be funny but to me this sounds like a perfect recipe for a great Streetrod.Not knocking you but isn't this place supposed be about the way things were? I know this thread is talking about modern drivetrains but when you squeeze in ,power everything and tilt and cruise control etc.....etc. I think this is pushing this thread way to far.Thats just me and this isn't my thread so I will stop.It just kind of cracks me up that all of that stuff is being passed as a custom because of a old body.

 

Hey guys, I'm gathering the parts to assemble my 49' Chevy coupe, and have a question one of you might be able to answer. I am seriously considering putting the 85' Corvette front suspension in this car, and I am not sure if its to wide like the Monti clips. Has anyone done this swap, and if so how did it turn out? Pm me the details so I'm not hijacking the thread.
P.s. I DO NOT want to run a Mustang II in her, I want to keep it all GM based.

 

I will pm you tomorrow with info


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My car has tilt, a/c, and p/w. The tilt column is fugly I have to do something about that. But I eventually plan to find and use some 50's power window switches which I think came stock on Lincolns, and also Jaguars.

I going to try going back to a mechanical fan setup when I swap in the new radiator.

 

51 Plymouth Concord 3W business coupe. 69 Camaro stub with upgrades, 2 link/torque arm rear suspension with adjustable coilovers. 383 Mopar with EFI tunnel ram, A833 4 speed, 8 3/4 rear.

Body mods in progress: 2 1/2 chop (done), 2 1/2 section, shortened decklid area, 52 DeSoto hood with original scoop, tilt front end (done), Viper style grille.

Waiting to get my garage back so I can get back to work on it!

 

how about a couple photos.....

 

I agree with Jeff....
A old body on a new chassis, with all the electronic gizmos in not traditional and does not belong here.
But....withe the growing popularity of traditional hot rods and customs the line between them is starting to blurr. Look how many street rods are being bought....remove some billit change the wheels and tires shoot some primer and it's suddenly traditional.....
Everything from hot rods to Hondas have air suspensions. IMO this is not traditional, a car should have the same stance driving down the road as it does parked....a car sitting on it's rockers looks broken to me. Now a fuel injected LS motor in a car like Johns merc doesn't bother me, it's hard to ignore a motor that starts in the hot or cold makes 400HP and gets 20MPG out on the highway. This trend is much like hydralic suspentions, at the beginning.....after WWII there was such a surplus of aircraft parts it was possible to find rams, modify and use them. The LS motors have been in everything for quite a few years now and the prices of after market wireing harnesses have become affordable enough to use these motors.....

Getting back to this thread. Before you post your rides on here, PLEASE go take a look at the "Customs 1948-53 New Old Style Kustoms" thread.....

 

Cafone...^^^ thanks for seeing my point.I agree with what you just said.The drivetrain isn't that bothersome if it is new,it's all the other "modern conveniences" which make it a streetrod IMO.If the owner wants a new 400HP engine thats cool but trying to get every luxury of a new car in a 40s or 50s custom is just kind of ridiculous .Thats cool though....everyone has their own style but.......cars of that nature just seem like plain old streetrods to me.I also agree with you bigtime on the streetrod...change the wheels and spray some primer idea.I think that is happening more now then ever before.

 

continued from my previous post.

If your car doesn't have the look of the cars in that thread it won't fit there OR IN HERE.....
The title of the thread discribes any fat fendered car or truck built in this style, with modern driveline and suspension. Not any car origonally manufactured between 1948 and 1952.
Thanks for your continued support.

 

I agree with tilt, but you could get AC and power windows on some luxury cars.

No flatheads here Jeff.

Heck if my car runs a lot cooler with this radiator I'll keep the SBC for the time being. I could even look for different valve covers and air cleaner.

 

Joe's old '50 with the LS/4L60E is for sale in CT again:

http://newhaven.craigslist.org/cto/3293416902.html

 

Dress up the old school small block and spend the money on an overdrive trans. You'll be able to do both with the harness money and have a couple bucks left over for a case of PBR.....

 

Here's a couple of pics of my sons' 54 Ford that I hope you think "fits this thread";now that drag season is over work will start again on this build. If you like go to Crazy Legs profile for the build.

 

While I am all for improving the unseen parts, Ill pass on Modular engines, TPI, and COP's.
That stuff goes well with Bellyfloppers and Big wheels.
I think some of those look good, but are not customs.

 

here is my 50 with a 302 C4 and 9" in the rear. 3" drop axle up front and 4 link ink the back

 

thanks, we've been trying to narrow this down to the original concept for a while now.....

 

5 inch haircut....wide whites on steelies and some cool high dollar hub caps.....you stole at the drive-in while dude (in the caddy) was all hot and heavy with his chick in the backseat....and the back of the running board should point at the ground...maybe a 41 caddy grill.....

AAAAAAH....come on here guys, it's not that tough....tail dragging......nose in the air.......chopped.....filled......smoothed.....lead sled kustoms.....that looks like they might of been built in the late 40's.

 

I don't know if it fits here....but that is bad ass.

We'll have to let the masses decide...

 

Looks like a mild custom, maybe some chrome shaved off? I think it fits.

I think we are just avoiding patina rods, essentially stock vehicles, and billet rods.

There ways to dress up LS style engines, I am going to build a 5.3 truck engine on a stand showcase all the possibilities.

 

Its kinda like banging your head on the floor lol! Its really amazing how many people in the hobby dont really know what a traditionaly styled "custom" is....

 

i get it...my fleet is chopped,,shaved everything,,40 stud tail lights,frenched headlights,skirts,,caddi caps ,www..even my paint wil be 50s style.. im still running the 216 3spd for now... sorry but my few upgrades will be hidden very well... so ac and power windows maybe cruise,, makes it funner to drive..but does not make a streetrod...( yes funner is a word)... but i def agree the line is blurred... this thread is about 100 % trad 50s, kustoms, but slip/hide a modern drive line in there...mine is just not finnished to show ya,, and trad. kutoms are spelled with a "k" ....lol

 

Okay, my car is not period-correct to any specific era, but it's getting closer every year as I change details. It is a rolling long-term project. And it is getting closer to the mid/late '50s style except for the seats and the smoke-tinted glass.
I know flat black is cliche now but I painted it 12 years ago, there WAS a period when primer was "in" (late '50s; look in Andy Southard's book if you don't believe me) and eventually this car will be shiny.

Underneath is a low-mileage 350, power brakes, and tilt column from a '79 Impala wagon topped by a modified '59 Corvair steering wheel, Mustang II suspension (a mix of real Mustang II and an aftermarket cross member), 1990 S-10 rear axle, etc.
I also have power windows and air conditioning.
My motto is if it doesn't show, I don't care what year a part is. In fact my rear wheels are those ugly "new" Cragar Deluxes - once the hubcaps are on I don't care what they look like!