Chevy 1958 custom & mild custom

The crew at SMO tore the low-mileage 348ci Chevy engine down to the bare block and heads before machining and reassembling the long-block. While they were at it, a COMP Cams camshaft was installed to add a few ponies and a PerTronix ignition kit was dropped under the cap to provide a more reliable spark. The stock intake was detailed and reattached along with the Carter four-barrel carb topped with a vintage Cal Custom finned air cleaner. Matching Offenhauser valve covers add additional sparkle to the engine compartment while the Classic Auto Air and Powermaster PowerGEN provide creature comfort and peace of mind not found in the Impala originally.



To get the Chevy to sit right, like a true custom, Charles had the stock suspension components rebuilt before installing RideTech airbags at all four corners. Classic Performance Products 11-inch disc brakes were the other modern amenity installed on the chassis. Stockton Wheels fabricated a custom set of steelies in 17x7 for all four corners wrapped in Vogue Tyres upon which the Impala sits.



Laura Liptak, a local artist, found the copper-hued, '50s-inspired fabric, dragging Charles around the fabric store to show him the remnants she had spotted. Contrasted against a swatch of black Ultra Leather left no question in Charles' mind and he headed straight down to George Yago's upholstery shop in Jefferson Hills, Pennsylvania, with enough material to cover the interior of the car.



"From then on it was an uphill battle, fighting the old car and aftermarket gremlins to the finish ... 12 hours before the first day of the Goodguys Columbus 2009 show."



But Charles and the old coupe-cum-custom made it to the show, with the generous help from friends Dave Frost and Frank Pleil, without whom Charles reports none of this would have been possible. Here's to old cars, new customs, and good friends!

.

Read more: http://www.streetrodderweb.com/features/1001sr_1958_chevy_impala/

J'aime bôôôcoup !!   

Les jupes d'ailes ...   

I was born in london , while San francisco was enjoying its summer of love, August 1967. During my childhood I was busy watching re-runs of 'happy days' on british tv. I was mesmerized by the cool music and American 1950's style. As my teenage years approached I was already hooked on 1950's rock 'n'roll , then came 'American graffiti'...wow! it blew me away, the cars, the chrome,hot rods ! I had to have one....right now! I first purchased a couple of british 50's cars which I soon learnt to work on by myself, repairing them and making modifications that I thought looked cool. I found them pretty easy to repair and enjoyed the work, I was ready to take on a ' real ' car, an American one, like 'Terry the tiger' (toad) had. After a year of searching I found one in West Virginia, a 1958 Chevrolet Impala.

I had it shipped to London,my american dream had come true, and it was parked in my driveway! I spent every spare minute day and night on that car and that's how I learnt my trade, learning by my mistakes, seeing what worked best, the best way to tackle a problem, and when to walk away and give it some thought! It took some time, I didn't give up and I achieved my goal. (as you can see below) The 58 recieved alot of attention making it into loads of magazines, even across the pond in the states. I then decided it was time to fulfill my dream of owning my own hot rod shop and building world-class customs and hot rods in America. In 2002 I moved to san francisco, and have never looked back.

http://www.crowncustomsvintagespeedshop.com/marc-paul.html

My Custom 1958 Chevy Impala has been featured in many books and magazines including Rodders Journal, Hot Cars of the 50's and the cover of Lead Sleds 1st edition. The car known as the "English Graffiti" in the uk was also featured in Street Machine , Rolls & Pleats and the documentary film "The history of Levi Jeans" and Coca-Cola .

1958 Chevy Impala runs great starts right up and drives strong, just had a tune up. Supreme wheels good tires. 348 and auto trans. New red top battery and chrome upgraded alternator. 60s custom I have many pictures of it over the years from different owners, and a whole folder of reciepts. Tuck and roll interior clean no rips trunk done as well. Air bags front back and side to side (can be returned to stock if desired,parts included). New viper alarm system. Pioneer speakers in doors and back. Paint was done many years ago so it does have some chips and wear. Also comes with trim and some other original parts.

Gary Minor's 58 Chevy

Jolie caisse !  

Rod & Custom Feature Car
Gene Martinez
Albuquerque, New Mexico
1958 Chevy Biscayne
Do you ever feel like driving something vintage for the sake of nostalgia? Tired of the regular car you deal with day in and out? The daily driver in your driveway isn't cool and fun like it used to be, right? Well you can either get in debt by buying something off the car dealer lot or do something more practical yet fun, and for some a bit of a challenge. Trying to get the balance of fun and funds to be attainable was Gene Martinez's, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, goal.




"The car was purchased from a retired school teacher in Corrales, New Mexico. She had it in her backyard and her father was the original owner, bought it brand new in 1958," Gene says. The car was to be passed down to her son to fix up but he never really got around to it. "I worked out a deal with her. During the deal I found out the car only had about 50,000 original miles on it. The only thing was it was stuck in the sand and it took a while to get it out of Corrales. So I had the car blown out and steam-cleaned, then I took it completely apart."
Once Gene got it home he had noticed that almost everything on the car was original but a bit worn out. So, rather than getting some stock parts on the car to get it through inspection and to get the car on the road, he decided to go through all the systems, like the brakes, suspension, and the old exhaust—which had a hole in it, so off it came for the new performance gear. A facelift was also part of the renewal of the Bow Tie.
"I painted the car mystic gold pearl over white, with the roof and lower sides in honeydew melon green with the same mystic gold pearl over it and a real subtle pinstripe around the car. It made a really cool color contrast because if you hung a right or left in the sun the whole car turned a bright gold. That was really cool!




"I molded the frontend, nosed it, decked it, peaked the little trunk opening for the key, and changed the taillights to a set of 1956 Chevy bullet lenses, which I think turned out to be a pretty good deal, as it looked real nice.
"I changed the lights a little bit, had the chrome redone on the bumpers, shaved the door handles, and filled in the louvers on the fenders. All the inner fenders were painted and detailed. I custom-painted the engine block in Volkswagen Viper Green; it's like a real bright lizard green!"
The side covers are done in a white pearl and flamed in a tribal design. The engine is built 0.30 over, with Sefton pushrods, a Dixon camshaft, and he had the head decked.




"It had an old-style aluminum manifold for a two-barrel so I had a plate made for it to run a bigger Buick 2-bbl carburetor." Gene then got "Fat Max" to install a stainless custom exhaust with pencil tips that would allow you to unbutton it around the bellhousing, so if you had to change the clutch you needn't have to pull out a lot of stuff to work on it.
Gene did the bodywork, beautiful paintjob, and audio system, and rewired the whole car that now has electric windows and door locks. "My friend Gil Perez helped rebuild the frontend while I rebuilt the steering column shift to work with the overdrive transmission I installed.
"I used 2-1/2-inch lowering springs on the suspension and put a set of Lancer hubcaps over stock 14-inch steelies wrapped in 185/70R14 rubber."




Danny Victor Upholstery did the interior in a white tuck 'n' roll design. The carpet on the inside is dark green and the tunnel is also pleated from the firewall to underneath the backseat. Gene chose to use a bench seat out of a 1956 Buick because it had a better lift to sit in comfort but it didn't seem to change the look of the interior. The trunk has an automatic release and just in case you got locked out of the car there's a door release underneath one of the wheelwells.
"I really enjoy driving the car," says Gene, "it's a lot of fun. I was going for the look of a car I would have driven to high school in 1964."

Lee Pratts 58 Chevy,seen at the Round up in Austin Texas