2006 Goodguys West Coast Nationals - California Gold

You might not think of '53 Chevys as classy, but some beautiful bodywork, lowered stance, and Thundercloud metallic paint do the trick on Robert and Shelby Smith's two-door post. Trim was removed, and the grille was filled with teeth from a '54. A 350/350 combo provides power.

This '36 Chevy was already hot rodded when Bruce Brincka got it about four years ago. When it got rear-ended, Bruce and his family started a complete rebuild, adding a Mustang II IFS, and a ZZ3 with a TH400, plus white tuck 'n' roll on the inside. Today, the flamed hauler gets driven all over the place.

Larry Freeman went the other way with his snow-white '54 Chevy hardtop, retaining the body trim, and building a cool resto rod. Larry kept the hood up to show off the 235 inline-six running a Wayne cylinder head and Offy manifold, plus a Hildebrandt beehive oil filter.

Our prediction that Ts are making a comeback was supported in Pleasanton by Gary Hubback's '27 turtle deck roadster, with a pair of Strombergs on a Thickstun intake manifold (with a Thickstun air cleaner) feeding the '36 Bohnalite-head Flathead. Gary dropped the body on Deuce 'rails and added a '32 grille.

This Flathead-powered '31 coupe was already a chopped hot rod when Garran Soohoo started rebuilding it. Garran, from Nitro Street Rods in Reno, added four Strombergs, built and sleeved the wishbones, switched the banjo rear with a quick-change, redid all the window glass, installed the roof insert, and basically injected the rod with the personality it now exudes. The paint, however, is original.

It must be a blast to drive this cool Deuce highboy, owned by Dave Davidson. The body is from Rod Bods, pulled down the road by a Rochester fuel-injected 409 mill with a four-speed. Rims are five-spoke mags.

Lil' John Buttera has been setting trends for decades and drew a crowd with his '28 roadster, built by Steve Moal, Jimmy Kilroy, and John himself. Impressive elements include the torsion bar front suspension, aluminum Indy small-block motor, and hand-fabricated mirror-finish body.

Russell Martin kept his '22 Buick roadster true Bu, with the exception of the reshaped and boxed '28 Chevy 'rails. The bored 401 engine with Offy valve covers is tied to a Buick TH400 with a 2.73 Posi rear from a '72 Gran Sport. The car was shortened 10 inches to mimic the proportions of a Model A.

This chopped and dropped '50 Ford, the property of Gary and Joan Levering, looks great with spots, smoothed sheetmetal, side pipes, and a monochrome copper paint job. The contemporary interior includes late-model buckets and a center console. A small-block gets it down the road.