(From previous page and illustration) The paint is basic hot rod yellow. The tuck 'n' roll upholstery is contrasting red and black. Fiberglass racing seats with inexpensive vinyl upholstery would be another choice. Aluminum inner door panels epoxied in place and dressed up with rivets would be a low-dollar, racy alternative to upholstered panels. Other interior elements are the flat steering wheel and tall shifter. A small-block Chevy with a two-barrel and Cadillac air cleaner would be a good low-buck engine choice. A manual transmission would be the hot rod choice and, fortunately, the King T offers enough foot room for that third pedal.
This variation is a modified version of an earlier drawing Earl created when helping to design the King T, and it doesn't depart much from the basic setup as offered by Total Performance. The theme is early hot rod, leaning toward lakes car styling. The prominent change is the Limefire exhaust pipes with cutouts, which would represent the only significant expense. The other biggest visual element is the flame paint job. Earl went for an intentionally crude flame design kept to the end of the exhaust pipes and around the rear wheels. He suggests using a brush to hand-paint the flames, which are modeled after the earliest versions painted by the World War II vets when they started building hot rods in the '40s. The rest of the paint is simple semi-flat black. The windshield has been angled back for reduced wind resistance. The interior is plain and simple; Naugahyde tuck 'n' roll keeps the seats cheap. Earl added a Sprint Car-style steering wheel and kept the Moon discs from the TP concept. For power, we talked about a small-block Chevy for economy, or a Ford four-banger, which would be cool, but could lift the project out of the low-buck category. Earl's preference was a small-block Ford, most likely a snappy 289. That's it.
(From top illustration) This look is a little more elaborate than the previous version and obviously takes its influence from the Salt Flats. The suede black paint extends to the running gear, typical of Bonneville cars-and don't forget the obligatory three-digit race number. The Moon discs are the obvious choice for maintaining the smooth theme. The Limefire headers have been modified with a diagonal cutoff and stuffed with cylindrical motorcycle mufflers.
The TP track nose grille is removed and the nose is filled in with 'glass, leaving a streamlined vertical hole for fresh air intake.
The headlights remain in the recommended position; Earl suggested using Prowler headlights as an alternative to match the teardrop bubble on the hood. The bubble is built from the TP hood scoop, closed up with fiberglass, once again to accent the car's streamlined profile. An inexpensive half tonneau cover adds a dramatic sporty appearance, and the single Brookland-style windscreen, possibly made from plexiglass, continues the European sports cars feel, and can be fastened from underneath the dash with clevis pins. Double windscreens or a full-width windshield would work too. The finishing touch is the rear fairing, an eye-catching detail that doesn't necessarily have to cost a lot, and could be built from a piece of sculptured foam, or fabricated from two fenders, sectioned and fastened together, which Earl told us is how they used to do it. Motorcycle, aircraft, and antique speedboat Web sites may be a good Internet source for parts, or for instructions on building your own. The engine choice is a simple small-block Chevrolet.
This little blue roadster takes its cues from hot rods of the late '50s to early '60s. There's a little more money in this variation, but it could still be a fairly inexpensive build. The color scheme is a combination of Pantera or Boss Mustang blue and cream. The cream goes from the upholstery to the steel wheels and back into the cockpit, where cream-colored gauges pop against the blue dash. Baby Moon caps over smoothies have been dressed up with chrome spinners made from cabinet hardware from the cabinet store or bathroom supply shop.
Screw them through the rear of the cover or simply epoxy them in place. The windshield is crowned for a little extra style, and held in place with chrome posts. The headlight buckets and front end components are also chromed. An alternative to the scaled-down '40 Ford steering wheel would be a Cal Custom flat wheel shot with vinyl paint or upholstered.
This rear view (on above illustration) shows the frenched license plate and Moon gas cap, both embellished with a lip around the perimeters. Angled taillights from a mid-'60s Corvette are easy to find and fit right in place. A small-block Chevy is imagined under the hood. The extended side pipes are modeled after the pipes on Earl's own T-bucket. Earl went to a tractor-trailer parts store and bought a pair of extension pipes, approximately 3 1/2 inches in diameter.
They slid right onto the header pipes and fit perfectly inside the rear tires as shown. He added stock hot rod mufflers, which come in different lengths.