True style never looks dated. Wear a well-tailored, '50s-era black suit to any high-class dinner party today and you'll feel right at home. Do the same with a light-blue polyester discount job from the '70s and watch the room erupt into laughter faster than you can say "fire hazard."
This beauty of a Deuce roadster is like that black suit--it's practically timeless. That was the intent when Steve Kormondy commissioned California Street Rods (CSR) to build the car several years ago. "He was after a traditional-style hot rod," says CSR's Chuck Lombardo, Jr. "We thought of incorporating some modern hints into it." The result is a cool cruiser with a classic look.
Interestingly, the car's core components--a CSR-crafted chassis and Brookville body--are new. The vintage vibe was created by sprinkling in cues like a DuVall windshield, drilled I-beam, So-Cal brakes, and PS Engineering knock-offs wrapped in bias-ply Firestones. And of course, who can ignore the Art Chrisman-built, Ardun-head flattie. Even the flattie has a contemporary twist--a custom-machined, billet aluminum intake and blower! They help the flathead send about 425 hp through a Borg-Warner five-speed to a Halibrand quick-change rearend.
Combine choice parts selection with flawless craftsmanship and you've got a combo that's hard to resist. In fact, shortly after the roadster's completion Kormondy received an offer that was too tempting to pass up, and the car headed off to New England with a new owner. However, no matter who ends up with the roadster in the years to come, it's sure to make him look good--just like that black suit.