Vehicle Description
1932 Ford Highboy
Original Henry Ford body and chassis
324ci Oldsmobile Rocket 88 V8
3 Stromberg 97 carburetors
4-speed Oldsmobile Hydramatic Transmission
Chopped top
Quick change rear end
Recently completed restoration in 2013
Bill Peterson award for Best Original Steel at 2017 Portland
Roadster Show
Rumored to be have been built by Barris Kustom in 1958. The first
owner brought the stock Ford chassis to modify the body and
drivetrain and this marked the starting point of the hot rod's
life.
The hot rod has its fenders removed, chopped the top by almost 5",
and was fitted with 1956 Oldsmobile 324ci Rocket 88 V8 engine
paired with an Oldsmobile Hydramatic Transmission. Once the
modifications were completed, the hot rod was delivered back to its
owner in unpainted but drivable condition.
Over time the owner drove the car while adding finishing touches
and eventually sold the car to its next owner, who then tasked
themselves with painting the car.
The car then went through several owners over a period of 50 years
before being discovered in Santa Ynez, California. It was found
abandoned in a storage garage by Bob Greg, a friend of the owner's
son who originally had the hot rod back in the early 60s.
Remembering back to when he rode in the back seat of the hot rod
with his friend, he set out to restore it back to its former glory.
He would begin the process of restoring the car himself back to its
original spec from 1958 both visually and cosmetically.
The Olds engine had been swapped with a Ford unit, so another 56
Oldsmobile engine and 4-speed Hydramatic transmission were sourced
and mildly modified. Gregg noted that when stripping the car, he
found 8 pounds of lead on the rear corners of the roof, leading to
that the car was indeed modified in period. Three Stromberg 97
carburetors were used, just like how it was back in 1958. Finned
aluminum Buick drum brakes, a Weiand intake manifold, and a
quick-change rear end completed the restoration of the yellow hot
rod in 2013. In 2017 it made its first debut at the Forest Grove
Concours d'Elegance in Portland, Oregon and won the Bill Peterson
award for Best Original Steel Pre-1935.
This fully sorted and restored hot rod, complete with its period
drivetrain and cosmetic modifications, is ready to show on the
street or a concours lawn just like it did back in 1958.