Vehicle Description
We see a lot of pretty cool pickups here at Streetside Classics,
but this 1953 Chevrolet 3100 5-Window Restomod might be the
slickest we've featured in years. And it's more than just pretty,
because there's a fuel-injected 350 LT1 powerplant underneath, a
drop-dead gorgeous high-end paint job, a plush custom A/C interior,
and a well-designed chassis that's built for the modern road. Take
a closer look, this might just the one you've been waiting to
own.
We've said it many times before: if you're going to paint a classic
vehicle a modern, vivid color, you need to invest the extra time to
make the bodywork as nice as possible, because you're going to get
A LOT of attention and scrutiny on your rig. This particular
Advanced Design beauty has already earned its share of kudos and
shows just 10,480 miles on the build, with most of those probably
coming while it was driving on and off the trailer and on the way
to a cruise in. It started as a standard 5-window Chevy 3100
pickup, and between 2016-2017 it was stripped bare and fully
rebuilt using old-fashioned hot-rodding tricks and exceptional
craftsmanship. Most notable is, of course, the paint job, which is
eye-searing Victory Red with expertly applied subtle ghost flames
on the hood and a blindingly high polish that makes this
blue-collar pickup look at home on Rodeo Drive. Although the
classic look of the 3100 remains, a few liberties were taken to
slick-up the exterior - from the custom spare tire cover with
butt-kickin' American fanfare beautifully airbrushed, to the custom
wooden toolbox adorned with decals from many of the car shows this
truck has dominated - but they kept the trademark front grille and
chrome bumpers that always bring the crowds in, and sharp-eyed
viewers will spot all the trim on this truck is in excellent
condition. Other cool additions include convenient jump-off posts
installed above the driver's side running board, shiny Chevrolet
step plates on both sides, and those really cool Bowtie exhaust
tips that turn down just beyond the rear fenders. At the same time,
the bed got a full makeover that includes fresh wood bed held
together with chrome slats, a relocated and flush-mounted custom
gas tank, and a beautifully pained tailgate and matching side
panels that look suitably sophisticated on this restomod. The
overall workmanship is quite impressive, with a great gloss and
smooth finish everywhere you look, and you'll be proud to show off
this 3100 at any venue.
It's also a very comfortable truck in which to spend some time,
thanks to a luxuriously finished yet elegantly simple custom
interior. A comfortably padded, split-bench seat has been covered
with high-end two-tone leather upholstery, and with matching door
panels and a custom Bowtie headliner that follow a similar pattern
and color scheme, it's easy to forget this is actually a vintage
pickup truck. Upgrades include a leather-wrapped Lecarra steering
wheel that sits atop a tilt column, a full A/C panel stashed
discreetly under the dash, and a custom console that splits the
sculpted bench seat - all features that help bring this vintage
pickup into the 21st century. Thankfully, the original dash was
retained and coated with matching Victory Red paint and shiny
chrome accents that really brighten up the cab, particularly up
against the two-tone upholstery. Dolphin white-face gauges with
neat old-school fonts really work well in the factory holes and
because they're plentiful all-in-one units, there was no need to
clutter the dash with eye-sore auxiliary units. Entertainment comes
from a retro-style AM/FM/Cassette stereo system that sounds great
even with that LT1 running full-bore, and the Lokar shifter jutting
out from the floorboard manages the automatic transmission
below.
As you'd expect, this 3100 still carries Chevy power, by way of a
freshly installed 5.7L LT1 V8 swapped in from a 1996 Corvette that
produces an asphalt devouring amount of horsepower and great
torque. With just 10k miles on the build completed by the pros at
Street & Performance in Arkansas, it runs superbly and looks
fantastic inside the custom finished engine bay. It's very
functional too, with modern fuel-injection, a serpentine belt
system, aluminum radiator, a polished intake manifold flanked with
custom 'LT1-scripted' valve covers, and a ton of polished and
detailed parts to make it glitter inside the engine bay that itself
was finished with a smoothed and polished firewall and inner
fenders. There's a Mustang II suspension set-up with power
rack-and-pinion steering and coil springs up front, heavy-duty leaf
springs in the rear, and power 4-wheel disc brakes at every corner
that ensure you get a great ride every time out. A sturdy TH350
3-speed automatic transmission was beefed up with a torque
convertor and transmission cooler to help it handle all that added
power, and it feeds a Ford 9-inch rear end filled with 3.50 POSI
gears to round out the powertrain, leaving you with no worries
about reliability and transforming it into an easy high-speed
cruiser. The soundtrack is killer too, with ceramic-coated aluminum
headers feeding into a custom Flowmaster dual exhaust system that's
plenty throaty. Finally, classic Chevrolet 'Full Moon' chrome
wheels put the right old-school spin on this resto-mod and wear
meaty BFGoodrich blackwall radials that finish off the look.
Beautifully built and ready to cruise, this truck is ready to keep
collecting trophies or hammering the highways, all of which it does
equally well. Call today!
