2009 — We are Rapidly Approaching a New Decade
By John Novak
What is the next direction our beloved automotive obsession will take us?

It’s time to reflect on the past, and plan for the future. After all it will take about a year for those new build projects to hit the street in 2010. You will notice that I said “Hit the Street” and not “Hit the Shows, as I am a firm believer that cars were meant to be driven, not live in trailers and under covers in garages. I love to see a bit of Road Rash on a car!

In the Sixties the straight-axle-gasser-look was all the rage, with the front end jacked-way-up to shift the weight to the rear. Then, along with the good or bad came the Seventies. That’s when we jacked-up the other end of the car with shackles and wider than necessary tires in the rear and flared wheel wells. Sliding into the Eighties was ugly pastel paint schemes that included the bumpers and big chrome engines and massively fat tires and tubs finally tucked under the fenders. With the Nineties came a big push toward restorations that seem to still permeate much of the landscape. The current trend seems to focus on upgrading the suspension and brakes in an attempt to make our 5,000 pounds of Lead-Sled handle like an F1. This is long overdue in my opinion, and a great deviation from the scary stuff that should have killed each of us aggressive drivers off long ago!

So what’s next? I would love to see more of the Hot Rod blood start flowing in our veins again! Let’s shave, chop, alter, transplant, and adapt our way into something new and outrageous. We need something new that the next generation of motor heads will look back on and use for inspiration. The sad reality is that the green, sewing machine powered hybrid vehicles are here to stay. What will the next generation have to play with? The Smart Car! Is this the back side of the Golden Age of Rodding?

Now for a question that is being asked more and more. Since every good build starts with a body-off, should the old chassis be replaced with one of those new custom jobs? In a word… No. If you want the best, you want it simple and fast, and you have lots of money, then by all means go for it without question! If the old frame is damaged, rusted with 50 years of salt, or butchered by someone else, then you must replace it!

However, if none of the above seem to fit, then roll up your sleeves and get to work! First, I would pressure wash anything that will come off. Next I would remove every screw, bolt, clip or bracket. If it’s not welded on, take it off. If it is welded on and you do not need it, take it off. Sand blast off all the paint and rust and spend lots of time inspecting every inch for cracks. Grind and sand it smooth. Etch the bare metal with a mild acid to remove any surface rust then prime the frame. If you plan to go for performance, then we have some welding to do. I like to “box” the frame by welding in plate of the same thickness to cover all of the open areas of the channel. Now is the time to really detail. Next, you are ready to trial fit the body, and mark all the mounting points. Now fit and fabricate the suspension components like sway bar and custom shock mounts and tack weld them in place. If you are adding a new front clip, or channeling the rear frame for a narrowed axle then you will be doing several trial fits. Again only tack weld at this point. Once you have all the new components firmly tacked in place it is time to make sure everything is true, straight and square before the final welds are laid down. If you are not a real good welder in all positions at this point, now is the time to make friends with one! This is not the place to practice, or grind until it looks good enough. Mistakes here will come back to haunt you later, big time. Mistakes include using the wrong welding rod, not getting enough penetration, over heating an area and making it brittle and prone to cracking at a later date. Now none of this will match the performance of the new chassis that are engineered today, but for most builds they will perform very well. I have also seen people use a frame from a “Convertible” donor car under their “hard top” because they are stiffer than the original. This is because they were designed to compensate for the open body structure. I see that as a good use of the factory engineers to figure everything out for you. The upside to this move if you have such a frame available, the car will still appear stock. That is part of the ingenuity and thinking that started all of this hot rod stuff in the first place. It’s not just about how fat your checkbook is, it’s about using what is available to get the most performance.