Hot Rods Shine at 30th Pacific Northwest Nationals

Show and Shine
Hot rodding is a rite of passage for many car aficionados, and their involvement in the hobby charts the course of their lives. From their first car to their dream car, and all the stops in between, generations of Americans have tinkered and doodled with old cars. The recent Goodguys 30th Pacific Northwest Nationals, held at the Washington State Fairgrounds in Puyallup, put all the glory, enthusiasm and attention to detail on display. Whether a pure restoration, period correct hot rod made with parts from the ’50s and ’60s, or resto mods that incorporate 21st century technology, rodding is here to stay. Read on and check out some of the hottest rides from the event.

1937 Ford Coupe
Dan Wathor made the northwest trek from Rio Linda, California, which is near the state capital of Sacramento. His 1937 Ford coupe had the look.

Stroker V8
We asked Dan about the car’s substance and he popped the hood to reveal a fully dressed Ford 427 stroker V8 with Arias hemi heads and a most interesting intake treatment.

Money Pit
When Dan says he put all his money into his engine he has proof! Dollar bill graphics on the intake that look like they’re getting sucked into the engine was a big hit with onlookers.

1956 Chevrolet Nomad
Clearly one of the standouts at the event, John and Sheila Emacio’s 1956 Chevy Nomad was a Top 10 pick and Builders Award winner. The car is built on an Art Morrison chassis and sports a heavily staggered wheel setup featuring 20×12-inch Billet Specialties alloys in back and 18x8s up front.

500 Horsepower
Based in Chattaroy, Washington, the Snow White hued Nomad had one of the smoothest engine bays at the show. It’s home to a Jack Gibbs all-aluminum 409-inch V8 engine that’s been punched out to 515 cubic inches and makes a claimed 500 horsepower.

Innovative Intake
The Emacio’s ’56 runs one of the most innovative and unique intake setups we’ve come across. The runners have a high-rise intake feel.

Red Leather
The car continues to impress inside with its classic red leather and quality workmanship. The interior was stitched by J.S. Custom Interiors.

1937 Chevrolet Pickup
“More classy, less flashy” should be the slogan of Doc Kinney’s pristine 1937 Chevy pickup. The paint is gorgeous and its green/gray hue is elegant and refined.

505 Horses
This Bow Tie calls Chilliwack, British Columbia, home. It is powered by an LS7 small-block engine. Original equipment in the Corvette Z06, the V8 is rated at 505 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque. Doc’s motor has a custom air cleaner and he’s had the plastic intake runners painted to match the exterior.

Minimalist Interior
Kinney’s 1937 Chevy interior, a testament to minimalist style, is wrapped in beige leather and features very few gauges or buttons. The quality of the workmanship shines through everywhere you look.

Height Adjustable
The truck is built on an Art Morrison chassis and features an air-bag suspension that allows the ride height to be aggressively adjusted with the push of a button.

1966 Lincoln Continental
Ty Reoh of Scottsdale, Arizona, is rolling the desert gangster vibe hard in his 1966 Lincoln Continental. An iconic platform from the get-go, the Lincoln checks all the right boxes. The paint is sinister, the bumpers are made from composite, the wheels are murdered-out Bonspeed 5-spokes, and Ty is running an inboard shock setup.

Pristine Bay
The Continental’s side-tilt hood reveals a supercharged 5.8-liter Ford SVT modular V8 engine backed by a 4LR100 transmission nestled in a pristine custom engine bay.

Detailed Handling
We love the recessed door handles too.

1934 Ford Five-Window
Ray Bremner from British Columbia, Canada, used a tried-and-proven recipe with his 1934 Ford five-window — a vibrant flame job. This was one of the boldest and loudest cars at the fairgrounds.

Z-Cut
The ’34 features a steel body, an aggressive 6-inch tilted chop top, a custom frame with Z-cut to get a low, raked look, and a heavy dose of PPG Orange Tangerine compliments of Ray’s Custom Body & Paint Works.

Zoomie
The ’34 Ford’s big-bore Hemi with a 671 roots-style blower boosted to 19 psi generates a 900-horsepower soundtrack through custom built 2.5-inch “Zoomie Header” style drag pipes.

Butterflies
Built by Legendary Muscle Car, the Ford features tons of chrome and polished stainless, as well as little details such as airbrushed throttle butterfly valves that keep onlookers in a trance as they eyeball the old-timer.

1932 Ford Three-Window
John Foxley’s 1932 Ford three-window had a great presence in Puyallup — its period-correct look was more than skin deep.

Small-Block V8
John, who hails from Pitt Meadows, British Columbia, has installed a 355-cubic-inch small-block V8 engine with a wicked-cool six deuce intake manifold that houses six 2-barrel carburetors. The engine has also been fitted with ’49 Caddy valve covers.

Chop Top
The old Ford rides on original ’32 rails boxed and swept by John, and the original ’32 body has been enhanced with a ’34 roof that features a 5.5-inch chop. We love the fine detail in the paintwork.

1968 Chevrolet Camaro
Talk about commitment . . . What were you doing in 1986? James Nicolaus of Bellevue, Washington, was taking possession of his first car, this 1968 Chevy Camaro. Yep, he’s had it for an impressive 31 years, and during that tenure has taken the Chevy from zero to hero.

500 Horsepower
He ditched the wimpy 250-cubic-inch inline 6 engine in 2007 and fitted a sweet 500-horsepower LS3. This is a great technological update to a car that sports original panels, original Grecian Green paint, and factory chrome.

1963 Studebaker Avanti
Here’s something you don’t see every day. Laurie Peterson of West Vancouver, British Columbia, has taken this 1963 Studebaker Avanti to a level all its own.

Chevy Engine
A Chevy LS3 crate engine has been coaxed into the engine bay, fitted with a gear-driven ProCharger supercharger, and backed by a modern T56 6-speed manual transmission.

Orange Infused
The interior has been updated but retains its classy aura. We like the infusion of color from the orange seats and door cards.

1931 Ford Roadster
Neil Siermachesky of Port Alberni, British Columbia, left convention in his rearview with this bare metal 1931 Ford roadster. The Ford rolls on a ’32 chassis and is built in high-boy style with the body sitting on top of the frame.

Ford Meets Mopar
We like the Blue Oval’s seriously iconic powerplant: a 1957-vintage 392-inch Hemi V8. The Mopar bullet is backed by a tried-and-proven M21 Muncie 4-speed manual.

Industrial Feel
The ’31 was built by Neil, and we love the custom bead-rolled interior. It perfectly fits the industrial feel of the exterior’s bare metal finish.

Shifter
We were especially taken by the vintage microphone shift knob.

1931 Ford Vicky
Dennis Akers’ 1931 Ford Vicky features a wedged, chopped, and channeled body with frenched headlights, and a two-inch chopped grille shell. The frame has been stretched 5.5 inches and powder coated in orange to match the car. (Channeling involves cutting long notches, or channels, the length of the body where it would sit on the frame rails. This lowers the body, putting its bottom edge closer to the ground.)

Detroit Diesel
Motivation comes from a stroked 1956 354-cubic-inch Ford truck engine fitted with a Detroit Diesel 671 blower, Donovan valve covers, and custom headers fabricated by Dennis in his home shop in Post Falls, Idaho.

1958 Chevrolet Apache
The luxurious Anniversary Gold over Honey Beige two-tone scheme on this pristine 1958 Chevy Apache pickup was painted by its owner Jacob Lusk.

Tastefully Executed
In comparison to some of the rides at the show, the Chevy is not over the top. The entire truck, home built by Jacob, is extremely well-executed from head to toe. A clean recessed firewall provides the backdrop for a 354-inch small-block V8 fitted with fuel injection and a nice set of headers.

Two-Tone
Inside, the truck continues the two-tone paint treatment but is simple in layout and high in function.

1933 Chevrolet Roadster
The glowing paint on Greg and Dotty Meyer’s 1933 Chevy roadster pulled us in like a moth to a flame. The Kandy Tangerine paint by Ben Conley of Ben’s Custom Paint in Oregon City, Oregon, accents an all-steel body with hundreds of mods, including pulling the grille bottom out by an inch for that laid down look.

Mirror Mirror
This Tigard, Oregon, based Chevy sports an LS6 V8 engine with eight chrome stacks that are part of the electronic fuel injection setup installed by Imagine Injection of Glendale, Arizona. We like how the mirror-finished firewall reflects the fully polished engine.

1948 Chevrolet Pickup
Making the road trip from Eugene, Oregon, Ron and Lois Beard’s 1948 Chevy pickup has a chop top and a serious, in-the-weeds hunkered stance. The running gear consists of a 327-inch V8 engine and a 700R4 automatic transmission.

Blue Steel
The Chevy sports classic scallop accents on a satin-finished Blue Steel hue painted by Kustom Colors. Rolling stock consists of Wheel Vintiques steelies with full-face hub caps and wide whites.

1932 Ford Coupe
Doug MacLanders’ 1932 Ford coupe would have a place of honor in anyone’s garage. It has the big burnout-ready rear tires, classic stance, and a punchy Hemi V8 that rodders love.

Check Your Teeth
The pride of Cloverdale, British Columbia, the Ford’s 354-inch V8 is beautifully dressed with huge polished valve covers.

Big Stacks
We love the use of the period-correct Hilborn fuel injection setup with stacks that reach to the sky like a grove of old-growth redwoods.

1959 Chevrolet El Camino
Barry and Laura Collier from Des Moines, Washington, got plenty of double takes with their 1959 Chevy El Camino. This Bow Tie is powered by a 348-cubic-inch V8 engine backed by a 4-speed manual transmission. Barry reports he has owned the vehicle for a whopping 47 years.

1965 Chevrolet II
If we were Buena, Washington, resident David Story we’d drive the wheels off this pristine Dover White 1965 Chevy II.

Attention to Detail
Along with a well-appointed cabin by Interior Stitches of Bremerton, Washington, the old Chevy runs a 406-cubic-inch V8 engine with dual 4-barrel carbs backed by a 4-speed manual transmission. The attention to detail applied under the hood can be seen everywhere you look on the car.

1954 Chevrolet
The clean lines and tail draggin’ stance of Mike Frisk’s 1954 Chevy makes it the perfect example of the lead sled movement. A lead sled is based on a post-war 1948 to 1955 coupe. The mods include chopped tops, channeled bodies, big grillework and a slammed suspension.

1937 Ford Slantback
Thanks to its laid-back grille and wide fender treatment, Nick and Kim Axtman’s 1937 Ford Slantback has a sleek, forceful look.

Corvette Engine
Peeking under the side-tilt hood reveals a small-block LS1 Corvette V8 engine; the interior features flowing tan leather.

Built in Nevada, Based in Washington
The ’37 is based in Gig Harbor, Washington, and was built by B&T Custom Rod & Restoration in Sparks, Nevada.

1938 Graham
This is not a hovercraft. Steve and Karla Howard from Edmonds, Washington, may say they’re floating on the clouds in their 1938 Graham, but they’re just describing their state of mind.

Art Deco
Fitted with Ford 5.0-liter V8 engine and AOD transmission from a late-model Mustang, the car possesses a decidedly art deco interior.

Time?
No need asking the time in this ride.

1956 Chevrolet Bel Air
Bill and Jeanie Thornton of Issaquah, Washington, drive their 1956 Chevy Bel Air on a regular basis; it has become a common site at many local shows.

Ornamental
We love how the Chevy’s stout 480-horsepower LS3 small-block V8 engine has been dressed up using a Tri-Five hood ornament.

1959 Chevrolet Sedan
Don Farrelly’s 1959 Chevy sedan delivery is all about the paint. The black base color and lively green flames were pulled off by Hanson’s Auto Body, with air brushing by Jason Prouty. The ’59 runs a 402-inch big-block by John Paz, a Camaro front clip, an airbag suspension, and Torque Thrust wheels.