July 2017
DACC Feature Car
My story
begins with my dad owning a 1956 Bel Air 2 door hardtop. He sold his car to buy
a family car, since my Mom and Dad were expecting (me)! Right after that, I
lost my mom in a car wreck.
Fast forward to 1979 and my dad purchased the current ‘56. It was just a shell
and frame. When I was about 13 I found my Dad’s original ‘56 Chevy at wrecking
yard and I began to take what salvable parts I could off of it. My dad broke
two horses for a guy who painted the ‘56 in 1980, which is the same paint that
is on the car to this day! I still have my Dad’s wooded steering wheel on the
car! The car started off with a mild 327 small block, Turbo 400 tranny, Cragar
wheels with some 4:56 gears in the rear.
My theme for the car was I wanted to keep the original 1956 Chevy interior and exterior look, with some subtle changes. This meant leaving all of the emblems, trim etc inside and out. However, I wanted it to be mean and nasty without having something sticking out of the hood. Some major changes were in store for this car. To get the correct stance, the front of the car was lowered using upper and lower Tubular A arms, 2” dropped spindles with 1” lowering springs. The rear suspension uses RideTech 4 Link with Coil Overs. Under the hood sits a 406cid Dart Block, Competition AFR heads (with Inconel exhaust valves), PAC Springs with titanium retainers and keepers, custom anodize Ross pistons, Total Seal Rings (Steel Top Ring), custom Bullet cam, steel bodied lifters, a F1 ProCharger, AIS Water Meth Injection all producing a lot of horsepower! Transferring the power is done by a 4L80E, with billet input shaft and Kevlar Clutches along with a Hughes converter and Compushift controller. The 4 wheel disk brakes are driven by a Hydratech Hydraboost System with Type II pump and remote ps reservoir. Interior improvements include IDIDIT tilt column, Lokar, Hush MAT, AAW wiring, Classic Instruments gauges, LED Lights, Vintage A/C and Ciadella Interior. My ’56 is street driven and can be seen at the drag strip too! Future plans calls for a repaint and buffing of the exterior stainless trim.
MORE PHOTOS
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