Words & Photos by James Maxwell
This is the second of three SEMA photo galleries on THE SHOP. Our first SEMA photo gallery focused on trucks, vans and SUVs. This time around, we’re focusing on classic cars from the ’30s, ’40s, ’50s and ’60s that represent some of the latest trends and best builds.
The photos in these online galleries reflect mostly “American Performance,” with some taken during daytime hours (and the buzz of the show floor), while others were taken after hours, making it possible to capture the vehicles without the crowds.
1955 Chevrolet Nomad
Built by North Carolina-based Southern Comfort Customs, the “Gray Madder” customized 1955 Chevrolet Nomad was crowned the winner of the prestigious Ridler Award at the 2025 Detroit Autorama. This 10-year build features extensive but subtle body mods, including the doors being moved 3 inches rearward, an Art Morrison chassis with hydraulic suspension, a 6.2L LS3 engine, a 6L90E 6-speed automatic transmission and BASF Moonwalk Gray body color.
1935 Hudson Terraplane
Built by The Hot Rod Shop (Corinth, Mississippi), this rare 1935 Hudson Terraplane is jam-packed with custom mods, including MTX Audio sound system components, Billet Specialties Wheels, BluePrint SB Chevy power and a full glass roof.
1960 DKW Auto Union 1000SP
In the “strange-and-unusual” category comes a 1960 DKW Auto Union 1000SP car with a VW Beetle chassis swap, Type III engine, Air Lift airbags and BBS crosswire wheels. Located in Central Hall at the Rowe Motor Oil booth, John Ludwick and his father were in a rush to get this project to SEMA all the way from New Hampshire.
1955 DeSoto Fireflite by Chip Foose
This 1955 DeSoto Fireflite represents “Heritage and Horsepower” with the build reflecting vintage elegance and modern fury, as in a SRT HEMI Gen III powerplant. The classic Mopar came out of the Chip Foose show, running a stock frame from the cowl back, an in-house custom-built front suspension and one-off “wire-look” wheels designed by Foose and built by Mike Curtis of Curtis Speed. It’s an original Jamaica Bronze Metallic car, all refreshed with BASF products. The inside features new leather and a mohair mix Sunbrella upholstery fabric in a three-color layout.
1949 Pontiac Chieftain
This 1949 Pontiac Chieftain, known as the “Nightmare,” was built by Samson Design (Marshall, Missouri). Flawlessly chopped 6 inches, it features an angled B pillar, ’56 Chevy rear bumper, Frenched Mini Cooper headlamps and 12 coats of clear over black paint. It also has supercharged LS8 power, Wilwood brakes, boxed chassis, 19-inch wheels and an extremely reworked interior—all for a seriously sinister look. Owner Danny Asher was shown the car by the previous elderly female owner, and she knew that he’d take good care of it.
1932 Ford Phaeton
Owned by Beth Myers, it’s the Roy Brizio 1932 Phaeton, a former AMBR winner. This two-door tub features suicide doors, a Borla-injected Roush 427 Ford for power, Coker Excelsior wheels (16 and 18 inch) and the obligatory Moon tank up front. The paint is by Darryl Hollenbeck, and the searing flames are by Art Himsl.
1955 Chevrolet Nomad
Still a head-turner, this classic ’55 Nomad wheelstander “Chevado” made an appearance at the SEMA Show, and Kenny Youngblood was there to help commemorate the occasion. This car was a big, exciting competitor back in the day on West Coast drag strips.
1956 Lincoln Continental Mark II by Chip Foose
This stunning 1956 Lincoln Continental Mark II from Chip Foose took three cars to make it one. A project that included making it a roadster with a 1964 Thunderbird wrap-around rear seat, it still respects the original lines of the car. Small changes include tailor-fitted narrowed bumpers, reshaped wheel openings and 1.5 inches taken out of the windshield. The biggest change to the body is a resculpted rear spare tire well on the deck lid (dropped three inches in height). It’s topped off with a BASF Glasurite custom blend Jade Green finish, with custom Olive Green and Eggshell White leather on the inside.
Power comes from the sponsor of the project: a BluePrint LS3 engine and topped with a Curtis speed air cleaner and retro valve covers. Some may object to the use of a GM engine; however, it was all mandated in the build by owners Pat and Linda Valasco.
“This Continental represents what I love most about automotive design, respecting heritage while exploring what’s possible. Every line, every surface and every component was reconsidered to create something that feels both familiar and completely new,” said Foose.
1935 Plymouth GT-1
A GT-1 race chassis mated to a 550-cubic-inch Viper V-10 and TR6060 race transmission (Pistol Grip) produces a dyno-verified 803 hp on a non-cut-up 1935 Plymouth Coupe body. Built by Ruffian Cars, the paint and patina are original, with carbon fiber big fenders. Displayed in the (Sweden) CTEK Battery Charging SEMA booth, it was definitely noticed. It also features an 8-point roll cage, CCW 16-inch wheels, Goodyear race rubber, radiator relocated in the trunk and full-race brakes. It was something very wild for SEMA ’25.
1932 Ford Roadster
Named “Fenderless,” this 1932 Ford Roadster by Trop Trepanier was the winner of the Battle of the Builders Presented by Mothers Polish. Completed in January 2025, the car is completely scratch-built and designed to resemble a vintage Ford roadster, but with every dimension reworked to achieve ideal proportions as an open-wheel car.
It was fabricated in-house by Trepanier at his Rad Rides shop (Manteno, Illinois), including the body, chassis, suspension and all machined parts. The car is powered from a 1957 McCullough-supercharged 312-cid Ford Y-block, backed by a Bowler 4R70W transmission and quick-change rear axle with torsion bar suspension. Porsche Aventurine Green Metallic is the chosen color.
1956 Chevrolet Bel Air
Built for JBL Audio, this ’56 Bel Air features a removed top, a 1961 Chevy windshield conversion, suicide doors with shaved door handles, Camaro hood inserts, reverse flip hood, four bucket seats, custom dash, supercharged Chevy big block and a crazy sound system. Known as “Blownair,” it incorporates a clean look and fresh appearance.
1936 Chevrolet Pickup
This 1936 Chevrolet pickup has somewhat of a strange approach to a custom build: part hot rod, part autocross. It features a blown big block Chevy with some serious Fox nitrogen-charged coil-overs for road-race cornering.
Rick Dore Pantheon
Car customizer and stylist Rick Dore displayed his newest creation, “The Pantheon,” a 1930s classic interpretation with his distinctive style. A 2.5-year build, it features a completely hand-formed aluminum body by Luc Deley with an Art Morrison chassis below. The interior is by Ron Mangus, and the paint is by Dalton at Hillview Customs, with Benny Flores talent. A stunning car.
Red Baron
Featuring Firestone Wide 60 Oval rubber by Coker Tire, the T-bucket “Red Baron” was out front, and not everyone knew just how big a hit it was back in the late 1960s. In 1967, the Monogram model car kit company hired designer Tom Daniel to create a new car for kids to build as a 1:24 scale kit, and it was a top-seller. Because the German war helmet was very popular at the time with the ’60s surf culture, it was the general theme for the project. These helmets were considered a form of rebellion. T-bucket roadsters were also popular, so Daniel combined the two and added some machine guns and a Maltese cross for full effect.
Bob Larivee was a big-time car show promoter, and he commissioned car builder Chuck Miller to build a 1:1 version in 1969 that toured the country at car shows. Daniels used a vintage German aircraft engine as the powerplant on the model; however, for the real thing, a Pontiac OHC inline-six was chosen. How popular was the Red Baron kit with model car builders? Over 3 million were sold by 1972.
