As an artist, you never want to get boxed in to a confined space to work. Typically, ideas flow more freely when there are no limitations placed on a subject or its creator. Most hot rodders get to experience this particular fact of life when they have their first contact with a pinstriper. The car owner delivers his car, tells the 'striper what he wants, then comes back to find something totally different than what he asked for and the work, more often than not, makes the car look better than what he'd originally wanted!
Don "Figgie" Figliozzi knows this, as he has been painting and pinstriping cars for a living for 37 years. True artists have a feel for what looks good, and, if you've been doing it as long as Figgie has, then he must be doing something right!
Involved in the car scene since he was a teenager, Don used to hang out at the dragstrips near his home on Long Island, New York, absorbing all the sights and smells a track has to offer. One of the cars he used to see out in his high school parking lot was a bubbletop LeSabre because it belonged to the principal of North Shore High, Dr. French.
Over the years, Don would spot the car in the driveway of Dr. French's son, Dave, who would occasionally drive it around town. Many years later, Figgie got up the nerve to knock on the door and see if the car, which was still in great shape, was for sale. And lucky for him, it was.
He then began a two-year process of converting the car over from its humble beginnings into a sano cruiser, but did so without the knowledge most other Buick owners already possess. You would think, being a part of the Chevrolet family, parts would be readily available. But, as Buick veterans all know, you have to hunt long and hard to get quality parts for your rebuild. This goes for exterior trim items as well as engine parts, and, when you do find them, they ain't cheap!
Figgie's redo of his LeSabre began with the chassis. The front suspension is a stock indy unit with the lower struts converted to Heim ends. Air Ride Technologies ShockWaves airbags are used both fore and aft while a Master Power Brakes 12-inch disc brake setup is used up front (stock drums remain out back). Relocating the front crossmember was necessary for the new engine/transmission combo, which is pulled from a '66 Riviera.
Bill Mitchell Hardcore Racing Products bumped the 401 Nailhead to 413 cubes and the bottom end went together with a polished and balanced crank, TRW pistons (10:1), and a mild cam from Harmon Collins. Iron Nailhead cylinder heads were used and are fed by a pair of 500-cfm Edelbrock carbs bolted to an Offy manifold. An owner-made (from fiberglass) air induction system brings cool air to the carbs by way of tubing that runs to a specially made air scoop behind the front license plate opening in the middle of the bumper.
Exhaust exits through custom stainless steel headers from American Racing Headers and out a pair of MagnaFlow mufflers. Other engine hop-up parts include a Powermaster 140-amp alternator, a Griffin radiator, and an aluminum water pump. The chassis rolls on a 17- and 18-inch wheel combo from Billet Specialties (in 8- and 9.5-inch widths) that are wrapped in Conti Sport rubber (235/45-17 and 255/55-18, respectively).
The exterior of the big Buick was stripped of all its emblems, but the side trim was left intact. Toyota Camry door handles were installed, as was a set of portholes (that aren't for show-they work) from a 2006 Buick Lucerne. The stock grille was replaced by a custom unit designed by the owner and built by Dan Baker at Alumicraft. Figgie, along with Bill O'Rourke, did the required bodywork (including the removal of the finger pocket on the gas lid door) before '57 Chevy Tropical Turquoise paint from PPG was laid down by Figgie and Angelo Famigletti from Ultimate Auto Body in Glen Cove, New York.
Bill Lang, from Hot Rod Fabrication in Denton, Maryland, got the call from Don to stitch up an appropriate two-tone tan leather interior for his ride. Bill Holtzcamp created the custom console, which houses the controls for the Air Ride suspension system as well as for the stereo and air conditioning. Seats from a 2002 Oldsmobile were recovered too, and the same color used on the seating was transferred to the dash (only a splash of turquoise on the front and rear consoles breaks up the otherwise tan interior).
VDO gauges were set into an owner-fab'd insert for the dash, and North Shore Audio hardwired the Alpine stereo system with multiple speakers (and, as a plus, Dynamat insulation was used throughout the interior). To finish off the innards, a Billet Specialties steering wheel bolts to a Flaming River column, and Juliano's seatbelts keeps Figgie and passengers safe when driving.
After owning the car for more than 10 years now, Don isn't ready to sell it and get something else. He always liked the way this one looked, and, after regretting the sale of a stretched roadster he'd built a few years back, he isn't about to make the same mistake with his Buick. This is the second redo the car has undergone in the last decade, and it is still in good shape considering what New England winters can be like and that he likes to drive it whenever and wherever he can. It seems that Don has figured out what a lot of rodders can't grasp: You've got to hold on to the good ones!