John O'Quinn's 1936 Ford Roadster

What type of car would you have in your driveway if price were not an issue? An original steel '32 Ford three-window? Maybe with a blown Flattie? What about a custom '57 Cadillac two-seat roadster, stylized to look like it came out of Valley Custom Shop in 1958?

But, why limit yourself to old hot rods? What about a collection of vintage and current Indy or Sprint Cars? And, don't forget about European exotics: Ferraris, Masers, Bugattis, Lambos, and the like. Want to toss in some elegance? Nothing says it's a Duesey like a Duesenberg.

For John O'Quinn, a nationally known trial lawyer based in Houston, Texas, it isn't about the money but rather having a great collection of cars. And, he should know-he owns more than 900 vehicles of all shapes and sizes, many of them being mentioned in the previous paragraphs.

But, two questions arise when you have nearly 1,000 cars at your disposal: One, what are you going to do with them, and, two, why keep buying them? As for the first query, it's been widely reported John has the idea to open an automotive museum in his hometown sometime in 2009, with some saying it should put to shame any other auto museum known to exist.

However, cars of John's caliber, if not driven, should at least be seen, so a museum is a great way for folks to possibly view something they'll probably never come in contact with any other way. As for continuing to purchase vehicles well after, say, the 500-car mark, we can only refer to the statement made in the first paragraph: If money were no object, wouldn't you?

That's the reaction this car has received from most folks when they see it. Rick has since taken it to Rick Perry's San Francisco show at the beginning of this year and two weeks later to the Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona. It's not an over-the-top wild custom; it's a subtle exercise in style and grace. And, though he may have close to 1,000 cars at his disposal, John can be assured that there is only one car like this one. Case closed.

One of the best ways to ensure you've collected only the best is to attend the car auctions that cater to that elite clientele: RM, Christie's, Gooding & Company, and even Barrett-Jackson. At the annual RM auction in Pebble Beach a few years ago, John's buyer (someone who typically has been instructed to bid on particular cars by an off-site collector) purchased both a customized '53 Cadillac and the custom green '34 roadster found on the May '05 cover of STREET RODDER.

Both cars, coincidently, had been built by Arizona stylist Rick Dore and, unbeknownst to Rick, John already had a few of Rick's cars in his collection. Rick, upon receiving an invitation from John to visit his collection, took the lawyer up on his offer and flew down to see what he was all about. Commenting that John is "down to earth" and a "really nice guy," Rick was impressed with his car's new owner. But, the feeling was mutual, and John decided to have Rick build a few more cars for him. (Rick says John currently owns 11 of his past efforts, plus a couple of motorcycles he'd done).

Not long after, when Rick showed John some drawings he'd had automotive illustrator Jimmy Smith create-a stylish '36 Ford roadster with Duesenberg accents-John gave the go-ahead to have the car built, and Rick was off to build another custom.

To complicate matters, Rick had been going in for treatments to battle cancer, and was in Los Angeles Monday through Friday receiving radiation, having weekends "off." Rick had heard about a good '36 body in Baltimore, Maryland, and decided to go see it for himself.

So, on Super Bowl Sunday, he jumped on a plane at LAX, flew to Baltimore, gave the taxi driver $100 to take him to a barn and keep the motor running, saw what he liked, counted out the money, and then jumped back in the cab for a ride to the airport and a flight home the same day. This was done all in time to start radiation the following morning.

By March, Rick had finished his treatments and jumped right into the production of John's '36, wanting to finish it by its projected debut in November at the SEMA Show in Vegas-only seven months away. The chassis was up first, which came from Total Cost Involved Engineering but was stretched in the right places by Rick. Air Ride Technologies airbags were also installed, and the body was mounted and then stripped of its paint.

Rick created the rear side skirts and the one-off Dore/Du Vall-type windshield for the car, and then shipped the car off to John Aiello in California for more custom bodywork. Aiello created the aluminum Carson-type chopped top for the ride, as well as the hood top and sides, while Flynn Millard made the trim pieces the old-fashioned way: bangin' brass strips over a tree stump. Flynn also created the pieces that give the car its '29 Duesenberg feel-the hood side spears and fender accents, the latter doubling as housings for the custom taillights.

The front fenders were stretched well beyond stock, which necessitated adding a portion of the fender onto the door for an even longer appearance. The rear pan was reshaped and lengthened, too, and the hood was made to fit the new Packard grille.

From Aiello's, the car travelled a short distance to Art Himsl's shop in Concord, California, for its new hue. Mixing up a batch of custom candy red PPG paint, Art expertly laid down several coats for a depth you can almost swim in.

Adding the new chrome pieces, all dipped at Sherm's Plating in NorCal, to the exterior really made the car look both elegant and stylish, but the addition of the chrome Tru-Spoke wires wrapped in Coker wide whites really gave the old Ford the rich, Duesenberg look Rick was looking for.

Haywire was tapped to do the wiring for the custom, which included the twin Classic Instruments gauges-a 140-mph speedo and a four-in-one second gauge-as well as the rest of the car's electrical needs (there is no stereo or other bells and whistles other than the airbag system).

Contra Costa Vinyl, also based in Concord, used a pearl-white leather and black Mercedes-type carpet to cover the interior of the roadster. The stock '36 bench seat was refinished with a pleated dual horseshoe design, with the pleats running vertically onto the door panels. The Carson-type top was covered in the same material, both inside and out.

You might reasonably expect a build time of at least a year for this car, but Rick was able to pull it all together in the required seven months, as it made its debut at the '07 SEMA Show in grand style. Rick was asked to pull the car into the Ford booth on its first day there, where it sat and was admired by thousands all week long.