1927 Ford Roadster - From Tragedy To Triumph

For all the many reasons one would want to build a hot rod, the rationale Ron Wilhite employed to create his fun little Model T roadster is the one reason you wouldn't wish on anybody.

After years together in Copperopolis, California, Ron lost his 41-year-old wife, Donna, to cancer in September 2005. A lifelong rodder (as a kid he'd ride his bicycle over to Joe Bailon's shop in Hayward and watch them work on cars), Ron still owns the '32 roadster pickup he's had for the last 38 years-racking up more than 152,000 miles on it-and he's a 25-year member of the famed Danville Dukes.

A few years back, Donna wanted to experience the street rodding scene with Ron and asked for a convertible to ride around in, so he found a '46 convertible Chevy and was in the middle of the build when she passed away. Tough to find the motivation to work on that project without opening the floodgates of memories, a few of Ron's buddies came to his rescue and provided the major pieces for him to throw together a little hot rod to help take his mind off his loss.

Jack Keane gave Ron a steel '27 Ford roadster body; Hector Trevino supplied the power by donating a 283 V-8; and Doug Wescott gave up a Model A chassis with a good title as well as an 8-inch rear. With the basics now in his garage, Ron was able to focus on what needed to be done and started building a traditional-based ride with some modern updates for safety and reliability.

Keeping his UPS driver busy delivering all the parts Ron ordered on the phone from companies such as Speedway Motors and Summit, Ron then began to build his chassis, which included extending the wheelbase to 109 inches. The A-frame was then boxed and an additional crossmember gave the car added strength and less flex. The frame was then Z'd in the rear, and Carrera coilover shocks were used over the 8-inch rear along with a pair of chromed hairpins.

The front suspension has a classic hot rod look with a 4-inch dropped Super Bell axle and another set of chrome hairpins, but updates include a monoleaf spring and a set of GM disc brakes. The cross-steer steering setup used a Vega box and, for rollers, Ron wrapped a set of Wheel Vintiques 15x7 and 6s, painted the same color as the car and finished with caps 'n' rings, with 165x15 BFGoodrich whitewall rubber up front and Hurst 235x70x15 whitewall cheaters out back.

Because Ron is 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighs 200 pounds, and T bodies are notoriously short, he added 3 1/2 inches to the firewall and took a couple of inches out of the seat so he could sit down inside the cockpit instead of riding above it. To also aid the lowered look, he added 4 inches to the bottom of the body-filling in the area along the rockers with louvers-which makes the car appear channeled, even though it isn't. Ron also had Rock Valley build a 12-1/2-gallon stainless gas tank and mount it flat and close to the rear apron, so it doesn't take up much space, which makes the trunk area larger (and more usable) than most Ts on the road.

The motor, a 283, was bored 0.030 by Cal's Machine in Oakdale, California, which gives the V-8 a displacement of 292 inches. Ron built the motor himself, adding TRW pistons, a balanced crank, and a hydraulic camshaft from Summit.

Bolt-ons include a short Chevy water pump, Summit 202 heads, a 100-amp alternator, an Edelbrock manifold, a 4-inch-chopped Walker radiator, Mallory ignition with Taylor wires, and a trio of Stromberg carbs. Rick's Mufflers in Modesto created the exhaust using 22-inch glasspack mufflers and a set of Lake Style Headers from Speedway Motors.

What tricks most folks into thinking the engine is something else are the Fauxsmobile valve covers from Technostalgia, who make a valve cover kit you can bolt on to your Chevy heads that makes them look like you have a '49-50 Olds Rocket motor in your ride, and it fools nearly everyone unless they look a little closer. Ron wasn't trying to pull the wool over anyone's eyes, as he had originally wanted an Olds motor for his T, but thought replacement parts out on the road might be easier to find for a small-block Chevy, so there you go. The TH350 trans, rebuilt by Jim's Transmission in Modesto, utilizes a PAW 2,000-rpm stall converter and a tall Gennie floor-mount shifter.

Though he received the steel body, Ron needed a turtledeck, which he got in fiberglass (with an opening trunk lid) from Poli-Form in Watsonville. The grille, a '32 Ford item, was chopped 4 inches for the right proportion to match the rest of the low-profile car.

There are only a few primary colors that will make a car stand out in a crowd, and Ron picked DuPont's Hugger Orange to do just that, and sprayed the car himself. Rick Bacon (aka Arsonist) followed with a pinstripe job worthy of the ol' master himself, Von Dutch. The rest of the exterior pieces-King Bee headlamps, '46 Ford taillights, the Mr. Roadster 4-inch-chopped windshield, and stanchions-were soon added, leaving only the interior to finish the car.

Ron used TPI-Tech gauges, including a 140-mph speedo and an 8,000-rpm tach, to fill the stock '27 dash while a Sprint four-spoke steering wheel was attached to a LimeWorks steering column. He also used an EZ-Wire wiring kit, and modified his directional signals to work with a self-canceling timer from a motorcycle, so they turn off by themselves after a few blinks.

The stock T seat was stitched up by Jim Taliaferro at Happy Camper's Upholstery in Copperopolis and reflects the traditional look Ron was going for with wide white pleats and orange piping. Black nylon carpet was laid out on the floor, which is nearly flat because there is no transmission hump due to Ron's body modifications.

Back when Ron was a kid and checking out the cars at Bailon's, he was aware of the Hayward Rod Benders car club and always thought they had some pretty cool cars. So, when his car was completed, he added their club plaque to the rear apron of his T as a tribute to his childhood memories. But, the real tribute is the car itself, and how it has motivated Ron to finish Donna's '46, which he believes will be a great homage to her memory.