1932 Ford Dynaliner Deuce Roadster - Dyna-Mite!

You've seen Scott Whitaker's face a million times. Better known as "Les Noyse," Dynamat's Mohawk-topped founder is literally his own best advertisement. His mean-looking, chopped, heavily patina'd, S.Co.T.-blown, Flathead-powered Dynaliner 0.5 Deuce fooled a lot of folks at the '05 SEMA show, especially when he displayed one half of it, then returned the following year with a complete car he had driven to Las Vegas from Cincinnati. People thought for sure he'd chopped up a priceless old lakester to build that "half-a-coupe." Then, they were convinced the Dynaliner 1.0 (which began as a Brookville steel three-window before getting the "buried alive" treatment, as seen in STREET RODDER's April '07 issue) was another serious oldie but goodie.

That hammered Bonneville-style hardtop was a tough act to follow, but Scott rose to the challenge with something completely different. "When I was a kid," he recalled, "I remember stripped-down, channeled Model A roadsters with tall, skinny wire wheels and bucket seats. I wanted to do a car like that, but it had to be much more refined. Where hot rods are concerned, sports car-style roadsters from the 1950s haven't been overly emulated."

Pointing to historic race-winning hop-ups like Duffy Livingston's Eliminator, and El Caballo de Hierro, Ak Miller's Olds-powered La Carrera/Mille Miglia '27 T, Scott reminds us that, "especially in Southern California, the sports-car movement was very strong after the war. Hot rod 'specials' were an attempt to blend stout and practical American iron, plus big V-8 muscle, with European handling. With their woodgrain steering wheels and bucket seats, mid-century British sports cars, like the Jaguar XK140 and the Austin-Healey 3000, balanced elegance, performance, and practicality.

"This was our goal," he continued, "and it comes through with the parts and finishes we selected. The new Dynasport roadster was also built for performance. This car handles incredibly well, and with 440-bhp, a five-speed Tremec, and the Moser rearend, it really scoots."

The Dynasport's great mix of styling cues combine a scratch-built, '30s-era Miller-esque nose (hammered out over a buck that was actually used to build a Miller race car grille replacement), '40s-style racing wire wheels and skinny tires, with a '50s-era sports-car interior. "Like the Dynaliner, this isn't an attempt to copy any specific car," Scott noted. "It has some typical parts and some atypical parts that work together for a timeless style. As one guy put it, 'It looks familiar, but I've never seen anything like it.'"

We'll say. The low-slung Dynasport roadster crouches as though it's about to spring. "I wanted it really low, but without channeling it," Scott said. "So, we pushed the wheelwells way up, kicked up the Pete and Jake's boxed'32 frame as far as we dared go, and got the rear way down, so it wasn't much taller than the tires. The frame is kicked up in front, as well, with new crossmembers and transmission supports. Holes were cut in the framerails, and various sections of thin-wall tubing were first welded in, and then ground flush. Then, the frame was powdercoated. There is no filler in that frame." We'd add that it looks really trick, and gives the car its killer stance.

"The front suspension was somewhat of a challenge," he continued, "but it was a concept that fell together by taking it one step at a time. I had seen double quarter-elliptical setups on Miller race cars and thought that keeping them in line with the frame would result in a really clean look. The big advantages are adjustability and handling. A removable subframe and POSIES swivel shackles were the key to making all this work." The front axle is a tubular unit from a '37 Ford. The brakes are 12-inch Wilwood discs. "We had to fabricate those curved custom wishbones. They really throw people. 'What is this?' they ask. 'Is it a restoration?'"

"And, that's what I really like. It looks like a restoration, but in reality, it never existed.

"After our last car," he went on, "I'm sure everyone expected us to continue to do more patina cars. So, the Dynasport had to be a shiny car that could have the impact of the Dynaliner."

In keeping with the sports-car theme, Scott and his crew built two Moser 9-inch rears, one with a 3.89:1 Posi-traction set up with 31-spline axles and a 4.57:1 spooled unit with 35-spline axles. (Scott's thinking of running this car in drifting or autocross competition and possibly fitting slicks to drag-race it). The rear suspension is a custom-made, triangulated four-link arrangement with a transverse POSIES leaf spring and a custom antiroll bar. The rear brakes are Wilwood 11-inch discs. Those tall Dayton wire wheels are an essential element that gives this car its authentic vintage look. The fronts are 19x3.5 with 19x5.50 Excelsior racing tires. The rears are 20x5.0 with 20x7.00 skins. "I'm on a real tall and skinny tire campaign," Scott said. "You're gonna see those on a lot more cars." A KSE power steering box was turned upside down and reversed, then modified for a better steering angle, as well as for improved brake pedal and foot clearance.

"It took 10 months to build this car at our shop, Speed Kings, and (because of some frame welding problems early on) we essentially built it twice. Jamie Reedy, an exceptional paint and body guy, took the lead on the entire car. Doug Times, of Times Welding, was responsible for the vast majority of the floor, the firewall, and the frame fabrication. There's no better welder on the planet. Art Morrison himself told me it was bitchin'.

"And, nothing hangs down below that frame," he continued. "The nose, hood, and the driver's fairing were formed by Clay Cook, Doug Times, and POSIES." Apparently, there was a cast of thousands involved. "At any given moment, and any time of night or day," he said, "you might have found Charley Mallory, Dave Hall, Dave P., Ben Whitaker, Zach Hursell, Paul Sonoda, Greg Bean, Dave Burchfield, Rocky from California Custom Sounds, and me in attendance. We put in a couple of all-nighters before November's SEMA show."

A hot sports rod needs a serious motor, and this car has the goods. Under the hood, and set waaaaay back, lurks a 302-cid Ford V-8, bored to 4.030 inches and stroked to 3.4 inches for 347 cid, then fitted with aluminum Brodix heads, a COMP cam, and a Speedway racing water pump. The intake is an Edelbrock Victor Jr. with a 750-cfm Holley four-barrel. That trick, much-modified air cleaner hails from a '70 Mercedes-Benz 240, and it's stuffed with a stainless woven wire and a bronze wool filter element. "We pinched the frame quite a bit," Scott said, "so shoehorning that engine in wasn't easy." An MSD ignition, Schoenfield headers, and a custom exhaust system with Hushpower mufflers round out the functional specs.

Wondering about those valve covers? They're gennie lids from a '56 Lincoln Mark II with custom adapters from C. Cook Enterprises. Ken Troutman, of KT Engine development in Concord, North Carolina, was responsible for the machine work and assembly. Dyno results showed 440 bhp at 5,800 rpm and a hefty 410 lb-ft of torque at 4,350 rpm. All that punch is deftly handled by a McLeod twin-disc clutch and a lightened flywheel. A Tremec TKO-600 five-speed sorts out the shifts, and the shifter itself is a cool early Corvette-style unit from Classic Motorsports Group.

As noted, the Brookville steel roadster body was sliced and diced a bit when the wheelwells were raised "to the max," and the decklid was artfully narrowed. The fuel tank is reminiscent of those found in early Ferraris. They nailed "the look," and the craftsmanship and fabrication expertise exceeds anything you'd find on a '50s-era sports model. The finish is an improbable but stunning combination of DuPont Black Jade and Cadillac Escalade White Diamond, and the Honda Element Olive pinstriping is by Randy Willis in Miamisburg, Ohio. The painting and sweeping elliptical graphics are the work of Jamie Reedy at Speed Kings.

The roadster's authenticity is ensured with the use of cleverly updated, totally authentic vintage parts and pieces, like the '36 Ford headlights with Vision X high-intensity discharge (HID) conversions. The taillights are WWII vintage wing lights; the outside mirrors are British Lucas accessories. In lieu of a windshield, there are twin Brooklands aeroscreens, like you'd find on a racing MG, and the dash was pirated from a Triumph TR3, then upgraded with Haneline gauges. The interior mirror was borrowed from another long-forgotten British sports car. The steering wheel is an elegant Ferrari donation that Scott thinks came from a 365GTB/4 Daytona. The bucket seats were lifted from a Porsche 356 GT. Scott pointed out that "a lot of this stuff is not custom made-it's the real thing, very creatively assembled."

We dig the Ghost Pedals from Tesla MMW, of Olmstead Falls, Ohio. Mike Barr from Dayton did all the plating. The interior by Jerry Schnetzer, of Fairfield, Ohio, neatly complements the exterior colors. For the record, the upholstery is Miami Rubber Visions olive vinyl, the door panels are snap-ins, and the floor covering is Dynamat's DynaDeck in black rubber. It looks great, and it's very practical.

There are no plans for a top. "We've had the car out in the rain," Scott reported. "It's made to take the weather." Asked about the most memorable experience he's had with this car, the irrepressible Whitaker replies, "going sideways." With all that power and less than a ton to propel, we can just imagine.

It's been said before: It's virtually impossible to come up with a new wrinkle on the time-tested '32 Ford roadster, but Scott and his talented team have done the deed. "I think this is a trendsetter car," he said, matter-of-factly. We'd agree.