1929 Ford Model A Five-Window - The Last Hoorah

Scotty Grey’s A coupe

From the August, 2011 issue of Street Rodder

By Eric Geisert

The latest car in Scotty Grey’s garage will be the last one he has had built, and that’s saying something. Born and raised in Texas but now living in La Habra Heights, California, Scotty has owned a string of well-known vehicles that, taken individually, would be the focal point of anybody’s garage but, taken en masse, it’s almost unbelievable.

Ever heard of “CheZoom?” The radical ’57 Chevrolet, penned by Thom Taylor and built by Boyd Coddington for Joe “Mr. Gasket” Hrudka, was owned by Scotty for a time, and he’d also commissioned Boyd to build the “Whatthehaye” roadster—the Viper V-10-powered one-off that looked like it was designed at the Delahaye auto factory in 1936.

Over the years the result of the wheelin’ ’n’ dealin’ between Scotty and Coddington produced several cars. One such transaction involved a ’32 Ford woodie Scotty wanted but, as it worked out, he was offered the Aluma Tub instead (the all-aluminum ’29 tub built for the American Rodder TV show and featured in the August 2004 issue of STREET RODDER), a deal Scotty took.

Though some might be able to remember back to 1992 when Coddington had built the Aluma Coupe (the scissor-door, egg-shaped, yellow pearl, Mitsubishi-powered hot rod), 10 years later Boyd was well into another phase of aluminum-bodied cars. Around the same time the Aluma Tub was built, two other ’29-based vehicles were being assembled with similar, but unique, suspension pieces: the Aluma Truck and a Model A coupe.

The truck made its debut in the Dec. ’02 issue of STREET RODDER, but the little Model A coupe was never seen—that is until now. Scotty Grey owns this car, too, and a year ago turned it over to Ohio-based hot rod wizard Jeff Eischen to work his own particular brand of magic on it.

Eischen’s name should be familiar to STREET RODDER readers, as the last three of his scratchbuilt creations have all appeared in the magazine (February 2008, June 2009, and September 2010). As it so happened, all three of those cars were bought by Scotty, who had also bought Eischen’s first hot rod, a little track-nosed roadster. Already familiar with Eischen’s work, Scotty naturally felt he could finish this project, too.

But well before Eischen got involved this car had its own history. The chassis was built by Al Simon at Coddington’s using hand-formed rails and tubular crossmembers on a wheelbase of 104 inches. A Winters quick-change was used out back while a unique torsion bar system with aluminum radius rods utilized up front. Wilwood discs are on each corner, as are Coddington-carved 15x7 spindle mount wheels in the front and 17x10 pin-drive wheels in the rear.

1929 Ford Model A Five Window Right Side

The body started life as a 1929 Ford Model A five-window but, after a visit to Marcel’s Custom Metal in Corona, California, the coupe was chopped, its roof filled, aluminum three-piece hood put in place, and the doors not only made to open suicide-style but close flush fit. Roughed together with the suspension in place and most of the bodywork done, the car then sat for a few years.

1929 Ford Model A Five Window Cab Interior

Mulling over whether to sell it or finish it, Scotty eventually called Eischen about finishing the car. Eischen went on to make whatever he didn’t have and assembled the car in the manner of his other vehicles: simple and stylish with a high degree of fabrication and design. He made a grille out of stainless steel tubing and screen, and shaped his own engine mounts and steering shaft supports. A hole in the one-piece hood was made so the top of the air cleaner would fit flush, but a metal ring needed to be made to not only stiffen the edge but as an accent, too.

Ron Mullins, based in Galloway, Ohio, got the car from Eischen so he could do the required bodywork before spraying the entire car with Dupont two-stage black paint. Once the color was on, the rod went to Southwest Auto Upholstery where a pebble patterned pleather was used to cover the door panels and a pair of Porsche 914-6 seats. Dyanmat insulation then went in before the gray square-weave carpet was laid out.

Back at Eischen’s the final assembly began with the wiring of the car with a kit from Centec and the installation of a set of Stewart-Warner gauges into an aluminum gauge panel made by CCM Rod Shop (an 8,000-rpm tach sits above the trans tunnel in its own bucket). The rest of the ’32 Ford dash was left alone, and a Lobeck steering wheel sits atop a column made by Eischen.

The engine is a standard 350 Vortec to which Eischen added an electric water pump and stainless steel plumbing. A SPAL electric fan moves the water in the aluminum radiator, and an East Coast Auto Electric a 50-amp alternator provides the juice for the electrical. Spark comes via a Joe Hunt magneto and MSD wires while exhaust is drawn out Doug’s Headers and through 2-inch stainless steel tubing and a pair of Stainless Works mufflers. But when you pop the hood, the first thing you see are the trio of Barry Grant 98s and the finned aluminum Hildebrandt valve covers. The motor is backed up to a Total Cost Involved TH350, which uses a Lokar shifter for gear selection.

Though Scotty has sold the previous Eischen-built cars he’s owned, he says this is the last one he’ll have built and he isn’t going to sell it. Considering the cars that have shared the floor of his garage and his well-known penchant to wheel and deal on a car or two, that’s saying something. Scotty also says even though he was a little afraid of driving some of the cars he’s owned in the past (due to them being such a large investment), he says he has no fears of driving this one, and can’t wait to get it out on the road.

Coddington 15x7 spindle-mount wheels and 17x10 pin-drive rollers were wrapped in General Altimax HP rubber.

Greening Auto Company makes the headlights used on Scotty’s coupe, and Eischen fabbed the radiator grille out of stainless. And as an example of Eischen precision work, that’s not a grille on top of the hood—it’s the top of the air cleaner, perfectly fit and flush-mounted.