Most people, upon first glance, would mistake Ed Johnson's '30 coupe for a Ford. That's understandable. But it's a Chevy. But even that isn't so obvious anymore. Ed's list of modifications is nothing short of the Dead Sea scrolls. Those Ridler guys don't have nothin' on Ed's bright orange coupe. Nearly every panel has been modified in some way, either to soften an otherwise dramatic bodyline, or to remove it altogether. To say that Ed started with a Chevy body but ended up with something of his own design would not be a falsehood.
Starting at the front, Ed used two '30 grille shells to make the custom piece that's on the car. This also required the front fenders and splash apron to be modified to fit the new grille. A '36 Ford hood hinge was installed to the stock hood, which also had 1 1/2 inches trimmed from each side and then received a couple of rows of louvers on each hood side. Underneath the hood resides a fully detailed small-block Chevy. The windshield received an interesting treatment whereby Ed chopped the top 3 1/2 inches, but retained the stock windshield height by dropping the glass into the cowl. From there, the A- and B-pillars were reshaped, the bodylines on the doors and roof removed, as was the center door hinge.
On the interior, the stock dash was dropped 2 inches and grafted with a '32 Ford bottom portion, then fitted with a custom panel mounting Auto Meter gauges. Tan leather covers a pair of bucket seats as well as the door panels. The bright orange coupe was set on a pair of highly polished five-spokes and sent on down the road. Ed's hard work garnered him a SRM Top Ten Award in Columbus. Nice job, Ed!
A Not-So-Plain TerraplaneGlen Reeves' story starts out much like many others. He was a number of years into building a '35 Hudson sedan when the word came over the wire about a '34 Hudson Terraplane convertible for sale. It just so happened that the son of the founder of the Hudson club Glen belonged to had one for sale that he had bought in Florida. Glen knew there were only a handful of the rare birds left and decided to jump on the chance to add this to his Hudson collection. The 'vert was rusty and ragged, but Glen managed to clean it up enough to make a driver and drove the car to many events while the sedan was being completed.
Once the sedan was done, Glen tore into the '34, giving it a complete facelift. One thing must first be understood though: Glen is a self-proclaimed junkyard junkie. Most of the parts Glen used to street rod his Hudson were picked out of local salvage yards. Glen used a 350/350 combo mated to a Chevy rearend for his drivetrain components, while the frontend was updated using a Bell dropped axle, and Chevy spindles and disc brakes. Inside the car, he fitted Ford Tempo bucket seats, a Cadillac tilt/telescopic column, and even a pair of door handles he scored at a swap meet that he later found out belonged to an old Duesenberg! But don't mistake Glen for someone who simply opts to take the easy way out. Among those swap meet and salvage yard scores, there are dozens of parts that Glen fabricated from scratch because the original part either couldn't be found or he just wanted to improve upon the design. One of the parts he handbuilt was the grille, which is identical to stock, except now it's made of polished stainless where the stock unit was painted steel. Other items include the cowl vent, outside mirrors, all the stainless on the hood sides, the taillight stands, and even the bezel for the stock gauge cluster was whittled down in Glen's shop. He also happens to be quite talented in the upholstery trade.
He did most of the interior himself, including the convertible top and boot, door panels, and the bucket seats. And if that wasn't enough, Glen even sprayed the car himself using '56 Pontiac turquoise and teal. Glen's talents speak for themselves, but if there's any doubt, a recent invite to the prestigious Hilton Head Concours d'Elegance car show in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, earned him a Best in Class in the Street and Hot Rods Category. Glen's abilities as a parts scrounger, fabricator, upholsterer, and painter simply can't be denied.