Some people have all the luck. Just ask Lance Deel of Independence, Missouri, last year's road tour sweepstakes winner. Or, how about Jerry Dixey, who's in the midst of his seventh consecutive coast-to-coast road tour during the summer of 2002 in a Coast to Coast Street Rods '39 Ford convertible. Yes, life is good for some and just plain unfair to others. For the rest of us, life is unfair; for Lance and Jerry, life just keeps getting better.
This year STREET RODDER will bring the cross-country jaunt to you along with our other major sponsors, Motorsport Direct, and Eagle One. Added to this is a contributing list of sponsors that reads like a proverbial who's who in the world of street rod manufacturers and suppliers.
However, this month let's start with a framework, so to speak: the frame, front and rear suspensions, powertrain, and a few other chassis appointments. There will also be another look at Thom Taylor's artist rendering of our road tour 'vert.
It should also be pointed out that you, too, could enter to win this incredible ride. While attending any one of 10 NSRA regional events or the national event in Louisville, Kentucky, stop by the STREET RODDER booth and fill out an entry blank (Also, look closely at the August '02, September '02, October '02, and February '03 issues of SRM for an entry form to our '02 Road Tour Sweepstakes for your chance to win this car. Just ask Lance!).
While the road tour rod was built from a Coast to Coast body and frame, the construction came under the direction of Chuck Lombardo. The day-to-day hands-on was the responsibility of Pete Morrell of California Street Rods (CSR) in Huntington Beach, California. Pete is charged with making sure that Jerry, our very own chauffeur supreme, has the ride he has dreamt about (It should also be noted that California Street Rods built this year's NSRA giveaway Deuce highboy roadster).
In part one of the STREET RODDER Road Tour 2002 buildup let's take a look at some of the manufacturers' products responsible for this year's car. We started out with a Coast to Coast Street Rods boxed frame with tubular crossmembers, and mounted forward is a Heidt's Hot Rod Shop crossmember and independent suspension complete with Aldan's Hot Rod Products coilover shocks and Wilwood Engineering disc brakes. Next, look for the Flaming River Industries rack-and-pinion and U-joints to round out the handling chores.
The rear suspension is a based on a 57-inch-wide Currie Enterprises 9-inch rearend, again with Aldan's coilovers, and fitted with a Chassis Engineering four-link and an Inland Empire Driveline driveshaft. From here, you can spot a TCI Automotive AOD tranny soon to be equipped with a Flex-a-lite cooler and a Lokar shifter. While the rear brakes are drum, the fronts feature Wilwood discs and all are operated by a Master Power Brakes power brake assembly that includes a master cylinder, a vacuum booster, and a pedal assembly.
Of course, the better idea hiding under the hood is a Ford Racing Performance Parts 5.0L crate motor (PN M6007-F50, long-block) outfitted with Hedman Hedders headers (By the time you see this car in person the engine will be topped off with an Edelbrock intake, Demon carb, Lokar throttle linkage, MSD ignition, March pulley assembly, and a starter and alternator from Powermaster. The exhaust system comes by way of Magnaflow Performance exhaust tubing and mufflers).
Follow along and watch how our '39 Ford convertible from Coast to Coast Street Rods takes shape in the capable hands of CSR. Welcome aboard the '02 STREET RODDER Road Tour.
Hedman headers fit snug to the block and neatly clear the stock Ford motor mounts. CSR had to position the mounts for proper engine fitment. | 
The front crossmember is a Heidt's. Note the Coast to Coast frame is notched in front to allow for the rack-and-pinion arms to travel up and down during operation. | 
Note the relief that's cut into the front crossmember where the steering shaft and rack-and-pinion connect--necessary to guarantee proper clearance. It provides clearance for the Flaming River U-joints, as well. |
The Flaming River rack-and-pinion is a forward mount, meaning it fits in front of the Heidt's crossmember rather than behind it. U-joints are also from the company named after a body of water that once caught fire--honest! | 
The rotors are vented Wilwood's, providing ample stopping power for our 3,000-pound street rod. The AFCO shocks mount via an eyelet similar to a spherical rod end. This provides a positive mount yet allows for ease of alignment when fitting the shock to the tower. | 
The Wilwood disc brake kit is based on an upgraded polished aluminum caliper while the hub is drilled to accept a five-on-four (Ford) bolt pattern. |
The Master Power Brakes power brake system is mounted under the driver-side floorboard and includes a dual-reservoir master cylinder and power booster attached via a bracket mounted to the framerail. | 
In our case, we ordered the TCI Automotive-prepped AOD with a torque converter. Factoid: If the rear of your Ford small-block engine has five bellhousing bolt holes, then it's an early 289 (pre-'65) or smaller V-8, while six bellhousing holes mean it's the later-model 302. | 
The Heidt's IFS comes with custom-made upper and lower control arms, AFCO coilover shocks, and Wilwood disc brakes. |
The Ford Racing Performance Parts 5.0L long-block crate motor (PN M6007-F50) has an iron head and sports a useable 230 hp. | 
Note that the steering arms point toward the front of the car because the rack is a forward-mount, while a rear-mounted rack would have steering arms pointing toward the rear of the car. | 
The Coast to Coast boxed framerails are tied together via a tubular crossmember setup. The transmission crossmember is a bolt-in, allowing easy R&R of the tranny. |
CSR welded and gusseted the brake pedal bracket to the driver-side 'rail. Its position is best determined when the body is bolted into position on top of the frame. | 
A Chassis Engineering Panhard bar is used in back; one end mounts to the 8-inch pumpkin while the other end mounts to the driver-side framerail. | 
Here's a close look at how the Panhard bar is mounted to the rearend centersection via a bracket that comes off of the pinion bearing support and several of the centersection mounting bolts |
You want the Panhard bar close to parallel when the car is resting at ride height. Through experience, CSR knows at which point to bolt the Panhard bracket to the frame in order to yield this "perfect" alignment. | 
The rear four-link brackets are part of the rear center crossmember mounting system. The pictures show how both work together and are welded to the framerail. | 
The Chassis Engineering rear four-link and lower shock bracket was welded to the Currie rearend. The tricky part here is to make sure you don't warp the housing. |
AFCO coilover shocks with different spring ratings, such as this one mounted to the passenger rear, are used at the corners. An ideal shock-mounting angle for a street rod is 30 degrees. This retains a high rate of efficiency for the shock absorber. | 
The 57-inch-wide Currie 8-inch rearend utilizes drum brakes with a 3.70 gear and an open differential | |