Tell us the story behind your ride. What made you pick this particular one? Where did you find it?

It all started when owner Jon Chase watched American Graffiti with his Dad when he six or seven years old. His Dad told him he would dig Milner's coupe but when Bob Falfa's black 55 Chevy rolled up. Jon only saw Han Solo (Harrison Ford), and wanted Han Solo's car. Years later he got a bootleg out of print VHS tape of Two-Lane BlackTop, and that made him wanna add a 55 Chevy to my bucket list. And yes we know that it's the same car in both movies.

So while looking at the Recycler, Jon's Dad found a 55 Bel Air not far from the house. The owner was a woman who had owned the car since 1984, and she drove it across the country with her Husband. In the mid 90's they took the car down for a refresh. Her Husband became ill and passed away while the car was in this state. So when Jon saw it for the first time, it had been sitting for seventeen years. A deal was struck, and the car was delivered to the house on a flatbed since it was not a roller. Immediately the basketcase was thrashed on to get it on four wheels and looking like a car again.

Describe the modifications you've made. Where did you start, what’s the most recent mod and what motivated it?

First thing make it a running and driving car. This car came in plastic tubs, so it truly was a 1:1 model kit. As far as modifications they include radius rear wheel wells, removing the independent front suspension and installing a straight axle. The latest mod was having a custom rear suspension built. The car had horrible wheel hop so removing the leaf springs and installing ladder bars and coil over. Now the car no longer has the wheel hop issue, and I can continue to hit the drag strip and chip away on the ET.

Of all the mods you’ve made, which do you think offers the biggest bang for the buck?

Probably the Gear Vendor overdrive unit. The transmission is a Muncie M21 close ratio with 4.56 rear gears. Without the overdrive unit, it wouldn't be very fun to drive on the highway.

How did you go about selecting the specific parts for this build? Any installation tips to share?

For the gasser straight axle, Jon would visit the TriFive.com forum and asked questions. When taking universal kit like the one used you figure things out as you go.

What are you planning next?

Working on getting the front suspension to drop out more to increase weight transfer.

What’s been the biggest challenge with this build?

Making the gasser handle well on the highway for daily driving.

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