Hot Rods
Every November, the SEMA Show turns Las Vegas into the beating heart of the custom car world—but one showdown always steals the spotlight: the Battle of the Builders 2025. It’s the aftermarket industry’s ultimate test of skill, creativity, and innovation—where the best in the business fight for glory and the title of the world’s top custom builder.
We knew this one was special the moment we first spotted it at the 2024 Grand National Roadster Show. Now it’s official—the 2025 SEMA Battle of the Builders Presented by Mothers Polish has crowned Troy Trepanier of Rad Rides by Troy as the best overall builder of the year with his jaw-dropping Fenderless ’36 Ford Roadster.
Part of the rarity of this car comes in the fact that this is one of the first 12 original Coast to Coast ’39 Ford Convertible bodies to be built. Since that time, a second-generation body has been developed, and while some changes have been made, the overall look is very much the same, and for good reason. While this design certainly captures the appeal of an original ’39 Ford convertible, it also captures the look of the Chip Foose-designed Smoothster built by Hot Rods By Boyd. It’s sleek, it’s innovative, and, unlike the Smoothster, it’s a truly affordable way for the Millards to arrive in style.
You can’t blame Dean Sears for feeling a little confused about his love for cars. You see, he’s spent the past nine years as the head of Sport Trucks by Dean in Moorpark, California. His first car, in fact, was a truck. Well, sort of a truck. It was a ’68 El Camino. Pundits have described this vehicle as neither car nor truck, and often the word “confused” is used. Yes, even in 1978 Sears couldn’t decide between cars and trucks.
From a distance, this roadster appears to be from another place, far from American shores, as much as from another era. On closer approach, the Borrani wire wheels conjure thoughts of European heritage, although the shape borrows as much from past Indy roadsters and Sprinters as it does from the great design houses of Italy. Then there’s the engine, a flat giveaway to the true nature of this amazing crossbreed.
George Poteet is not the kind of guy who does things halfway. He likes to jump into a project with both feet and with his eyes wide open. Such has been the case over the many years he has been building street rods and customs. His street rods have been trendsetters. Most of you are familiar with the Sniper, an unbelievable Viper-powered ’50s Plymouth built by Rad Rods by Troy. More recently, his ultra-traditional black Deuce five-window built by David Lane renewed interest in building more traditional rods. It is no surprise that when Poteet decided he would like to run a car at the Bonneville Salt Flats, he would do it in a big way.
For many hot rodders, the word “custom” conjures up images of chopped, channeled, molded and frenched cars with wild metalflake paint jobs. Such radical customs no doubt helped define the custom movement of the 1950s, along with such phrases as “if it don’t go, chrome it,” but in virtually every town in the USA there was a contingency of mild customs providing their owners with daily transportation, an occasional trip down the dragstrip, and a starring role in the local armory car show a couple of weekends a year. No, most of these cars didn’t hold the local track record, nor did they make it to the ISCA Grand Finale, but they were good examples of shade-tree customizing and hot rodding. Known mostly as a “mild custom,” a term that no doubt originated from car show classes, this style of car was extremely popular.
There’s no question that this ’68 Camaro pushes buttons, limits, and envelopes. This unique creation even pushes our understanding. It’s part nostalgia, part Blade Runner, brought together through a great deal of thought, creativity, and sheer talent.
Certain cars are stars. The ’57 Chevrolet Bel Air found itself in starring roles since the first car rolled off the assembly line. From its art deco fins and side trim to its potent 283, the car was an instant hit. Fans of the 1957 continue to follow the car, and the number of fans seems endless. Who could blame them? After all, here is a car that can play the role of a custom with ease, then turn around and be the baddest car on the dragstrip. Oval racing was a role in the early years, and today a ’57 Chevrolet in flawless original condition will draw rave reviews. The ’57 Chevrolet is so flexible, it is at home in any automotive role or costume. As a matter of fact, there are precious few configurations that haven’t been applied to this all-time favorite. Some ’57 Chevrolets have done more than one stint in the theater of the go-fast, and it seems there are no limits for these cars.
We all have our own passions and preferences in whatever we do: food, music, dress, sports and cars. And passions can run high, particularly with cars. For some it may be Fords, for others Mopars, and there’s the whole broad spectrum of General Motors products—Cadillacs, Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs and Chevys, which, of course, have always enjoyed the largest enthusiast following. Yet today more than ever, people looking to separate themselves from the masses are reaching beyond convention to the less-favored among enthusiast cars, but no less admired
nameplates, to satisfy their car needs.
