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PUTTING THE “HAUL” BACK IN HAULER

Learn about McGaughys Suspension Parts’ innovative airbag spring helper kit designed specifically for the 2002-2005 Dodge Ram 1500 series, enabling truck owners to use their street trucks for hauling tasks while still enjoying the benefits of lowered suspension.

Right Rod

If you attend car events in California, such as NHRA’s California Hot Rod Reunion in Bakersfield, the West Coast Kustoms show in Paso Robles or the L.A. Roadster Show in Pomona, you will notice that rat rods are a growing segment of the hot rod hobby. Years ago, when they started becoming a common sight at many of the shows, the mechanical aspects of most of the cars were scary at best. You could see cars with no springs, some without floorboards, and many constructed with less-than-desirable stick welding. It is this type of construction that created the name “rat rod.” Fortunately, over the past few years there has been an attempt to upgrade the construction of rat rods, even though the enthusiasts want to use as many original parts as possible.

GRAND DADDY

It doesn’t matter whether this event is held in Oakland, San Francisco or San Mateo—it still gives builders the incentive to strive to win the America’s Most Beautiful Roadster (AMBR) title. For the past two years, the Grand National Roadster Show has been held in San Mateo, just south of San Francisco and across the bay from Oakland. This year there were 300 vehicles on display, and a good percentage of them were high-quality, creatively built roadsters. Along with the roadsters, there were closed street rods, customs, street machines and custom trucks. The show also is well known for displaying some of the finest motorcycles in the country, and this year there was a separate room just for the two-wheelers.

Spotlighter

SUPERBIRD REBIRTH

Replacement Sheetmetal Panels From Year One Recreate a Solid Body for a Complete Restoration

Author

Josh Kaylor

Photography by Bill Woodard

The Introduction of the 1970 Plymouth Superbird

In 1970 Plymouth introduced the Superbird. It was equipped with an aerodynamic nose, a shape that was ahead of its time, and it had a ridiculously high wing that gave it track performance and a unique trademark. Only in 1970 were the Superbirds produced, and a mere 1,920 left the factory. Of those, 23 percent were painted Lemon Twist. The Superbird did very well in NASCAR, as it won its first race at the 1970 Daytona 500, with Pete Hamilton behind the wheel of a Petty Enterprises Plymouth. After it did so well in ’70, NASCAR developed a rule stating that winged cars were limited in engine size, and so Chrysler decided to pull the plug on the program.

The Decline and Resurgence of the Superbird

In 1971, Plymouth introduced the new model year of cars, and the Superbirds just sat on showroom floors, as dealers almost couldn’t give them away due to their high price and unusual styling. With the sudden rage in anything Chrysler and Plymouth from the ’60s and ’70s, people are beginning to pull these spectacular-looking cars out of hiding and spend some serious money to bring them back to life.

Jim Smith’s Lemon Twist Superbird

Jim Smith of Dayton, Tennessee, has owned this Lemon Twist 440 four-barrel car since it was new. Jim was the owner of Smith-Clayton Dodge in the early days and purchased this car for himself. After some years Jim retired but kept the Superbird seen here behind his barn. Eventually, he decided that it was time to bring it back to life.

The Restoration Process Begins

To do so, Jim enlisted the help of Bill Woodard, longtime friend and master bodyman. Bill and Jim determined what they would need for the Superbird and then called Year One, located in Braselton, Georgia, for the beginning of a long list of parts that would be required to bring the car to as-new condition. In about a week, new trunk floors, wheel housings, and rear quarter panels arrived at the shop, and the work began. We plan to follow this car through to completion, so read along as we revive one of America’s most sought-after muscle cars.

1. The driver’s side of the quarter panels was missing the bottom couple of inches, and it looked as if it had been crushed at a NASCAR event.

2. The trunk floor and the floorboards were full of rust holes where water leaked in and sat in the trunk, which deteriorated the sheetmetal.

3. The trunk floor was rough, as you can see in the photos. It was easier to drill out the spot welds and replace the rotted floor with a new one from Year One.

4. The trunk floor was completely removed from the car to accommodate the new pieces. The steel frame has surface rust but is not rusted through anywhere.

5. Installing the new trunk floor will require a few tools and a full weekend. A side grinder, a drill equipped with a hole saw and a small bit also will be needed.

6. The new floorboards come with original-style high-quality stamping, which resembles that of the OEM parts.

7. The side portion of the trunk was gone, so Bill clamped the side portion to a piece of the new floorboard and welded them together.

8. These are nice parts. Year One prides itself on trying to make every piece fit better and look nicer than the originals.

9. Each of the braces has held water, as you can see, which helped the rust grow. The braces are cleaned up to prevent any further damage from occurring.

10. If you are wondering what all these lines are, Plymouth spot welded the floor along these lines every 3 inches.

11. Here you can see Bill as he traces the next piece for the lines.

12. Bill is a perfectionist: A ruler was used to make sure that every 3 inches a hole was drilled for spot welding. This car is being restored back to factory-original condition.