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A Little Reference

Everyone needs a point of reference, starting down a path as long as a full restoration and customization is tough enough without a plan, but if your only reference of the vehicle you are working with is “a heap of rust particles holding hands” such as this one; you need to know what a decent original vehicle looks like. Just for a little perspective. Pictures below is by buddy, Greg Deponte’s 1953 2 door chieftain. He did a partial overhaul and customization on his a few years back, which is when I fell in love with the Pontiacs of this era. The chevy’s are a dime a dozen, plus their frames are junk, I’ll take a Pontiac 8 days a week over any Chevrolet of the time. Believe it or not, as rare as these cars are I never sought out this project car; it just fell in my lap.

Shown below, Greg’s 53 with a pretty passive customization. Indian blanket seats, flat black on the body with original blue on the roof, straight 6 with 3 on the tree. I learned a lot about what to do and what not to do form this project. And I think Greg would agree, there are many ways to make this care more fun and a little more intimidating on the street.

What to do: Keep the hood and trim as intact as possible. Stick with the big tires, but ditch the drum brakes. Utilize the frame and as much of the really tough upgrades GM added to these Pontiacs, Utilize the interior layout because it’s just rad.

What not to do: Don’t use the stock engine and trans, it will cost as much as a small block but with only 60 hp and won’t be able to drive on any highway in America safely. Don’t use the stock windshield height; it’s kinda lame and needs a sweet chop.

Greg's '53 for reference


I love this car and it is the inspiration for my build, but I need to go much further with the plan. Money is still an issue, time, tools and materials are wide open. Stay Tuned.

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