What is it about ’40s Ford customs? Sure,
everything from 1935 through 1948 wearing the Blue Oval badge makes for, and
has made for, prime custom material. The most memorable pre- and post war
customs are Ford/Mercury, right? Not all of them.
While they pale in comparison to the amount
of Fo Mo Co fare, there have been a number of GM-based customs to fill the
annals of custom car history. The latter part of the ’40s-era models, most
notably ’46-48 Chevrolets, are atop the black sheep popularity list, and for
good reason—they’re some of the best looking designs to be penned by General
Post
war Pride 1946
Motors prior to the forthcoming
“slab-sided” revolution. The Fleet line / Aerosedan, for instance, is about as
close to a factory chop as you’ll ever find; their counterpart Fleet master / Style
master coupes, with their similarly swept-forward B-pillars, entice further
profile adjustment. Perfect case in point: Aaron Acquafondata’s ’46 coupe.
The Reno, Nevada, resident was handed down
the gearhead gene from his father, who gave his son a ’51 Pontiac for his first
car. “It was all downhill from there!” Aaron recalls. “When I graduated high
school, I decided to sell my car, take a year off, and build my dream car. I
set out to build a custom that represented the subtle class and taste in the
early custom car era. I also wanted to drive the hell out of it, so I made sure
it was equipped with a reliable and affordable drivetrain,” he continues.
1946
Chevy Fleet master Engine
“Over the course of a year, I was able to
get the car finished, but I couldn’t have done it without the help of my
friends. The biggest obstacle with the initial buying of the car was that I had
it shipped from Hawaii to Hayward, California, then broke down halfway to Reno
due to a wiring failure. I’ve had to dip into my college fund, but I think it
was worth it…”
Worth it not only to achieve his goal and
get his gearhead fx, but also to create a perfect representation of a late-’40s
California custom. Once Aaron had the ’46 in his possession, friend Brant
Jackson lent a hand by not only getting the coupe running, but cutting and
lowering the roof (the top was in the process shortened, necessitating an
extended catwalk/tulip panel). As Aaron put it: “He made the rough sketch and I
took it and made it into a finished painting.” His refinement work not only
entailed finishing out the top chop, but fitting and refitting all the
decades-weary and abused panels on the ’46. Other than a traditional nose and
deck job, much of the Fleet master is stock, including lighting fixtures and
majority of trim. Bodywork by Brian Louis and Roger and Matthew Van Trees was
topped by single-stage DuPont black by the Van Trees, while standard ’50 Chevy caps
on same-make 15-inch steelies wrapped with Coker-BF Goodrich Silver towns,
Appleton spots, and rear fender skirts finish off the mild yet impactful
exterior. The interior also harkens back to the past: brown vinyl tuck ’n’ roll
by Paco’s Custom Upholstery (Roseville, California) with brown pile carpet does
the trick. While the dash is stock (entirely save for Stewart-Warner gauges),
the original column was swapped out for an I did it Hot Rod unit equipped with
a Lime Works column shifter, now sporting a ’46 Dodge steering wheel.
The readily visible aspects of this Chevy
may speak traditional, but beneath, as he himself clearly pointed out, it’s all
reliability. That translates into a stock frame updated with a Mustang II
frontend, four linked and coil-sprung Camaro rear end, and a late-model Chevy
350/350 combo, all incorporated and facilitated by Johnny Koonce at Kool Kat
Kustoms in San Jose, California.
The
back of 1946 Chevy Fleet master
“It’s a daily driver. Rain or shine. It’s
been on multiple 400-mile trips, with a few longer and shorter ones thrown in,”
Aaron surmises. Perfect, … form AND function, in harmony.
