Go ahead, admit it: You were about ready to turn the page and dismiss Clayton Moorman's Bel Air sedan as just another stock-bodied, resto-rod, red '55 Chevy. We almost did the same thing when we first saw the car at the 2005 Goodguys Southeastern Nationals. Then we took a second look. So should you.

It was the headlight rims that first caught our attention. Borrowed from a '53 Studebaker, they give the Chevy fenders just a hint of a streamlined taper. Then we noticed the bumper, which is flipped upside down, welded into one piece, tucked closer to the body, and smoothed. Something seemed different about the signal lights, too; turns out they are '57 Chevy backup lamps.

There are dozens of similar subtle mods gracing this not-so-typical Chevy from Elkton, Maryland. Like the '56 Chevy accessory fender bird serving as a hood emblem, the '56 Thunderbird door handles, the one-piece door glass, or the flipped and lowered side moldings with '62 Impala engine-turned inserts. The rear is more of the same, with a flipped, tucked, and shaved bumper, smoothed bumper pockets, painted taillight housings, one-piece taillights with '55 Chevy steering wheel emblems, relocated fuel filler, and '62 Chevy hood emblem surrounding the trunk key hole. All this, and we haven't even mentioned the wedge-chopped top (1 7/8 inches at the windshield, 3/4-inch in the B-pillars, none in back) and molded driprails. There's far more here than initially meets the eye.

What's interesting is that, as unusual as this '55 Chevy is, Clayton's story is fairly common. "I always wanted a hot rod but never had the opportunity to own one," Clayton says. "In high school, everyone drove musclecars, but me, I drove my dad's '63 Chevy station wagon-not cool. After high school it was off to college, marriage, and then the family, three children. When the last of the children got out of college, I started looking for a classic car."