The word unique gets tossed around pretty casually these days, but it's aptly applied when referring to Larry Johnston's radical '50 Chevy. This is truly a one-of-a-kind custom. Yet despite its singular stature, this car's story will sound all too familiar to many enthusiasts.Larry wasn't even looking for an old car when he stumbled across the Chevy hardtop during a vacation to Iowa a decade ago. "The car was so nice it was unreal," Larry says, and it already had a 327 with dual fours under the hood. Larry and his son, Larry Jr., became the Chevy's third owners when they bought it. After getting the car home to Pennsylvania, all it needed was some polishing and a fresh battery to be ready for the local weekly cruise. That's when a little pebble of an idea was dropped in the snow and slowly began rolling downhill.
"Larry [Jr.] drove it to the cruise, and I drove it home," Larry recalls. "I said I didn't like how it handled, and the next day I had the front clip off and the motor and tranny out." The car was delivered to Martz Chassis, where the frame got a new front suspension and a Pro Street-style rear with a quick-change. Then it was off to a body shop for some minor mods, and back to Larry's house where a 468ci big-block-left over from his racing days-was dropped in. Larry bought out his son's share of the car about this time.
The snowball grew from there. "I kept looking at the car and decided I wanted the windshield laid back," Larry says. Daydreams about the Ridler Award also started dancing around in his head. So he took the car to another body shop, sold the chassis, and essentially started over. He ordered a new custom frame-complete with a tubular-arm IFS, four-bar rear suspension, and Air Ride Technologies ShockWaves-from Art Morrison, and then complemented it with a polished Mark Williams rearend. Large-diameter Baer brakes eventually followed, along with custom knock-off 18x8- and 22x10-inch Boyd Coddington wheels and 225/40ZR18 and 285/30ZR22 Toyo tires.A new aluminum-head 502ci big-block Chevy from Street & Performance found its way into the show-quality chassis, and was augmented by a COMP roller camshaft and custom sheetmetal intake. It was also fitted with a custom-built air intake system, engine cover, and valve covers before being tied to a polished TH400 transmission with a B&M torque converter. A custom, polished stainless exhaust system linked the Hooker headers to Stainless Specialties mufflers.
While the chassis was coming along rather smoothly, the body wasn't faring so well. Discouraged, Larry pulled it from the body shop, and was considering giving up, when he got a call from Larry Plisco at Plisco Auto Body in Pittsburgh. Plisco inspected the car and said he could save and complete the sheetmetal and finish work. "The rest is history," Larry says.
Plisco's formidable task involved integrating the roof and cut-down windshield from a Dodge Neon, and significantly reshaping every other panel on the car. The hood was scratch built with a more aggressive slope to meet Mercedes headlights, while two '50 grilles were used to craft one new one with integral driving lights. The decklid was also custom built, as were the taillights and bumpers. Even the curved side glass had to be custom built. All this custom metalwork was eventually covered in a bright combination of orange and burgundy PPG paints, divided by Rodney Hutcherson's airbrush work.Plisco's task wasn't yet finished when the exterior was done, as all new garnish moldings had to be fabricated inside. But the bulk of the cabin construction was given to Street Seats in New Port Richey, Florida. This included a custom dash filled with Dolphin gauges, and a full-length console dividing Fiero front buckets and custom rear seats. Beige leather was wrapped around all soft parts, and was also used to cover the floor, while matching suede was used on the headliner and trunk lid. JVC audio components were integrated throughout the interior, an electronic shifter from Mooneyes was installed, and a polished Flaming River column was topped with a custom Boyd Coddington wheel to match those on the ground.
After coming so far with the car, Larry wasn't about to abandon his goal of contending for the coveted Ridler Award. It took weeks of last-minute racing to complete the Chevy's construction, but Larry debuted it at this year's Detroit Autorama and earned a spot as a Great 8 finalist for the Ridler. And while the wild Chevy ultimately did not win the big trophy, Larry considered it an honor just to be a challenger. "Being a Great 8 contender was a highlight of my life," Larry says, "another victory." Considering all the obstacles this car overcame, it was a well-earned victory at that.