54 Chevy Rod Truck
Written by Keith Fudge

As Darrell Mosely, starts to tell the story of his grandfather's 1954 Chevrolet pickup truck, you just know that both the story and the truck are going to turn into something special. Recently, Dennis Gage had a chance to hear the story and see the truck as he visited with Darrell.

Darrell began by telling Dennis that in 1985 or 1986, his grandfather was driving his truck to Darrell's car dealership to trade it for a newer model. Well, he never quite made it to the dealership as the truck broke down on the way. Darrell had the truck towed to the dealership where it sat for a decade. Finally, in 1997 or 1998, Darrell and his brother-in-law decided to “make it run,” and they did just that, but with a little style and flair. The results were definite: Grandpa's truck never looked so good! As Darrell proudly walked Dennis around the 1954 Chevrolet truck, it is one of the finest custom trucks that he had ever seen. Darrell told Dennis that the top (and a Ford top at that) had been chopped 3 ½ inches and that the truck had been “dropped” as low as it could and still remain safe. Concerning the paint, Darrell said he took a “minimalist” approach using a color scheme of black with orange and white flames, including continuing the motif on the Chevrolet logo on the tailgate. He also customized the “bumperless” grille and shaved the door handles. On the interior, Darrell exchanged the original dark-faced gauges with new light-faced replacements, and the dash retains the flame paint scheme as well. At this point, Dennis told Darrell that although he really dug the exterior and interior of the truck, it was what was under the hood that really made this truck stand out!

Well, it's true; big things do come in small packages and this was the case when Darrell popped the hood to reveal a custom built inline six-cylinder engine! Dennis remarked how refreshing it was to see this “built six” in today's world of crate motors and mega-horsepower V-8s. Darrell then told Dennis some of the particulars of the engine, remarking that it had special pistons and headwork, an Edlebrock four-barrel carburetor, headers, and an aluminum intake. Power is delivered to the rear wheels through a Muncie four-speed tranny and a Ford nine-inch rear end. After hearing all about this ride, there was nothing left to do but to take to the back roads and do some cruising!

Darrel and Dennis cruised about on a beautiful day as Darrell told him more about the truck and the restoration process. Darrell stated that the restoration of Grandpa's truck was a two-year effort and that he built it to drive—and drive it he does! In the past three years, Darrell has put more than 10,000 miles on the truck! Other amenities that Darrel has added to make the truck a daily driver are air conditioning and LED taillights.

Concerning future modifications to the truck, Darrell told Dennis that he is finished. “I'm done with it—now I can have fun with it,” Darrel added. What a cool project! He retained his grandfather's truck for its sentimental value and modernized it where he could enjoy it as well. Congratulations Darrell! You should be proud of a great effort!