Hunnert Car Pile Up
Written by Keith Fudge

If you can, turn your mind to “back in the day” when hot rodding, ducktail haircuts, and rock and roll were the cat’s meow!  In this episode of My Classic Car, Dennis Gage and the gang do just that as they travel to Morris, Illinois for the annual Hunnert Car Pile-Up!  This show features some of the coolest rat rods, customs, and cruisers that have ever been on the streets.  The sweet part is that they are all built similar to they way folks did it during the golden age of hot rodding!  In other words, you won’t see any $40,000.00 paint jobs here!  After Dennis arrived, he found Mike “Magnet” Ferrari, the Event Organizer who told him just how this show came into existence.  Mike said that it started in Chicago about six years ago when he and his buddies were chatting on line and decided to create a traditional hot rod show!  Mike said that there is a list of 13 rules that participants in the show must meet in order to be admitted.  The most serious of them is that there will be no “stock” cars in the show.  In addition, another rule states that owners must try to use as many speed parts from the 1950s as possible and must use the same building methods as they did back in the day!  Mike said that it is really a relaxed show, and there are no judges and no trophies.  In fact, it’s not just a show.  It’s a lifestyle!  It must be a popular one, for there were approximately 1,000 cars on hand for this year’s event!  He went on to describe the event as a “rockabilly” affair that can definitely turn into one big party.  However, the focus is really on staying true to the original hot rod scene when young guys didn’t have a lot of money to spend on their cars and when creativity and ingenuity played a huge part in every hot rodder’s ride!  Soon it was time for Dennis to see some of these crazy cats and their cool cars, so he and Mike began to cruise the show area!

First, Dennis ran onto Kirk Brown and his custom creation.  This rod started with a pair of headlights and was literally built out of scrap!  Kirk said that many of the parts came from the junkyard.  In fact, the front end came from an International tractor!  Kirk said that the ride was built as cheaply as possible, but one added feature was air-ride suspension that allowed the vehicle to sit right on the ground!  How cool is that?  Next, Dennis found 16 year old Brock Bridges who is a young man with quite a future in this field!  Brock spent two years building this hot rod custom between his 13th and 15th birthdays!  Made from a 1931 Model A body that he chopped five inches, this ride is just too cool for school!  Painted in primer, black, and red, Brock even did some custom artwork for the body.  Keeping in the true spirit of the era, the vehicle is powered by a 1948 Ford flathead with two Stromberg carbs and high-performance heads.  Brock built the seats himself and added such nifty touches as using a 50-caliber ammo box for the glove box.  Brock, you have quite a touch!  Dennis also met up with John Kouw and his sweet ‘52 Buick Roadmaster!  This car absolutely rocks all the way down to its Mint Green primer paint!  With the roof chopped 5” and a set of one-off fender skirts that hug the road, this low and lean machine is the ultimate cruiser.  Other nice touches include a Fridge King A/C unit in the interior and a ‘42 Mercury rear window.  John said he has put 80,000 miles on this bad boy, and he just keeps on keepin’ on!  Finally, Dennis spoke with Glenn “Rocky” Fluegge, Jr., the owner of a beast 1962 Chrysler 300 Sport, two-door hardtop.  Painted in a stunning Viper Red (with an added flattening agent that gave a remarkable finish) and complete with a silver metal flake painted top with 10 coats of clear, this incredible car is absolutely Coolsville!  Basically, the rest of the car remained stock as Rocky said he had only replaced the headliner and re-dyed the vinyl in the interior!  As far as the engine goes, he said that he “did it the way they used to do it” in the form of a 383 cubic-inch power plant complete with Offenhauser intake, dual quad carbs, and finned aluminum valve covers.  This car is truly one ‘60s custom all the way down to the factory shaved look!  Thanks Rocky!

Dennis and the crew had a boss of a time at the Hunnert Car Pile-Up.  If you would like some information on this year’s show, give them a look on the web at www.hunnertcarpileup.com.  That’s it from Morris, Illinois.  So until our next visit, “Honor the timeless classics.  Happy Motoring!”