32 Coupe, a dedication to Boyd Coddington

When enthusiasts think of a Hot Rod, the first one that generally comes to mind is the classic chopped ’32 Ford. Although not always the case, the most recognisable 32’s tend to be chopped and modified. Those G.I.s returning from their war stints all over the world preferred racing and rodding them because they were lightweight and parts were easily removed when compared to the ’40 full-fendered and bulbous cars of the day.

The ’32 Fords were by far the car favoured by the most serious Hot Rodders who wanted to race on all the dry bed and salt lakes along the West Coast of America in the post WW2 years. In the late 80’s and early 90’s, Boyd Coddington started building hot rods that were very different and exotic. They were smooth with subtle chops and modifications and had no extra bits such as the original trim, mouldings, mascots, badges or emblems. They were normally colour-matched and did not look like any other hot rods that had come before them. Some people loved them and others hated them and still do and that is what makes rodding so diverse!

These builds represented some of the many examples of cars manufactured by Coddington, setting standards of fabrication of custom cars and rewriting rodding history. Prior to the hallmark year of 1982, any hot rod builder that had a garage or back yard at his disposal could have had a genuine chance of securing a sought-after trophy but that all changed when Boyd hit the scene. Once the Coddington hot rods were in the spotlight, the rules of the game were forever changed and the echelon of competitiveness set new levels and raised the bar for both the cars and the people building them. Despite the various builders and fabricators being the ones to give birth to the rodding scene, the small time ones saw their prized possessions taken away from them as wealthy buyers with big money to burn represented an era for the home rodding industry at the time.

However, Coddington considered himself a true hot rodder to the core who merely combined money and talent in order to push the hot rod envelope to further stages of development. He felt that the criticism he received for “diluting” the purity of the hot rod concept to be unwarranted. Shock and awe were instilled into other builders and fabricators when Boyd took the coveted AMBR (America’s Most Beautiful Roadster) award in 1982. The Boydster 3 is the acme of this style and is my inspiration behind this build. It is by far the most slender looking Boyd build. It was characterized by a clean hot rod look with flowing lines and an imposing stance.

This is what I have tried to achieve. Boyd always said that nothing must distract from the flow of the lines. Finding a steel-bodied deuce coupe for hot rodding in South Africa is next to impossible. There are two fabricators in South Africa that have moulds and good glass replicas but neither of them fitted the bill for what I had in mind. Luckily I managed to get my hands on the exact shape and look I wanted. It came in the form of a Southern Rods kit that had all the subtle modifications to the doors and the correct unique roof chop. It had been imported by a fellow hot rodder and after he could no longer continue with the project, I was privileged enough to be able to purchase it. During a discussion with my wife about the proposed colour of the project, she suggested that I should paint it any colour except yellow.

Being a typical man, my mind was made up and the paint job evolved from there. I had a vision of everything inside being the same colour as the outside - even the complete underside is bright yellow. This was in true Boyd style. Sometimes you just have to say to hell with it and have some fun. I just felt like sitting inside a bright, shiny egg yolk whilst wearing sunglasses! I decided to go the whole hog with regards to time and detail. It was as if I was building this car for the AMBR award.

Most rodders see things differently, some like the traditional style, some like rat rods. I wanted to raise the bar and build something that can go to any show in the world and make South Africa proud. We are totally capable of building top quality cars with meticulous attention to detail that can compete with any top dollar build worldwide. I believe that this coupe achieves this and as you can see, there have been no shortcuts taken at all. Everything was planned and pre-fitted up to 5 or 6 times over.

The pictures in no way do this car justice. It has to be seen in reality to be fully appreciated. Besides being most grateful to Bern van Gass who did an absolutely amazing build, especially when it came to the hood and louvred side panels, which were all fabricated from scratch, I would also like to thank TNT, Clint & Wesley Mann and also Mike Miscia from Shield for all his help over the years.