Tudor to Tub – The Nixon’s ’31 Model A Lost its Top to Become an Open-Air Cruiser
There are several different ways to fulfill the dream of owning a hot rod based on a rare or unusual model or make of vehicle. One way is to bide your time and save your money while searching for that elusive car to come on the market. Another way is to just take matters into your own hands and make the car yourself.
Scott Nixon took the latter route to build his ’31 Ford two-door phaeton, which began life as a Tudor. “Rod & Custom magazine many years ago had an article about taking a Tudor and cutting the top off and making a tub,” Scott says. “That’s where the idea came from.”
Of course, it’s not just as simple as cutting the top off a Tudor. To create a convincing, clean, and aesthetically pleasing tub requires a lot of metalwork, refinement, and attention to detail to get things just right. No wonder the project took Scott, with help and support from many friends and his wife, Shari, the better part of 12 years of on-and-off work to complete.
The starting point was a rough Tudor body, which required typical rust repair like replacing the bottoms of the doors and repairing the wheel wells. Scott enlisted Bret Cole and Al Swedberg for the car’s metalwork. Naturally, the top was cut off, and there was plenty of custom fabrication required to create the clean, rolled panels that cap off the body and surround the passenger compartment. Getting the shape correct around the rear of the car was especially crucial. You’ll note that the heavier Model A body line was eliminated, but the smaller beltline bead was retained. The doors were also flush fit, and the top of the cowl was reshaped to accept the DuVall windshield.
While the metalwork was getting done, Scott came up with an early aftermarket ’32 Ford frame to serve as the car’s foundation. A So-Cal Speed Shop dropped and drilled front axle, spring, and hairpin radius rods were used as the basis of the front suspension, along with a Vega-style steering box. A So-Cal ladder bar rear suspension and coil-overs were used to locate the 9-inch rearend, which was filled with 3.50:1 gears. So-Cal’s front disc brakes housed inside Buick-style drums add more traditional flair.
When it came time to unite the body and chassis, Bret Cole was again called on to help install the Steadfast Manufacturing floor and get the body properly fit to the frame. A three-piece hood and Deuce grille shell were used to finish off the front end, along with ’34 ford commercial headlights. Around back, a ’32 Ford fuel tank was fitted between the frame rails and flanked by ’37 Ford taillights with Limeworks lenses.
Scott knew he was going to keep things fairly simple and traditional when it came to powering the tub. He had Mike Cramer assemble a healthy 283c.i. small-block Chevy, fitting it with a Pertronix ignition, Mooneyes finned valve covers, and ram’s horn exhaust manifolds. The crowning element is an Offy six-carb intake supporting Stromberg carbs and Gear Drive Speed & Custom air cleaners. A Walker radiator keeps things cool, Flowmaster Hushpower mufflers provide a nice exhaust note, and a 700R4 transmission with a Limeworks shifter handles gear-changing duties.
As the various pieces of the tub began coming together, two key elements had yet to be determined. One was the wheels and tires. Scott wanted something traditional, yet different, so he worked with Mike Curtis at Curtis Speed to have a custom set of 16×5- and 16×7-inch wheels machined from aluminum to look like solid steel wheels. They’re powder coated black and topped with custom-machined center caps with a vintage-style “Good Year Airwheel” logo. Smoothed Diamondback Classic 5.50-16 and 7.00-16 tires help complete the look.
The other big question was color. Scott says that was one of the most difficult decisions on the build. He worked with painter Joe Frank to custom mix a vintage-looking brown hue using DuPont materials, finally landing on a hue they dubbed Pumpkin Poop Brown. It’s accented with subtle black striping outlined with lighter brown pinstriping.
You’ll find a ’40 Ford dashboard leading the way inside the tub-like interior, filled with a Classic Instruments gauge cluster and supporting a Limeworks column and ’40-style steering wheel. Jacob Araiza at Jacob’s Upholstery Design stitched the black Relicate leather over a Glide front seat and custom rear, giving it a traditional design of rolls, pleats, and buttons augmented with clean square-weave carpet.
We’ve all seen various automotive “conversions” (four-door to two-door, coupe to roadster) that look forced or forced or awkward. That’s definitely not the case with Scott’s Tudor-to-tub transformation – it has the right shape and proportions to look both convincing and cool. Scott jokingly calls it a ’31½ Ford, since the ’32 grille and frame, paired with the reshaped cowl, give it a Deuce-like appearance. No matter what you call it, though, there’s little question that this phaeton is fun, fine, and ready for some fresh-air enjoyment.
Photos: Damon Lee
