Kicking Off the Year of the Deuce at the 72nd Grand National Roadster Show
The return of the Grand National Roadster Show is one sure sign that 2022 is destined be a better year for hot rodders than the past couple of trips around the sun. Canceled in 2021 due to California Covid restrictions, the show made a much-heralded comeback for its 72nd installment, reaffirming its place as the first big hot rod happening of the season, with national attention given to the many vehicle debuts and high-caliber award competitions. It was good to have this granddaddy event back!
The timing couldn’t have been better, because 2022 marks the 90th anniversary of the ’32 Ford – the quintessential American hot rod for generations of enthusiasts. This milestone was not lost on the Grand National Roadster Show organizers, who celebrated the Deuce with an exclusive parking area in the outdoor Grand Daddy Drive-In portion of the event. It was the first of what are certain to be many ’32 Ford celebrations happening across the country this year.
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- There was plenty of Deuce history on display. The Petersen Automotive Museum had the restored Ray Brown roadster out of the vault, a Sherwood Green beauty originally built in the mid-’40s and raced on the dry lakes. The Speedway Motors Museum of American Speed displayed the ’32 Ford built by famed customizer Harry Westergard in the early-’40s.
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- I don’t feel tardy! Anyone who watched MTV in the ’80s will remember this Deuce Phaeton, built by Street Rodder publisher Tom McMullen and used in the video for Van Halen’s “Hot For Teacher.”
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- Painter extraordinaire Darryl Hollenbeck brought out the 2016 America’s Most Beautiful Roadster winner, this understated and impeccable olive green Deuce roadster. This is one past winner that actually gets driven.
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- First built in 1995 with guidance from Mark Stielow, the QuadraDeuce is an all-wheel-drive ’32 that pushed the hot rod engineering boundaries. Rad Rides by Troy rebuilt it in 2000, and Campbell Auto Restoration gave it a refresh in 2016. It still sees road time.
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- Phil and Debbie Becker had their 2019 Goodguys Street Rod of the Year ’32 Victoria inside, and their 2011 Goodguys Street Rod of the Year ’32 coupe outside. Both cars can credit Dave Lane for their cool, timeless style and incredible craftsmanship.
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- The Bell roadster was built by Don Small, Bill Vinter, and Pete Eastwood using an Eastwood-built chassis with a dropped and drilled front axle, vintage Halibrand quick-change, and a stout 327c.i. small block backed by a five speed. The bodywork and hot rod black paint are by Cal Tanaka.
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- “Limefire,” built by Pete Chapouris, made a big impact in the late-’80s and brought bold, fat-tire, big-horsepower attitude to an era when red-painted, independent-suspended, and billet-wheeled street rods were the prevailing trend.
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- When So-Cal Speed Shop was revived in the late-’90s, the shop helped popularize a classic, traditional street rod look drawing on the lakes-racing roadsters of the late-’40s and 1950s. This signature shop car led the way.
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- Squeeg Jerger’s candy red Deuce has been a standout since it hit the streets last year and looked dazzling under the GNRS lights. It’s beyond tasty with chrome wheels, wide whites, a six-carb small block, and lots of white tuck ’n roll.
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- Once owned by LA Roadsters member Ian Cusey and featured on an album cover, as well as a 1963 Hot Rod magazine special issue, this Deuce roadster has been treated to a thorough restoration by current owner Bob Owens to its classic hot rod configuration. Merc wheels, a ’57 Chevy V8, and ’57 Plymouth Jade Green paint all help make it a period-perfect piece.
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- Mike Goldman Customs recently finished this Deuce coupe for longtime customer Sonny Freeman, putting a fresh spin on a contemporary-style street rod. Even at 90, the Deuce keeps getting reinvented!
Goodguys is excited to be kicking off the Year of the Deuce and we will be celebrating this icon of American hot rodding in a variety of ways during the coming months, both at events and in the pages of the Gazette. We thought it was fitting to kick off the festivities by focusing on the GNRS Deuce Drive-In – plus some choice ’32s found in the inside portion of the show. Of course, as long as we were on the ground in Pomona, we soaked in all the other cool rod and custom sights, as well. The “general” show coverage is also included here, but let’s start with a closer look at some of the choice ’32s that came out to celebrate their birthday. Enjoy!
GNRS Deuce Drive-In Photo Extra!
On With the Show!
The Grand National Roadster Show is about much more than Deuces – or even roadsters. The show’s triumphant return brought with it a much-loved and longstanding annual tradition: competition for the prestigious America’s Most Beautiful Roadster award. Couple that with even more incredible rides competing for the more recently established Al Slonaker Award, and the show was well on its way to drawing a crowd.
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- Big Oak Garage made a strong case for the Slonaker Award with this incredible ’61 Chevy Impala dubbed the “Dirty Martini,” built for Dan Duffy. A reshaped and shortened top, much-massaged body, 509c.i. LWA engine with Autotrend EFI, and one-off 20-inch Schott wheels are a few highlights, not to mention that gorgeous green Axalta paint.
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- The Root Brothers debuted this very cool ’28 Model A roadster, a classically styled highboy on Deuce rails with Hilborn-injected small-block power, lakes-style headers, and one-off wheels with a classic oval-track vibe. The car was an AMBR contender and picked up the Outstanding Upholstery award for the fine leather stitching by Stewart Upholstery.
Beyond the two top awards, though, were hundreds of other great cars and trucks competing in dozens of classes. And true to tradition, the show had one building devoted to a specific theme – this year it was custom Volkswagens – plus the Suede Palace for traditional rods and customs, and multiple other buildings filled with a wide range of street rods, muscle cars, street machines, trucks, lowriders, and more. It was a veritable smorgasbord of classic car and hot rod culture!
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- Actor and comedian Kevin Hart debuted his latest muscle machine, this ’69 Road Runner built by Salvaggio Design with a 7-liter supercharged modern Hemi cranking 940hp through a Tremec six-speed. It rides on a custom frame with a Detroit Speed front suspension and HRE 18- and 20-inch wheels.
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- Many attendees were thrilled to see the restored Hirohata Mercury, which had just sold for a record $1.95 million at a Mecum auction. The new owner of this iconic custom is Galpin Speed Shop, so we know it’s in good hands.
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- Roseville Rod & Custom just finished this ’40 Chevy Suburban for Amie Angelo, the owner of the 2019 Goodguys Hot Rod of the Year ’36 Ford. Stunning, subtle, and smooth, we look forward to seeing more of this one at events this season.
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- Another car that had everyone talking was this super-sanitary ’52 VW built by Type One Restorations. Understated style and incredible detailing set this Slonaker Award contender apart.
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- South City Rod and Custom recently finished the restoration on Bob Panella’s candy red Anglia, a colorful reminder of why the ’60s Gasser wars were so iconic. It shared booth space with Bill Ganahl’s mild custom Riviera and Mark Sandfort’s tasteful C10.
Needless to say, there was a lot of four-wheel eye candy no matter which way you turned. We captured as much of it as we could and are showcasing some highlights. Be sure to CLICK HERE for even more great GNRS coverage and photos.
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- John Mumford’s Brizio-built “Sapphire ’33” features some serious metalwork to achieve its unexpected, but gorgeous proportions. Also unexpected is the Aston Martin V12 under that long hood.
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- Roger Burman and his Lakeside Rods & Rides team revealed their latest ’35 Ford, this incredible roadster known as “Sage,” built for by Joe Faso. Streamlined and reshaped in almost every way possible, it features a ’34-style grille, a custom Roadster Shop chassis with RideTech components, big-inch billet wheels, and a beautiful green finish.
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- The Feature Building this year welcomed “A Gathering of Hot VWs” and brought together a phenomenal assortment of custom air-cooled machines. Two of our favorites were these two custom Cal Look Beetles from the ’80s – Aaron Kahan’s red ’67 and Bob Daniels’ turquoise beauty, both sporting killers stances and slick scallops that helped define the era.
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- Long before Carroll Shelby used the name, a trio of Motorama show cars called Cobras were built in the mid-1950s. This surviving example was built on an Oldsmobile chassis with an early Olds Rocket V8 and has a shapely body with some of our favorite ’50s design elements.
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- Bruce Wanta’s “Special Speedster” started out as a tribute to the well-known custom roadster built for Edsel Ford in the early-’30s. Hollywood Hot Rods reimagined and refined the sleek, Flathead-powered roadster and had it in AMBR competition.
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- Tin Man’s Garage knows how to build a Willys, and this killer ’36 sedan is a cool follow up to the stunning ’36 Willys truck the shop built that won the Slonaker Award back in 2020.
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- The “Leg Show” T-bucket brings a bit of early-’70s street rod flash into the present. Walter Sigsbey is behind this recreated version of the iconic show rod, and had help from original “Leg Show” builder Danny Eichstedt in building this version, which debuted at the 2020 GNRS and made an encore appearance this year.
And the Winners Are…
2022 America’s Most Beautiful Roadster presented by ARP
The towering 9.5-foot America’s Most Beautiful Roadster trophy was awarded to Jeff Breault and his ’34 Chevrolet roadster built by Devlin Rod and Customs. The distinctive fenderless street rod was designed by Eric Black and features a custom Roadster Shop frame, Greening-whittled wheels, a Dorton-built LS engine backed by a Bowler-built Tremec transmission, a custom-machined grille leading the way on a much-modified body, and beautiful blue leather upholstery in the full-custom cabin. It’s a stunner.
2022 Al Slonaker Memorial Award presented by ARP
The Al Slonaker Memorial Award is presented to the best non-roadster debuting at the show, and this year went to Pat Gauntt and his incredible ’32 Ford coupe built at Hollywood Hot Rods. More than 15 years in the making, the coupe draws inspiration from European sports cars, vintage airplanes, and competition vehicles with thousands of rivets, knockoff wire wheels, leather straps, and more. It has a 331c.i. Cadillac V8, a Winters quick-change rearend, and gorgeous candy brown paint by Mick’s Paint.
Photos by Marc Gewertz & Steven Bunker
