very project has a beginning and, if we are lucky, a promising end. While my beginnings were nearly lost in time, Project Gassed Up began in earnest at the 2011 Detroit Autorama. The initial conversation was between Chris Sondles of Woody’s Hot Rodz and I. I can see that the “end” is right around the corner, thanks to Dean Livermore of Hot Rods By Dean. I would be remiss not to mention Steve Stanford, who put pen-to-paper and did the initial renderings. But 15 years have passed, so there was plenty of “pushing around” the shop.

The project I’m talking about is my 1955 Chevy, built in a mild Gasser style. What does that mean—no straight axle? I know it’s not a gasser without a straight axle. I get it. (A series of concessions was made for reasons explained another time.) But I really do need to drive this car, as it has been a dream of mine for decades, and it was a concession to getting my wife (Kimi) to ride around.

Hence the name “Totally Gassed.” I’ve always enjoyed Tri-Fives, and the 1956 is my favorite heart-and-soul. I grew up with a 1956 Chevy. My parents bought it new from Felix Chevrolet in Los Angeles, and it eventually became my high school car and even made it through my first couple of years of college. But then life “got in the way.”

So why am I building a 1955 instead of a 1956? Good question. The only answer I can come up with is circumstance, and that’s where I find myself today. Remember the first conversation with Sondles at the Detroit Autorama? He was coming out with reproduction Tri-Five bodies, and the first would be a 1955, followed by the 1957, then the 1956. It probably makes sense now why I selected a 1955. I received the body back in 2011, and it’s been 15-plus years. Interestingly, it is the first new 1955 sedan body built since Detroit got the whim back then. The body was built at Woody’s Hot Rodz using sheet metal from Golden Star Classic Auto Parts, and Sondles tells us that to date, 55 sedan bodies have been ordered. (According to Sondles, it is the second-most popular of the bodies behind the 1957 convertibles.) The chassis is also the first from Woody’s Hot Rodz built for its reproduction bodies.

Finally, thanks to Livermore’s efforts, I am going to see the end. (If you are asking when, the way things are going, probably by the very end of the year.) Right now, the 1955 Chevy two-door post car is getting a few final touches, including the grille. An interesting touch is the use of C1 (1953-60) Corvette grille teeth for a custom look, and the addition of a 3-gallon Moon tank. This look was something I remembered from my very early days, and when I told Stanford about this he came up with the cool idea on paper.

As you read this editorial, the Project Totally Gassed is at Harold’s Hot Rod Shop. Harold Clay, a good friend of all of us here at Modern Rodding, understood what I was after and is making it happen. He will handle the final bodywork, followed by the application of PPG “Pagan Gold.” (I remember the color from my early days, but I came across it again at the 2010 SEMA Show at the PPG booth.) With lots of help and plenty of mixing, a custom color (which I have called Pagan Gold, as you won’t find it in the PPG catalog) is made from the Deltron paint series, comprising DMD649 (clear), DBX1689 (basecoat converter), and DMD1698 (medium aluminum gold). I grew up during a period when “Pagan Gold” was the “kool” color. So, here we are.

Never fails—the more friends you have, the more projects you get finished. Once again, the key to hot rodding is having friends and enjoying the hobby together. Enjoy the cars, for sure, but always take time to enjoy one another.

The Woody’s body as it sits today at Hot Rods by Dean during the grille install (C1 teeth and Moon tank).

What’s for power? I couldn’t pull off a blown big-block, my first choice, so I rounded up a genuine camel-hump head 327. (Took the motor out of Sondles’ wife’s mid-’60s station wagon!) Topped the SBC with an Offenhauser cross-ram intake, and now, instead of carbs, it will have throttle bodies.