Modern Rodding Tech
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Close-up of the 1959 Chevy Impala's custom grille and quad headlights, showcasing its iconic design
1. Once finished and going down the road, it’s hard to tell where the factory ends and BBT Fabrications begins its magic.
BBT Fabrications Builds a 1959 Chevy Impala
Part 5: Reshaping the Front Sheetmetal
By Ron Covell
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his is the last of our articles on building the BBT Fabrications 1959 Impala, which was featured in (and on the cover of) the Sept. ’24 issue. This time, we’ll focus on the extensive work done on the car’s front end.

Like most cars on the road for 65 years, there was some rust damage poorly repaired in the past and a host of nicks and dings. Every square inch of the sheetmetal was gone over carefully, and any defects were either replaced with new metal or straightened to perfection.

The hood’s fit was compromised on all sides, so the BBT crew decided the best way to make it perfect was to cut off all the damaged edges and replace them with angles formed from new 18-gauge sheetmetal. This is a labor-intensive process, but it will ensure the gaps are laser-straight and that the hood edges are full-thickness metal for enhanced durability.

The inner hood panel was serviceable, but the crew decided to remake it from new metal, adding styling touches that continued the character of the beautiful underhood metal fabrication we saw in the last article.

The areas around the headlight bezels had been poorly repaired, so new metal was meticulously shaped to replace anything sketchy. While this area looks similar to the original sheetmetal, the fit and finish are much higher than those in stock.

The original headlight bezels were trashed, so BBT CAD was designed, and CNC milled stout and accurate billet replacements.

A completely new front bumper was made. It has the same general profile as the original but is pared down to be more svelte. It is neatly tucked in and recessed, so it doesn’t protrude from the front end like the original bumper.

A custom grille was CNC machined from billet as the finishing touch for the front end on this meticulously constructed car. The accompanying photos tell the story in much greater detail, and we’re sure you will enjoy seeing the attention to detail lavished on every part of this project.

initial metalwork repair on a 1959 Impala fender, showing dents and stripped surface for welding
2. Every panel on this project needed attention. Some damage to the front fender had been poorly repaired.
1959 Impala fender repair with weld points aligning a newly fabricated patch panel
3. All the metal compromised by the previous repair was cut away and replaced with fresh metal. The new patch is tack-welded into place here.
welded patch panel repair seamlessly integrated into the 1959 Impala’s front fender section
4. With the upper portion of the patch welded and the metal finished, the lower portion was put into place. The lower edge is left “wild” and will be trimmed to size after the metal finishing.
restored 1959 Impala fender with smooth, clean metalwork, ready for finishing
5. Here’s the front edge of the fender after the repair work has been completed.
precision gap alignment and weld points on the 1959 Chevy Impala hood and fender
6. The gap between the hood and fender was irregular, so the entire edge of the hood was removed and replaced with an angle bent from sheetmetal. This is the ideal way to make the gap uniform and to ensure the hood is structurally sound.
custom rear quarter panel work on a 1959 Chevy Impala, showing refined welding and shaping
7. The lower portion of the front fenders also had some poor repairs. These areas will be cut out and replaced with solid new metal.
welded lower rear quarter panel repair on a 1959 Impala, reinforcing structural integrity
8. Here’s the patch piece after being shaped, smoothed, and tack welded into place. You can see just how flat the front edge of the fender is where the headlight bezel will attach.
underbody view of a 1959 Chevy Impala showing custom fabrication and welded patch panels
9. After the patch piece was welded and the metal finished, a new section was added to the lower edge of the fender, ensuring that the area was perfectly level where it joined to the lower panel.
custom fabricated metal housing on a 1959 Chevy Impala, prepped for headlight assembly
10. BBT Fabrications formed a new panel from fresh metal to fit just below the headlight.
front-end metalwork on a 1959 Chevy Impala with custom framework for grille and headlight buckets
11. A new, flanged piece of sheetmetal was formed to fit just below the grille.
lower front bumper fabrication on a 1959 Chevy Impala, showing precise hand-formed panels
12. Two pieces of metal were formed and joined to make the panel that fits behind and below the custom-made bumper.
underbody view of the newly fabricated lower front valance for a 1959 Chevy Impala
13. Contoured side pieces were formed to round out the corners of this complex panel.
side profile of a custom lower front valance being shaped on the 1959 Chevy Impala
14. The front bumper was entirely handmade at BBT Fabrications. Here, the top piece of the highly contoured corner is being fitted to the center portion.
custom contoured bumper with sharp lines and smooth metalwork for a 1959 Chevy Impala
15. The corner of the bumper is finished here, ready to be tack welded to the center portion.
detailed welding on a lower valance corner for a custom 1959 Chevy Impala bumper
16. The bumper is recessed slightly into the body. Here, the complicated indentation is formed from many pieces of metal.
rear trunk structure metalwork on a 1959 Chevy Impala showing clean fabrication lines
17. The inner portion of the hood will be completely scratch built. Here, some of the perimeter pieces are being fitted into place.
custom trunk panel in raw metal for a 1959 Chevy Impala, displaying reinforcement channels
18. The center portion of the inner hood panel is shaped from a single piece of metal, with the detail work done on a Pullmax machine.
trunk panel installed on a 1959 Chevy Impala, showcasing perfect alignment and fitment
19. Here, the inner hood panel’s inner and outer portions are fitted together.
custom fabricated hood panel for a 1959 Chevy Impala featuring reinforced channels and precision shaping
20. The inner hood panel looks factory-made after welding, smoothing, and metal finishing.
3D CAD design of a headlight bezel for a 1959 Chevy Impala created in Autodesk Fusion 360
21. New headlight bezels were CAD-designed with Fusion 360. These will be much more uniform and durable than the stamped sheetmetal originals.
machined aluminum headlight bezel in progress for a 1959 Chevy Impala, secured on a CNC milling machine
22. With the CAD design completed, the headlight bezels were CNC machined from billet aluminum.
handcrafted dual headlight bezel installed on the 1959 Chevy Impala, showcasing custom metalwork
23. The finished bezel is like a piece of jewelry that fits the car perfectly.
front grille and headlight assembly of a 1959 Chevy Impala with custom fabricated components
24. Here, you can appreciate how well all the components look when assembled. The custom bumper fits the car perfectly, and the CNC machined grille bars, surround, and honeycomb mesh blend together perfectly.
full front-end view of a custom-built 1959 Chevy Impala with hood open, highlighting the grille and engine
25. With the hood open, most of what you see is entirely handcrafted at BBT. While it has the character of the original 1959 Impala, the fit and finish are at a much higher level than when the car left the factory, and there are lots of design tweaks that set this car apart from any other.
SOURCE
BBT Fabrications
(217) 586-5699
bbtfabrications.com
Modern Rodding
VOLUME 6 • ISSUE 53 • 2025
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