Written by Steven Rupp
Jerry's story is typical gearhead. A 25-year-old father of two, he was kept busy with the necessities of life and engaged in his hobby of turning wrenches as time allowed. It was late in '04 when fate stepped in and gave Jerry a chance to turn his car-building hobby into a career. A work injury prevented him from returning to his regular duties, so he took the opportunity to start his own hot rod business. With the support of his wife, Brandie, Jerry was ready to go. All he needed was a suitable project.
It wasn't long before Jerry spied a potential project lying very close to home in the driveway of Byron Devries, his father-in-law. The '66 GTO was a completely gutted shell that had been painted and for some reason left to languish in the elements for almost four years. Jerry told PHR: "One day I asked him what was going on with the car and he said he was pissed off over the deal and didn't want to talk about it. A few beers later Byron finally talked to me. He said he was in the middle of building the car when the shop painted the car without his permission, and not even in the right color." Seems the shop stuck him with the bill for the mis-painted GTO. This made him so mad that he lost all interest in the project. This was Jerry's big break and he wasn't about to let it slip by. After a few more beers he was able to convince his father-in-law that he could build him the car of his dreams. Byron had wanted to restore the GTO since he thought it was numbers matching, but later found out his ride wasn't so rare after all. Jerry eventually sold him on the idea of building a custom ride rather than a fully restored car. Now that Jerry had a platform to work on, he just needed the right plan.
His first stop was Pro-Machine Engine Building in Placentia, Calif., where Jerry's friend, John Beck, helped figure out what they could do with the 428 Poncho they had. What they wanted was a tri-power set-up, but unfortunately nobody makes an intake for this. Luckily for Jerry, John was good friends with Chico over at Moon Equipment. Moon was able to set them up with three polished two-barrel throttle bodies that would give the look of the old school six-pack setup. John then had a one-off aluminum sheet metal manifold fabricated to fit the throttle bodies. Seems the guys at Moon Equipment dug the GTO build enough to sponsor the car for the '05 SEMA show. With this, the Mooneyes "Moonshine" GTO was born. Besides making the three-deuce fuel injection work, Pro-Machine also went to town on the rest of the engine. They started by boring the 428 .060-over and then gave it a 4.00-inch stroke. The now 439 cubic-inch mill was internally balanced and filled with SRP 9.0:1 pistons, Eagle connecting rods and a 244/254 (.510/.533 lift) 116 LSA bumpstick. The cam works Manley valves, COMP springs and Magnum roller rockers. With a pump-gas friendly tune, the 439 was able to lay down 384 horsepower and 455 ft-lbs of torque on the engine dyno. To keep the retro-cool theme going, the bullet was painted Pontiac blue and the throttle bodies were topped with period correct six-pack air cleaners. "There's no school like the old school," says Jerry. MSD lights the fire and headers by Doug Thorley route the exhaust through the MagnaFlow crossover exhaust system. For a little extra get-up-and-go, the engine is equipped with a NOS Sportsman fogger series nitrous system.
Just because Jerry wanted to keep a retro look, it didn't mean he would have to stick with the antiquated suspension. The frame was separated from the body and after a trip to Primo powder painters for a coat of sparkle silver; it was treated to a host of hard-turning improvements. Global West upper and lower control arms work hand-in-hand with the Hotchkis TVS rear suspension system. QA1 billet adjustable coil-over shocks combine with 1.5-inch front and .75-inch rear Hotchkis sway bars to help the Goat flatten the curves. The steering was tightened up with the addition of all new suspension parts from Original Parts Group along with a close-ratio Saginaw power steering box. Up front, the tall B-body spindles got a set of Baer Track Plus disc brakes, while the rear axle ditched the drums in favor of more disc brake parts from Baer. Power assist for the brakes comes by way of a whiplash-inducing Hydra-boost system. Rolling stock consists of Foose Nitrous 18x8-inch front wheels and massive 20x10-inch wheels in the rear. Wrapped around the billet hoops are Falken TRV tires (285/30R20 rear and 245/40R18 front).
With the frame done and rolling, Jerry could now set the motor in place and work on the rest of the drivetrain. A Tremec TKO-600 five-speed tranny was chosen with a McLeod flywheel and Street-Twin clutch. This combo reliably shifts all that torque back to the Currie 9-inch nodular rear end complete with 3.89 gears. While the frame was being updated, the body was at Lanzini Body Works in Huntington Beach, Calif. The neglected paint was stripped away and numerous mods were done to the vintage tin. The door handles and locks were shaved away along with the drip rails. The firewall was smoothed and all the gaps were made just right. Once everything was perfect, the Mooneyes theme was carried forward with the application of PPG Chrome Yellow and a custom mixed "Moonshine Metallic" black by Mitch Lanzini. To jazz it up a bit, Bob Iverson laid on the unique turned white-gold-leaf accent stripe down the side of the too cool Goat. The body was once again bolted to the frame and it started to look like a car again.
With SEMA looming on the horizon, the GTO still needed an interior. Stitchcraft in Huntington Beach, Calif., was tasked with sewing up the Honey and Black Suede in keeping with the Mooneyes theme. The heavily modified front seats started life as off-the-shelf Sparco units. Outlaw Products milled out the custom billet dash then filled it with a slew of gauges from Mooneyes. The Budnik wheel keeps the Goat pointed in the right direction and cruising tunes come by way of the Alpine sound system. The end result is a comfy place to enjoy romps around town. A/C is there anytime you want to roll down the windows, which has the added benefit of letting in more sound from the mill thumping under the hood. The GTO made it to its SEMA debut and Jerry was thrilled at how the Pontiac came out. He told PHR: "This was a great way to start my new hot rod shop and at the same time give my father-in-law the car of his dreams. I would say that I've been so lucky to have been able to build this car and make it so different from every other run-of-the-mill GM or Ford. I know there will be those hardcore Pontiac guys out there who absolutely hate what I've done to the GTO, and believe me I met a few of them at SEMA, but this is what I think a '66 GTO should have looked like all along." Don't get the idea that this ride is done. Jerry is already hard at work on it for the '06 SEMA show and is working on more power from the 439 by way of massaged heads and maybe a bit of forced induction. You can bet the Moonshine GTO is going to be around turning heads for a long time to come.
I’m watching TV late one night, just like millions of other car guys, and I see yet another ad for a reality car show, “Come on”, I say “do we really need another one of these shows?”
Then I think “That’s what people said about Buckeroo Communications when we started publishing our street rod magazine! I also remember when Discovery Channel was showing zebras mating and the Learning Channel was showing Egyptian mummies. Now they’re showing car building with personality loving guys at shops any day of the week and any hour of the night. Foose, Coddington, James, Rolling Art and Bryant are just a few names and shows on at any time now. I personally know three to five months is about the right time table for a show to cover the building of a car for TV. Well that seems like way too much time for producer Bud Brutsman of the show “OverHaulin”
Seven days – one week – that’s the build time for this show! Let’s her all the explanations now when a car builder tells new clients that he’ll need about one year to build their dream car. Brutsman has enlisted the producing help of Chip Foose for this new TV series. Knowing him from his “Ride” TV show that Chip doesn’t sleep, Brutsman has given him a basic two week buffer. You see, Foose sees one week as three weeks – one day is 24 hours, multiplied by seven days equals three weeks of work. The show highlights Foose with other known and talented builders from around the industry. The premise of the show is that the vehicle being overhauled was taken for the project without the owner’s knowledge or permission. Sometimes its even stolen, with the shows host and hostess in on the plot. SO far the show has been Southern California based, taped at a viarity of shops, but it will have to expand – otherwise everyone in LA will want their car taken for “OverHaulin
The kind of vehicle doesn’t matter either, you will see street rods, muscle cars, 4x4 trucks and imports overhauled. Brutsman enlists of known industry figures to personality get involved with the project of the week. Camee Edelbrock of Edelbrock, Tony Genty of Original Parts Group, Todd Gartshore of Baer Brakes, John Hotchkiss of Hotchkiss Performance, Alan Budnik of Budnik Wheels and Mitch Lanzini of Lanzini Body Works are among those who have contributed so far, from just dropping off product for the build to doing the real install to their specifications. Imagine your ride being designed by Chip Foose, with a motor by Eddelbrock, brakes by Baer, suspension by Hotchkiss, custom wheels by Budnik and paint by Lanzini, done in one weeks’ time and it’s yours! Imagine getting your car overhauled and having it be worth close to $100,000. Yeah, baby! Hey Bud, I know where there’s a 70 240Z that needs some OverHaulin.
It seems that everyone with a talent for building something is finding a career in television these days. Channels that were once dedicated to the preservation of rainforests and historic perspective have turned their attention to various forms of reality shows centered on street rods, choppers and wicked creations that defy description.
Within the confines of the serpentine belts and the detailed valve covers is an Edelbrock Fuel Injected RPM E-Tec engine producing 440 hp and 425 lb-ft of torque.
Once strapped into these supportive Corba seats, the leather-wrapped Budnik wheel falls right in hand. Surrounding components are from Original Parts Group.
The latest of these programs to enter the fray is airing on The Learning Channel, and it goes by the name of "Overhaulin." Unique in its approach, it doesn't get any more real than this highly condensed one-hour program that will watch a vehicle go from it's most basic form to a show-stopping automotive expression, all in the span of one week. Yes, you read it right. In just seven days, several of the top builders in the nation come together for the better part of 24/7 to do the impossible.
Created by Bud Brutsman, the same innovative producer who brought us "Rides," this show sets a new standard on the "reality television" front. This is the real deal, not some contrived mix of emotional interplay, flying sparks and smoking tires, which seems to be the hook for some programming these days. Any show has its place -- after all, TV is entertainment, but don't expect it to provide an authentic look at what really goes into creating a modern-day hot rod or the more serious side of this hobby. Most are just entertainment.
This time around, Brutsman and his crew have teamed with TLC on its most industrious effort to date, a show that follows along as unlimited talent is poured over a variety of vehicles around the clock. And if you're thnking that days or weeks of preparation and prefabricationled up to this one-week thrash, think again. Outside of the logistics of planning, the schedule for the production crew, and the flights to bring in the various talents, everything came together with the unbelievable tight timeling of 168 hours!
Impossible? Well, it may seem so--until you follow along through a good portion of the transformation of this vehicle(and several others that we'll be covering in other Buckaroo Publications.) Several Bucaroo staff members, including photographer Scott Killeen, feature editor Will Smith and yours truly, captured these images 'roung the clock as these cars took shape. And even when we're following along (and in some cases, helping out), it's still hard to believe. Processes that often take builders years to accomplish fly together under impossibly tight deadlines. While you may think this kind of exhaustive effort would have people at each other's throats, mostly everyone remains cool, showing true professionalism and teamwork even as the sun rises on another day. Sure, there are moments of frustation as problems arise, but by and large, everything runs smoothly.
To actually see--and most importantly, understand--how this amazing process takes place, you'll need to check out "Overhaulin" for yourself. Then again, to get more of an inside look at the broad strokes of this instant buildup, we've taken a step-by-step look at the various procedures that led to the creation of a car like this beautiful '71 Chevelle. It's here you'll see how so many individuals can work side by side, under the car and over it, and still manage to maintain sanity, hour after hour, day after day.
If you have yet to see the show, we won't spoil the basic setup, other than to say that that the car's owner, Jeff Miller, was let to believe his very basic, green on green '71 Chevelle was being used for a detailing demonstration with Jim Hollaway at Mother's Wax. Little did he know that just one week later it would be transformed into a vehicle beyond his wildest dreams by some of the finest craftsmen in Southern California, including a guy named Chip Foose. As many of us have seen in these magazines and on sows like "Rides," Foose's ability to transfer his concepts form paper to completion is unsurpassed. With the help of Foose Design crew members like Pete Morrell, Karl Jonasson, Andy Wallin and Bryan Fuller,he did it again here.
As you can see, this Chevelle is fantastic. If you were to hear the sound of the engine, there would be no question as to its performance potential. After all, there's an Edlebrock Fuel Injected Performer RPM E-Tec crate engine producing 440 hp in that pristine engine compartment. Best of all, its 425 lb-ft of torque is produced on pump gas, which adds to the real-world appeal of this affordable engine. Delivered by Camee Edelbrock herself and installed by Ford's Kevin Byrd--with help from Edlebrock staffers Curt Hooker and Dan Dragoo--everything about the engine installation went smoothly, especially considering the tight time constraints. The exhaust system combines components from Doug's Headers and Original Parts Group (OPG), and it tells of the power within. An impressive array of visual improvements make the most of this powerful package, including the air cleaner and valve covers that have been coated in a cinnamon and champagne paint combination that reflects exterior hues within the black confines of the engine compartment. Add in the serpentine belt system from Vintage Air (the same company that supplied the A/C system) and this engine is definitely well equipped.
Thanks to the broad array of components from Original Parts Group, the dash, console, door panels, carpeting and headliner look better than new.
With this power matted to a stout GM Turbo 350 automatic, this car is every bit the performer that Miller has always wanted--and then some. You see, Miller is a gearhead from the get-go, and while he's well paid as a staff member at OPG in Huntington Beach, California, making changes like these would have taken him a very long time. Thankfully, the show's producers secretly chose him to receive an "Overhaulin," and as it turned out, he was a great candidate for this honor. His employers had a great deal to do with this car's modifications. All of the original interior trim, except for the Cobra Sidewinder bucket seats, came from OPG. This includes the SS dash panel and gauge package, as well as the console and the shifter, replacing the original on the column. The same goes for the external lenses for the parking lights, the grille and even the cowl-induction hood. The last piece to be installed was the Budnik steering wheel--leather-wrapped, of course. But don't think that work stopped even at this point, as there was still a lot left to do.
The chassis features OPG components as well, along with a hearty suspension system rushed over by John Hotchkis himself, including the heavy-duty springs, shocks and various brushings. Also included is a J&S Gear 12-bolt rearend fitted with posi-traction, which is definitely a necessity when the power of that Edelbrock engine is unleashed. At either end, you'll find Baer PBR disc breaks with giant drilled and vented rotors keepinog the unique Budnik rims and BFGoodrich rubber in check. It's there that 20x10 rears are wrapped in 295/40-20 BFGoodrich Comp T/A's, while smaller 19x8s and 255/40-19 fronts make the most of larger Baer calipers and a pair of giant 13-inch rotors. Were it not for the special efforts of Todd Gartshore and his team at Baer, this car would have been breakless, considering the normal delivery time.
As we soon discovered, the "Overhaulin" projects are works in progress, and as one aspect of the car is taking shape underneath, other processes are being updated, the crew at Lanzini's Body and paint were handling body modifications. To give some idea as to the commitment put forth here, owners Mitch and Tara lanzini were even in on the effort--and the shimmering results show it. Changes included removing of the door handles, rocker panels, molding and drip rails, as well as the side marker lights and the emblems. Another unique touch is the reversal of the trunk latch and lock, now concealed beneath the folding license plate. Once all of the body modifications were completed, Chris Quinn laid down the cinnamonpaint, which features flamed champagne Rally stripes. As soon as the paint dried, the windshield was replaced along with the weatherstripping front to back.
And if you think the "Overhaulin" producers were standing around watching all of this take place, know that Brutsman and others spent as much time working on the car as did any member of the team that brought this concept together. As you can see, this car made it to completion and in the time planned. While we aren't going to tell you the ending, there's no question that "Overhaulin" has changed the face of reality television.
Since this car's completion, several others have been built within the same ridiculous time schedule and they too have been finished with the same level of craftsmanship and style seen here. Look for those projects as they show up in TRUCK BUILDERS,SUPER ROD and other Buckaroo Communications magazines in the months to come, as we continue to follow the latest trend in an American tradition.
