Roger Woody remembers 1955 pretty well. He was a kid in grade school in the small town of Christianburg, Virginia, where his dad worked at the local Chevrolet dealership."Dad got off work at 5 o'clock. He'd come home, eat dinner, and be out in the garage by 6 o'clock. I would go with him and we'd work until 10. Most of the new '55 cars came to the dealership in solid colors; however, most people wanted two-tone-so every night we would sand the top and back end, tape off, and paint one car. That is when I fell in love with '55 Chevy trucks and cars."
Roger built his first custom, a Buick two-door hardtop, in 1964. It wasn't a Chevy, but it was a '55. In the years that followed he continued to buy, build, drive, and sell cars and trucks as a hobby. The whole thing went on hold back in 1993 when he sold all his iron to start a construction business. People were buying houses in those days, and these days Roger owns more cars and trucks than ever.Roger owned the '55 Chevy pickup for five years before he started thinking about how he wanted to rebuild it, and spent two years reaching his goal. After starting the project with a friend's son-in-law, Roger turned the truck over to Jim Barber at Classic Automotive Restoration Specialists in Belews Creek, North Carolina. Jim, along with shop foreman Todd Wilson, bodyman Marty Wagner, Robert the electrician, and painter Michael Craig are primarily responsible for the success of the Chevy.
The first order of business was to scrap the rusty cab, hood, fenders and bed, for replacement sheetmetal. The doors, step plates, grille, and bumpers were retained. All exterior shiny emblems and hardware pieces were stripped away. The top was chopped a couple inches, the hood pancaked, and the bumpers pulled in to the body, and flipped upside-down with bolts eliminated. Custom taillights with LEDs were built into the rear fenders. The bed-oak with polished strips built at CARS-has been recessed into the back of the cab an inch, and fitted with a custom tailgate. New River Glass installed the glass, eliminating the windwings from the side windows. To get the truck to ride the way Roger wanted, it was dropped onto a new Total Cost Involved frame with boxed framerails, built with a Mustang II IFS setup, and Air Ride Technologies ShockWaves all the way around-which also accounts for the ready-to-pounce posture. Polished steel antisway bars at both ends stiffen the ride and a power rack eases steering. Front and rear brakes are Wilwood discs.The customers at the Christianburg Chevy dealership 55 years ago might've liked their Chevys two-tone, but all that late-night repainting must've had an affect on young Roger, because he opted for a monochrome job on this '55. Michael from CARS shot Torch Red just about everywhere paint would stick. Roger had to finish the exterior with something not red, and selected contemporary billet five-spokes from Boyd Coddington Wheels; these are the Harm design from the Legacy series, 18- and 20-inchers wearing P245/45R18 and P295/40R20 Goodyear low-profile rubber.
We'd be disappointed if a truck that looks like this had a powerplant that looked any less incredible. Roger said the space under the hood was so vast it required a big engine. The custom firewall and inner fenderwells have been finished smoother than a cue ball and redder than a 3 ball, and cradle a GM 8100 Vortec engine. The 8.1-liter (496ci) big-block was built by Street & Performance. All that underhood red is accented by a chrome intake manifold and valve covers, and polished exhaust headers. The six-speed came out of an '04 GM 1-ton pickup. At the far end of the driveshaft a Currie 9-inch rearend features a locker differential with 3.90:1 gears.Driver and passenger ride in Jeep six-way power seats, separated by a custom console, and finished in leather by Gabby's Interiors in Christianburg, where Roger still lives. CARS installed the smoothed dash, full of gauges renovated by Classic Instruments and controls for the Vintage Air A/C system. The high-tech aftermarket steering wheel is mounted on a tilt column. The door panels and headliner are completely sculpted. A chrome rollbar reinforces the cab. The sound system includes a Kenwood receiver with CD, DVD, and navigation system, with Alpine amps, 8-inch subwoofers behind the seats and 6-inch Infinity speakers behind the kick panels. It's as sweet on the ears as the rest of the Roger's red '55 is on the eyes.