'32 ford roadster

1932 Ford Roadster

Owner: Hans-Peter Wurmli

In fact, not one part of this beautiful car has its roots in 1932. Only the style has echoes of the Ford cars of the thirties. Although based on a Wescott reproduction fibreglass body and Deuce factory frame, Hans-Peter’s hot rod has so many hand-crafted parts on it, the car would surely be appreciated by the old coach-builders from that golden era.

That’s where Al Stevens comes in. A rodder of old, Al had developed a taste for classic and race cars and, when it came to turning his dream into reality, it was Al that Hans-Peter turned to.

The pair spent time going to race and classic meetings and drew up plans for a ’32 roadster with a difference; one which could be happily parked alongside classics at Goodwood, or hot rods at the drag strip.

Al set about transforming the car with hand-made doors, hood, boot, and stunning aluminium interior and hand-formed roof to cover it. The fuel filler cap is a particularly nice piece, which took Al weeks to make in his spare time, as are the brass windshield pillars, made by Hans-Peter.

Other neat tricks are the Jaguar C-Type seats covered in distressed leather; the Nardi wheel with wooden rim that was turned down to evoke a more ‘period’ look; and those clever Auto Union-inspired front brake backing plates.

It was a shame to hide all that work but the gorgeous mile-deep black paint by Wayne Saunders sets it all off beautifully.

Perhaps the most unusual trademark pieces on this car are the replica D-Type wheels and the powerplant - a Datsun 240Z straight 6.

There is far too much of interest on this car to cover here. For the full story (and it is fascinating), you should buy Hot Rod Showcase Volume One.