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Words: Tommy Parry
After eyeing his brother’s abandoned Caddy 500 motor for a few years, Randy felt the urge to finish the task and made an offer. So, two years ago, he got the bug to finish his brother’s incomplete engine and see where it led. After a winter of wrenching, he compiled the rest of the parts needed to get it all fitted and screw the engine together.
He used a factory block and cast crank .030 over to make 507 CID, and stuffed it with BBC forged rods resized to replace the factory cast rods, custom cast pistons for 10:1 compression, 472 heads with a few secret tweaks, a CAD Company SS300T hydraulic flat tappet cam and lifters, an Edelbrock Performer intake, CAD Company shaft rockers (1.72 ratio), a CAD Company aluminum deep sump oil pan and eBay stainless block hugger headers. Once he’d dynoed it, he could sit back comfortably with his new stump puller: 615 lb-ft at 3,200 rpm!
With the gleaming engine constantly stealing his attention, Randy realized he’d have to do the powerplant justice and find it a new home. After scouring eBay for a suitable car, he found a ‘57 Chevy 3200 — a desert car without rust — for a good price.
Randys’ basic plan was to build a versatile truck which could thrill its occupants without sacrificing its utility. “I just wanted to build an all-purpose hot rod. I didn’t want to slam it to the ground and take the utility out of it. I plan to pull an airstream, haul a motorcycle, or just use it to take a bag of garbage to the dump,” he adds modestly.
With the help of No Limit Engineering, Randy obtained the WideRide front end and Fat Bar rear, and set out making the truck's handling as sweet as its looks.
First, however, he pulled the body off the frame and rolled it into the sandblasting booth. Then he installed the rear end, going through almost an entire spool of wire welding in the boxing plates, the front bar mounts and the crossmembers. This was going to be a sturdy chassis to support all that twisting force.
Turning his attention to the front, he installed the new Wide Ride front end; it fit beautifully, as expected. He then added the boxing plates and squared everything up for a final tack, and lastly doused it all in POR 15 with a top coat of Satin VHT.
With the Ridetech suspension in place, he focused on rebuilding the Explorer 9” rear, and added one item to sit just above the rear: a No Limit gas tank. With an Aeromotive Stealth 340 pump, it was good for about 800 horsepower - more than enough for his purposes. Next came four aluminum wheels — painted to look like steelies — detailing the corners of the frame.
Once he set the body back on top of the frame, he cut out the firewall to fit the new motor.
After he punched a hole in the firewall for the steering column, he added a TMI leather bench on top of some Dynamat and some brown leather. To avoid using another wear-and-tear item, he took a straight shot with the column and bypassed using a third u-joint. Quickly, this build was taking shape.
With the inner and outer fenders, core support and even the radiator back in place, he test fitted the wheels with 295/45-18 at all four corners. Even with the wide rubber, he had about ⅛” inch of clearance on the sway bar at full lock, and the tire just tucked under the fender.
Randy then fitted the remainder of the bodywork and took the truck for a spin — its first time moving under its own power in over thirty years. In a little less than a year, Randy had taken this pile of scrap and turned it into something truly special. With enough torque to roast the rears in any gear, the Caddy motor provides the perfect sort of punch for street driving — which is what Randy intends to do with this immaculate Chevy.
To keep tabs on this motivating build, you can follow Randy’s thread here.
