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My Chevy Coupe was built in 1979
by Larry Bean using the parts that were available at the time.
The wiring harness was from a 1968 Impala, the steering column
from a 1977 Chevy pickup, the front-end from a 1978 Mustang II,
and had 1940 Ford tail-lights 'til 1987, when they were changed
to1987 Buick Park Avenue. The electric trunk is from a 1962 Pontiac
Grand Prix. The seats were updated in 1988 to Mustang GT. It also
had a small block Chevy with a blower on top.
In 1989 it won the Best of Show in Oklahoma. It came to California
in 1996 and went up in the hills of Vallejo and was not seen until
I took it home in 2001.
The motor was changed in 1996 to a Chevy ZZ3 crate motor with
a larger cam and a 750 Holley installed and ran 13's in the 1/4
mile.
I added flames to the fenders and hood in early 2003 along with
a small set of flames along the door ridge by Kurt of K&S
custom signs.
I trailered the car back to Larry in early December of 2003 and
went back to pick it up in April of 2004. During that time the
car changed some. It was totally rewired; all wires were removed
from the fire wall. The dash was repainted, air was installed
along with a new cam and rollers to go with the new (4) 48 IDA
Webber's, painted Metallic Blue. All the hoses are hidden inside
the fender wells.
Larry shaved the door handles using 35# pulls. All new glass was
installed and he had the glass man cut one side of the front windshield
3 times 'til it met his approvalLarry made and installed a new
grill out of aluminum.
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The grill
can be removed with only two screws, instead of the whole front
end having to come off like the old way.
The car was then prepped for a new paint job. Keeping it the same
black as before, but using Blue Pearl over the hood, roof and using
small flames along the bottom of the door ridge and sweeping back
over the trunk area meeting in the middle.
Larry did all the prep work by hand. Watching Larry sand the whole
car through each step is quite an experience. When he works on a
car you can tell it is a labor of love and he takes pride in what
he does. He will only stop when it is right and he never takes short
cuts.
Larry makes a lot of his own parts he installs, even if they could
have been purchased at some speed shop. Would I take another car
that far to have redone again? YOU BET!
These are just some of the things that Larry has done to the car.
There are many others, so just ask me when you see me if your interested.
I hope you have enjoyed looking at the photos of a car that has
been restored the old fashion way, by hand and not by machine or
just going out and buying the parts and putting them together. It
was a pleasure meeting Larry and his family and friends. I know
I have made some new one there. Thanks Larry for all your hard work!
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