A big beast
A 6.2 metre-long ‘‘orange beast’’ is the most unusual project South Canterbury car restorer Hadleigh Oudemans has taken on.
Oudemans and four others have the task of customising a vehicle that began its life as a 1959 Cadillac four door hard top for an expat Kiwi living on the Gold Coast.
HBomb Customs and Classics near Temuka has a reputation as one of the top vehicle restoration/customising shops in New Zealand but this project is the most complex Oudemans has worked on in more than 10 years of trading.
It arrived partly completed from Wellington in a container about 18 months ago and Oudemans wants it finished by Christmas, meaning it won’t be among the amazing array of customs and classics at this weekend’s Rock & Hop in Timaru but he is hoping it may still be in the region for the 2020 event.
Oudemans has his own name for it – ‘‘El Cadillette’’ – a combination an El Camino, Cadillac and a 1959 Corvette.
There are even bonnet rockets from a 1957 Chev Bel Air.
‘‘I have been running this operation for 13 years now and I have never seen anything like it,’’ Oudemans said.
One of the more difficult aspects has been the ‘‘lazy axle’’ set-up required for the twin rear wheels which make it a sixwheeled vehicle – similar in vein to FAB 1 – the pink six-wheeled car made famous in the 1960s British science-fiction puppet television series Thunderbirds.
‘‘It’s very tricky and not everybody is prepared to pay for tricky,’’ Oudemans said.
‘‘The rear wheels have been the biggest challenge.’’
Over the course of the project, Oudemans and his team have also made changes to the wheel arches and still have to include a specially-built grille put together from two grilles taken from 1959 Corvettes, paint the exterior ‘‘Lamborghini Orange’’ and customise the interior in white and orange crocodile skin.
The owner also wants the roof in clear glass.
‘‘The customer gave me some initial ideas and impressions.
‘‘It’s a massive project as it’s difficult in terms of sourcing the parts and getting it right.’’
Oudemans said he spent a considerable amount of time sourcing and chasing Cadillac parts suitable for the project.
The car is powered by a 500 cubic inch V8 Cadillac motor.
Oudemans said the project could eventually cost between $200,000 and $300,000 with another feature being the installation of a television in the middle of the spare wheel cover so the owner can ‘‘park up’’ and watch 1950s music videos.
‘‘So far we are really happy with how it flows.’’