During the second car's development, KIT CAR magazine visited us and witnessed the final frame and body plug firsthand. Liking what they saw, they ran a full article on the new Dragon ("Shop Tour," Mar. '05). Wanting to capitalize on that exposure, we advertised that we would be displaying the car at the Knott's Berry Farm show. We also took four orders for the kit-even though the car had yet to be completed. We were committed to a deadline and could not miss it!
If you've watched Monster Garage, American Chopper, or American Hot Rod on TV, you know that the completion of any project comes right down to the absolute drop-dead deadline, and the Dragon was no exception. Originally, we were going to have the car transported to California and fly to the show. But it became obvious that we were not going to have the car done early enough for that. We thought about towing it, but nine miles-per-gallon, reduced travel speeds, and 7,000 miles of wear-and-tear on the tow rig nixed that idea. We then hatched a brilliant idea: Let's drive the car there! My brother Lee, who lives in San Diego, would fly out to the shop and drive west with me. Paul would fly to the show and make the return trip.
The original Dragon utilized '88-96 Corvette suspension parts and the customer's choice of small-block Chevy power. Wanting to broaden the appeal of our kits, we designed the new Dragon so that it could use either the Corvette parts or the complete drivetrain from a Camaro or Firebird. The car we were building used the engine, transmission, rear axle assembly, fuel tank, battery, and shortened driveshaft from a '96 Pontiac Firebird. This particular car featured a 275hp V-8 and a four-speed automatic with 96,000 miles on it. If you're thinking that 96,000 miles is a lot, it is, but a good friend of mine has an identical car with 187,000 miles on it and it runs perfectly.
Lee arrived four days before the departure date and was anxious to see the hot new sports car he would be traveling cross-country in. I had to explain to him that it wasn't quite done yet. We still did not have all the fiberglass parts out of the molds, and the windshield frame still had to be assembled. We still had to wire it; finish installing the suspension and brakes; align it; paint it; and install the lights, seat belts, gauges, and interior. "But honest, Lee, it will be done. It really is a simple kit and everything will just bolt together. Trust me!"
Lee wasn't convinced and wanted to know where the heater and top were, and I explained to him that we didn't have time to fabricate and install them. But hey, it will make the trip more fun, and we will have an adventure! "What if it rains?" he asked. "It won't," I replied. "Trust me!" Somehow I couldn't help feeling a little like Tom Sawyer involving innocent bystanders in my grand misadventure.
During the last days of the build, friends and curious onlookers stopped by to see the car. Upon seeing its uncompleted state they would make encouraging remarks like, "There is no way that you're going to get that thing done!" "You really don't have a top?" "You're going cross-country in a car that you designed and haven't even tested?" and even, "You haven't even tried the engine and transmission yet?" All I could do is think, Thanks for the support, guys.
With three days to go the final body parts came out of the mold. A friend agreed to paint the car over the weekend in his garage. Fortunately, the parts all have finished edges and returns; they were beautiful and required no filling or bodywork. The gelcoat was block sanded, sealer was applied, and then it was sprayed torch-red. The total paint job was completed in two days and looked terrific.