The Goodguys/Classic Instruments 2008 Street Rod of the Year award was presented to George Poteet's jet black "Delivery Deluxe" 1932 Ford Sedan Delivery at the Goodguys 11th PPG Nationals in Columbus, Ohio. For Poteet, a man who's won every major award in street rodding over the past two decades, the goal all along with this fresh car wasn't to win awards, but to "just have a stark and plain sedan delivery."
Enter 44-year-old builder Dave lane of Fast Lane Rod Shop in Donahue, Iowa - the man responsible for building Poteet the "Delivery Deluxe." Lane is a throwback to the European coachbuilders of the 20th century - a master builder and fabricator who's the unquestioned street rod impresario of his generation. The man is simply incapable of building something plain and ordinary. Anything he builds has even the most hardened pro builders scratching their heads in amazement.
Back in 2003, Lane and Poteet teamed up on another black '32 Ford - a five window coupe that won the 2003 Street Rod of the Year title, also here in Columbus. For the record, this is the fourth car Lane has built for the Memphis businessman.
This particular collaboration with Lane started four years ago. The "Delivery Deluxe" took Lane two years and three months to complete. For starters, Lane, who works completely alone in his Iowa shop, massaged and reshaped all four fenders, lengthened the body/with doors shortened 1.5 inches (do not try that at home!) and scratch built the chassis installing stainless steel rivets to attach all the crossmembers and motor mounts. The inside of the car is just as impressive as the outside, where Lane used a myriad of industrial metal and wood products and even went as far as installing seats adorned in Carhardt jacket fabric!
"It's an unbelievable feeling to win this award with George" Lane said. "George has been the lifeblood of the street rod industry for many years. He's single handedly kept rod shops alive with various projects over the years."
The top 5 finalists for this year's award included Joe Stuban ('32 Ford roadster), Poteet's "Delivery Deluxe", Mack & Shelley Bernd ('32 Ford Cabriolet), Steve Legends ('36 Ford Roadster) and Sam Magarino ('32 Ford roadster).
Tech Specs - "Delivery Deluxe" '32 Ford Sedan Delivery, George Poteet, Memphis, Tennessee.
Overall Fabrication and Construction: Fast Lane Rod Shop, Donahue, Iowa
Body: steel '32 Ford sedan delivery. Body lengthened/doors shortened 1.5 inches, flushmounted roof insert, pie-cut hood, fenders cut and reshaped, custom splash aprons.
Chassis and Suspension: Handbuilt chassis, stainless steel riveted crossmembers and engine mounts, handmade wishbones (front & rear), Hot Rod Works quick-change rear end.
Wheels: Custom machined and milled two-piece 14-spoke wheels, proportionally correct from front to rear. Handmade center caps. Interior: All handmade steel and wood structure, Carhardt seats, '32 Ford truck door panels. '32 Chrysler gauge panel with Classic Instruments custom gauges. Downsized stock '32 Ford steering wheel.
Engine & Trans: 327 Chevy with "double hump" cylinder heads, tri power (est. 400 hp) Ford top loader four-speed. Chromed exhaust with Jet Hot inside coating.
Body and Paint: Fast lane Rod Shop. DuPont Super Jet black basecoat clearcoat.