NZV8 — February 2018

(^76) themotorhood.com
NEIL SURTEES
CAR CLUB: Whakatane Rod and Custom Club
AGE: 55
OCCUPATION: Retired, Surtees Boats (owner),
boilermaker by trade
PREVIOUSLY OWNED CARS: 1954 Cadillac,
1963 Cadillac, 1949 Ford truck, various Valiants,
Zephyrs, etc.
DREAM CAR: Dunno, but I’d like to get the
missus a ’62 or ’63 Corvette
WHY THE MODEL AS? I always had a Model A
fetish, and cartoon Model As are kinda cool
BUILD TIME: I try and pop a car out every
two years
not harsh; it soaks it up. I do like my cars to go
down the road kinda good,” Neil comments. “Those
old cars don’t drive like a modern car, but they don’t
have to ride like a piece of shit — just play with
springs and spring rates and things can be good.”
That old-school simplicity extends to the driveline.
A Ford Toploader four-speed, with an overdriven
3+1 gear set, which works well with the 4.11:1 gears
in the nine-inch rear end, and the rebuilt 389ci
Pontiac V8 — breathing through three Rochester
2G carbs — provide an abundance of both grunt
and good looks.
Of course, those good looks start outside. Once
Neil had customized the body to a point at which
he was happy with it, he began panelling it all to a
point where he was happy to lay down several coats
of deep, gloss black paint. He’s done a beautiful job,
too; if you didn’t know better, you’d think the work
had been done by a professional painter.
“A panel beater knows what a smooth surface feels
like. It’s a skill, and you don’t get it overnight. It’s
something you learn,” Neil explains. “Black is a hard
colour, and, on Model As, there are so many fine
edges, all those swages, and you gotta get all those
edges crisp — otherwise it looks like shit.”
The finishing touches on the aesthetic front are
those sweet 16-inch Artillery wheels, wrapped in
Firestone bias-ply tyres. Neil opted for blackwall
tyres to keep the car understated, and the Artillery
wheels were chosen in a similar vein.
The interior is just as good-looking, and, of course,
Neil did all the work there, too — with the exception
of the sewing! The controls and gauges are all
perfectly suited to the theme of the car, and the
custom touches fit so well they could be factory.
The dimple-died holes throughout the interior
waistline were all done by Neil, and he used
up many brain cells figuring out how to ensure
uniform holes throughout, without distortion
around the curved rear corners.
All of Neil’s painstaking work hasn’t gone
unappreciated, either. The Tudor netted the top
award in the Hot Rod Sedan category at its public
debut at CRC Speedshow 2017, followed by Best
Custom Hot Rod Sedan at the NZHRA Nationals in
Nelson.
Now, with his latest and greatest build complete
and ready to roll on the road, Neil’s turned his
attention away from hot rods to focus on a trick
little aluminium boat and a vintage Triumph bobber
that he has on the go. However, he’s still sticking
to his aim to pump out a hot rod every two or so
years. If you’re thinking that he hasn’t left himself
much time to build a hot rod that, somehow,
improves on his last one, you’d be very much
mistaken. In fact, we’d be surprised if he doesn’t
learn how to sew, so he can complete each and
every last part of his next build himself!