A pair of custom two-door station wagons 

The author found a pair of mid-century two-door station wagon hot rods at the Moraga (California) Community Faire car show held on May 13 at the Rheem Valley Shopping Center.

First is a 1956 example of the legendary Chevrolet Nomad station wagon one of 8,103 built during the model year. The car still retains all its original bright trim, including the huge hood ornament but the original engine has been replaced by a modern powerplant and car fitted with chrome 5-spoke wheels.

Elsewhere at the show, this custom 1958 Ford Ranch Wagon with a modern Ford engine was on display with a slick black paint job offset by chrome 5-spoke wheels.  

All photographs by the author 

1957 Oldsmobile Super 88 convertible coupe 

Oldsmobile sold its ‘88’ series from 1949 through 1999, and for 24 years the 88 was Oldsmobile’s top-selling marque. The ‘88’ was redesigned for the third time in 1957 based on the 1956 Motorama Oldsmobile two-passenger show car with stylized rocket emblems  mounted on the fenders above the headlights and taillights reminiscent of jet engine exhausts. 

There were three trim levels the basic model was known as the ‘Golden Rocket 88,’ with the next step up the ‘Dynamic 88,’ and the highest trim level dubbed the ‘Super 88.’  Of the near 385,000 Oldsmobiles built during the 1957 model year, 132,000 were 'Super 88' models and just 7,128 were Super 88 Convertibles like this mildly customized version owned by Win and Edda Moore seen at the Moraga Community Faire car show held May 13 at the Rheem Valley Shopping Center. 

Under the hood, the Oldsmobile ‘Rocket V8’ engine in the ‘88’ series sported 371 cubic inches of displacement and to celebrate Oldsmobile’s 50^th anniversary all engine blocks were painted gold.  The base level 'Golden Dynamic 88' engine produced 277 horsepower, but the engine in the 'Super 88' series featured a four-barrel Rochester Quadrajet carburetor and produced 300 horsepower. 

The high-performance 'J-2' option added three two-barrel carburetors and high performance camshaft  which increased output to 310 horsepower with 400 ft/lbs of torque.

The convertible coupe rode on 122-1/2 inch wheelbase chassis with front coil springs and rear leaf springs and a curb weight of 4285 pounds.  A 1957 Oldsmobile Special 88 could accelerate from a standing start to 60 miles per hour in just over 9 seconds, and when equipped with the J-2 option knocked a second off that time.  

In the interior for 1957, Oldsmobile added a "safety" deep-recessed steering wheel. This car is equipped with the Hydramatic transmission instead of the three-speed column shifted manual transmission. 

All photographs by the author

A pair of Willys Coupe hot rods

In 1937 Willys-Overland Motors (correctly pronounced "Will-is") introduced the model 440, an economy car powered by a 4-cylinder 148 cubic inch 65-horsepower "Red Devil" engine. Although sedan, pickup and very rare station wagon body styles were also produced, the 2-door coupe body style has always been a favorite choice of hot rodders, as they wedge V-8 engines under the hood in place of the original anemic 4-cylinder engine.

The author found a pair of beautiful Willys coupe hot rods at the Moraga (California) Community Faire car show held on May 13 at the Rheem Valley Shopping Center

This all-steel 1941 Willys ‘Americar’ coupe owned by Mick and Elaine Coyne was built in the drag racing gasser style, nose-high, with a huge supercharged big-block Chevrolet engine and fenderwell exhaust headers.

Wayne Baker’s 1940 Willys 440 coupe  hot rod was parked directly across the parking lot. Baker built  his Willys in a different style, low and smooth and in a unique fitted with the original style chrome bumpers.
 

All photographs by the author