An Old Farm Truck Turned Show-Stopper

MOST PROJECT TRUCKS ARE BUILT WITH A PURPOSE OR FOR A SPECIFIC REASON. Builders usually operate with a kind of mission statement at the outset of a project that outlines the reasons for spending time lying in grease and oil, sending sparks into the atmosphere as they massage metal what was never intended to be as cool as the builder is working to make it. There’s an over-arching vision and passion that keeps all of the build participants focused as the midnight oil burns. It’s a drive most folks outside the scene can’t understand.

For Adam Cox of Cedar, Iowa, that passion shines through in the ’62 Ford F-100 big window unibody pickup radiating off of these pages. Not one to follow the crowd, Adam wanted to build something other than a C-10. One night while surfing Craigslist, the Ford appeared, and because it’s a unibody with a big window, he knew he had to jump on it.

NOT ONE TO FOLLOW THE CROWD, ADAM WANTED TO BUILD SOMETHING OTHER THAN A C-10. ONE NIGHT WHILE SURFING CRAIGSLIST, THE FORD APPEARED, AND BECAUSE IT’S A UNIBODY WITH A BIG WINDOW, HE KNEW HE HAD TO JUMP ON IT.”

 The build journey began with a 275-mile trip to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, with trailer in tow to retrieve his new Blue Oval treasure. Once home, the build madness began. The body was pulled off of the frame at Laodies Kustomz where Von Chounlamany and Adam broke the Effie down to its original bones and put the factory skeleton in the frame jig to custom fit a 1976 Camaro front clip. They also fabricated a new 2×3 back- half section to give the narrowed 9-inch Ford rearend room to roam when the truck is laid out to show or lifted up slightly to go. A set of 2,600-pound airbags was used up front combined with 2,500-pound airbags in the rear, working in concert with CPP 2-inch drop spindles and tubular control arms. A Laodies Kustomz hand-built wishbone suspension setup in the rear keeps rearend placement and control in check. CPP disc brakes all around, complete with slotted rotors and a brake booster and master cylinder combo, handle stopping power. Stuffed under the fenders and bedsides are 22×8.5-inch and 22×12-inch Intro Flow billet wheels mounted on staggered Lionhart low-pros.

MICHAEL MIXED UP CUSTOM BLUE PAINT AND LAID DOWN A TRUE SHOW FINISH TOPPED WITH A CUSTOM CREAM STRIPE TO ACCENT THE DISTINCTIVE FACTORY UNIBODY LINES.”

While the quest for the ultimate underpinnings was underway, Adam began addressing the structural sheet metal work to repair the rusted factory cab steps, driver and passenger floor pans and to build the custom transmission tunnel. The original bed floor was also raised to account for all of the chassis changes, and an S-10 ribbed bed floor section was used for the center to create a factory-style look bordered by the new wheel tubs, all structured underneath with 1×1 square tubing. Inside the old workhorse cab are modern creature comforts, including a Vintage Air climate control system with the vents frenched cleanly into the factory dash. The exterior skin was further smoothed with a shaved cowl panel and deleted emblems and badges. To really bury the Intros and set the rockers flat on the Iowa farmland, a custom body- drop was performed by Laodies Kustomz and, combined with the air ride and suspension trickery, gives this unibody a wicked, tough look.

Backing up all of this pavement-crushing style is a modern Blue Oval bullet under the hood that replaces the feeble original Y-block. The drivetrain in this slick, smooth classic was pulled from a 2008 Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor and features a 4.6L mod motor with headers and a 2.5-inch Flowmaster stainless exhaust system tipped with Flowmaster stainless 40 series mufflers. A custom 3-inch cold air intake system feeds the beast, while a Ford AOD transmission transfers the power down the line. Von sorted out the factory engine/transmission wiring harness and connected all of the electrical dots to get the old bad guy chaser to run in its new position of power in the truck. Custom engine and transmission mounts were also built to hold this modern fuel- injected tire-burner firmly in place when Adam buries the fun pedal. A Tanks, Inc. custom fuel tank was mounted in the rear of the frame underneath the bed to hold cruising ammunition.

After the chassis, suspension and drivetrain mods were complete Adam shifted his focus to the body of the old farm truck and delivered all of the sheet metal to Michael Lee at Mykal’s Custom Auto & Paint in Fairfield, Illinois. Michael spent the better part of five months repairing the truck’s 54 years worth of battle scars, gapping the body panels to perfection and smoothing the old Ford from grille to tailgate. Creating custom tailgate hinges and custom-capping and extending the rocker panels are just a few of the tricks Michael did to chisel this classic Ford’s envelope into shape. Following the trick metal work, detailed bodywork and extended block-sanding session, Michael mixed up custom blue paint and laid down a true show finish topped with a custom cream stripe to accent the distinctive factory unibody lines. Variegated gold leaf breaks up the stripe nicely, adding extra dimension to the graphics. Following the paint, graphics and clearcoat, the truck was color-sanded, polished and reassembled with fresh chrome trimmings and glass.

IT JUST GOES TO SHOW WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH THE RIGHT VISION,SUPPORT AND PEOPLE IN PLACE TO MAKE A DREAM COME TRUE”

On the inside, Lizard Skin sound deadening material was sprayed inside and underneath the cab by Michael and Adam to keep good noises in and bad noises out, and enhance the cruising experience. A Kwik Wire wiring harness replaces what Ford installed more than 50 years ago and ensures trouble-free performance for all of the truck’s power demands. New windshield, back glass and door seals from Precision Replacement Parts provide a tight seal to the cab during high- speed highway blasts. To monitor drivetrain behavior, Adam relies on Dakota Digital gauges with the OBDII interface for real-time reporting on the Blue Oval bullet’s behavioral patterns. Custom Audio components from Kicker provide cruising jams for low-rolling, rim-tucking road trips.

Completing this extra classy build is a clean and simple interior by Specialized Stitch Company in Champagne, Illinois. Ross Johns, Nate Quinlin and Bill Byrd stuffed the cab with style, sewing brown leather and suede over the factory bench seat, custom headliner, kick panels and rear audio enclosure panel behind the seat. Mercedes wool loop carpet was tacked to the floorboards. The brown leather and suede and custom panel work are the perfect complements to the painted dash and steel door panels, which are further accented by a Con2R steering wheel, Dakota Digital VHX gauges and Vintage Air climate control vents and knobs.

Adam Cox has created a unique and jaw-dropping custom Ford using top quality parts, and he put the talents of some great automotive craftsman to work to get it done. It just goes to show what you can do with the right vision, support and people in place to make a dream come true.

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TRUCK SPECS

OWNERS

Adam & Liz Cox
1962 Ford Unibody
Cedar, IA
Severed Ties

ENGINE

• Work performed by owner and Von Chounlamany of Laodies Kustomz
• 4.6L Police Interceptor mod motor with automatic transmission
• Wrapped 3-inch cold air intake
• Custom headers
• Flowmaster 40 series mufflers with 2.5-inch exhaust
• Narrowed 9-inch Ford rearend
• Custom engine and transmission mounts
• Tanks, custom rear frame- mounted fuel tank
• Kwik Wire wiring harness

CHASSIS & SUSPENSION

• Work performed by owner and Von Chounlamany of Laodies Kustomz
• 1976 Camaro front clip
• Custom tubular control arms
• CPP dropped spindles
• CPP disc brake kit with booster/master cylinder
• Custom rear back-half frame
• Wishbone 3-link rear suspension
• Firestone 2,600-pound airbags front
• Firestone 2,500-pound airbags rear

WHEELS & TIRES

• 22×8.5 and 22×12-inch rear Intro Flow
• 235/30ZR22 front and 315/25ZR22 rear Lionhart tires

BODY & PAINT

• Shop: Michael Lee of Mykals Custom Auto & Paint
• Body-drop
• Smoothed hood and cowl panel
• Shaved emblems
• Custom tailgate hinges
• Raised bed floor
• Extended and capped rocker panels
• Rebuilt factory cab steps and cab floor
• S-10 ribbed panel bed floor/custom sheet metal work
• Custom wheel tubs
• House of Kolor custom-mixed blue paint
• Cream and variegated gold leaf custom stripes
• Chrome grille and bumper
• Fresh Seals by Precision Replacement Parts

INTERIOR & STEREO:

• Brown leather and suede by Specialized Stitch Company
• Mercedes loop carpet
• 4×4 transmission tunnel
• Custom speaker/amplifier enclosure
• Custom kick panels
• Dakota Digital VHX series gauges
• Vintage Air Gen 3 climate control system
• Con2R steering wheel
• Kicker PXIBT50.2 head unit
• Kicker component speakers
• Kicker amplifiers
• Kicker 10-inch subwoofer
• Lizard Skin sound-deadening material

SPECIAL THANKS FROM THE OWNER: “The Lord above for giving me the opportunity to live out my dreams; the build team who continually went the distance throughout the project; my mom and dad for everything they have done to support me over the years; my wife, Liz, for allowing me to be away from home to work on cars/trucks and supporting me through the process; and Von Chounlamany for teaching me everything I know and being a mentor and brother for all of these years. I wouldn’t be anywhere without him. Also thanks to Michael Lee for the paint and bodywork and for a great new friendship; Ross Johns for his talents on the interior; Jason Chounlamany for everything he has done and continues to do to help me over the years; Mark Zarate for all of his help along the way; Nate Quinlin and Bill Byrd for their help on the interior; Chris Lund for tuning the engine; all of my sponsors for helping me out with the most amazing products the industry has to offer: Vintage Air, CPP, Flowmaster, Con2R, Intro Wheels, Tanks, Inc., Precision Replacement Parts, Lizard Skin, Kwik Wire, Kicker Audio and Dakota Digital. Special thanks to Street Trucks magazine for recognizing, photographing and featuring my truck. Everyone else who has helped me along the way, thanks for everything and God bless you all!”

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