July 2010 Hometown Hot Rodding

'64 Fury
Ex-Four-Door
For those who have the misconception that all of California is densely populated and riddled with the drama of soap-opera stars, Willows, California, is a great representation of what the majority of California is like. It's a town in Northern California with a population of 6,300 with neighboring towns miles and miles away. With Thunder Hill Raceway Park just down the road, muscle cars are at home in this small town.

Alan Rutter, collector and seller of Mopars and their parts, has had a lot of Mopar projects over the years. On his to-do list was a Fury, but the nose-heavy 116-inch wheelbase two-doors didn't appeal when the four-doors could be bought for so much less. He was planning on cutting it to pieces no matter what, so why not start with a cheaper base? A couple of saw blades after the car came home, it was in two pieces. Customers who came by his shop were shocked to see the cut up car in the back. "There is nothing that a Sawzall, welder, body panel adhesive, and Bondo can't fix!" Alan says.

He wanted to build a car that was radical, but stock-looking at the same time. Most people who see it don't even notice that there has been something done to it. He has even fooled some die-hard Mopar fans. He enjoys watching people try to figure it out. Though he wants it to look good, he doesn't think of it as a show car. Alan calls it a "street freak" instead. It never sits on a trailer and gets driven a lot, and that's how it should be.