'57 Chevy Nomad Bel Air
HOA Escape
Steve Ingram had racing in his blood. From early on he was rebuilding cars, his first being a '61 Corvette back in 1970. Since then he has tinkered with cars off and on but had to put it all on a long-term hold when his kids were born.
Once they were out of the house, Steve was ready to get back to it. Unfortunately, the upscale Santa Clarita, California, neighborhood they lived in at the time had strict HOA rules and the regular noise of building a car would not be tolerated. His wife agreed to move out of their home and into a place where there was no association to tell him not to park in his own driveway. A friend of his was selling his home with a detached five-car garage that would be the perfect place for Steve to start a buildup.
Growing up in the San Fernando Valley of Southern California, Steve gravitated to the Tri-Five Chevys, and chose a rough '57 Nomad to build. This was nine years ago, so fitting this car with an LS-series small-block was not as common as it is today. Steve contacted Paul Newman, owner and founder of Car Creations, to build him a custom chassis to set the Nomad body on. One ride in Newman's LS powered '57 210 won Steve over. Once the chassis arrived, he crammed it with as many Corvette parts as he could, giving it the reliability and performance of a late-model car. We're talking A/C and heated seats-all of the creature comforts of the luxury market.
Steve did every bit of work he possibly could with exception of the doorskin installation and the frame building. He did the welding and bodywork, which was extensive because only about 10 percent of the car's original steel was up to his standards. Many of the panels as well as the roof needed to be repaired. Steve is only inches away from completing this high-comfort, high-performance Nomad.
| BY THE NUMBERS |
| 1957 CHEVY NOMAD BEL AIR |
| Steve Ingram, 63 • Stevenson Ranch, CA |
| ENGINE |
| Type: |
LS2 |
| Block: |
aluminum |
| Oiling: |
wet sump |
| Rotating assembly: |
factory |
| Cylinder heads: |
LS GM aluminum |
| Camshaft: |
factory LS2 |
| Induction: |
90mm throttle body |
| Ignition: |
GM coil packs |
| Cooling: |
Be Cool dual fan kit, A/C condenser |
| Fuel system: |
Rock Valley stainless tank, Corvette push-fit connectors |
| Exhaust: |
headers with 02 sensors, 2½-inch exhaust |
| with crossover, MagnaFlow mufflers |
| Fasteners: |
polished stainless |
| DRIVETRAIN |
| Transmission/shifter: |
T56 six-speed, McCleod shifter |
| Driveshaft: |
Danny's aluminum |
| Rear axle: |
Dana 44, 3.73 gears |
| CHASSIS |
| Front suspension: |
Paul Newman custom chassis, Bilstein shocks |
| Rear suspension: |
'96 Corvette special rate spring and Bilstein shocks |
| Brakes: |
EradiSpeed 13- and 12-inch rotors |
| BODY/PAINT |
| Body: |
replaced 90 percent of the body, filled in spare tire well for a 26-gallon gas tank |
| Paint: |
Matador red with ivory white top |
| WHEELS/TIRES |
| Wheels: |
17x8 and 18x9 Z06 replicas |
| Tires: |
265/40ZR17 and 295/35ZR18 Goodyear Eagles |