An El Camino that was a little ahead of its time, Gene James' 1957 Chevy Bel Air was converted from a 4-door station wagon to a head-turning light hauler.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Gene James displays a diecast model of a "phantom" 1957 Chevy El Camino given to him as a Christmas gift by his kids.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The trademark '57 Bel Air fender trim needed only cleaning up to look factory-fresh.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
A thin green pinstripe divides the bright silver upper section of the Suburban from the jet black lower panels. Note the dual frenched-in antennas in the rear fender.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
One upgrade James did make on his unusual pickup was the installation of an aluminum diamond-plate bed floor, artfully trimmed to fit the contours of the cargo area.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The classic styling of the '57 Chevy front end required no improvements, so James kept everything basically stock, including the grille and gold-toned hood emblem.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
James has a soft spot for vintage Cragar 5-spoke wheels -- most of the cars he's owned have been equipped with them. The ones on his '57 "El Camino" are shod with BFG raised white-letter radial tires.
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The downsized cab of the phantom pickup make for a snug fit for the leather-covered aftermarket seats and center console.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The original dashboard was kept entirely stock, although James opted for a 15-inch replica steering wheel to allow easier entry into the shortened cab.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Another minor modification was the addition of a B&M floor shifter that controls the Powerglide automatic transmission.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
After the roof of the station wagon was cut down to size, the rear of a regular truck cab was grafted to the body, creating the unusual profile of the '57 light-duty hauler.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The door panels are trimmed out in soft leather to match the seats, originally designed for full-sized Ford pickups. A leather headliner was also custom designed for the one-of-a-kind cab.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The all-important cargo area was created using the station wagon's fenders, lower half of its tailgate and the bed floor from an S-10 pickup.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
James wanted to keep things under the hood as original as possible, so he chose to simply rebuild the 327 Chevy V-8 that was in the vehicle when he bought it.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The rear bumper was smooth enough that it only required a trip to the chrome plater to look like new. The tailgate looks like a factory piece.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
James' taste in custom cars runs toward unusual Chevys and this '71 Suburban is proof of that. Gary Hodges of Hodges Body Shop in Lyons built this stunning silver-over-black truck and sold it to one of James' friends. James later talked his buddy out of the Suburban, which runs a supercharged 350 crate motor.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
A small finishing touch was the addition of much-later model El Camino badging to the rear fenders. The emblems lead to some interesting debates among car guys about whether or not such a vehicle was actually built in 1957.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The Weiand blower, dual 4-barrel carbs and hood scoop need breathing room and the skillfully crafted cutout in the Suburban's hood provides it.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
The big Suburban rolls on oversized Eagle alloy 5-spoke rims and features blacked-out bumpers and grille.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
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