Gary Cooper has owned at least 23 street rods, but his favorites have always been '34 Ford coupes. He has owned this Emerald Green 5-window for five years and says it's the one car that will never be put up for sale. It was originally built in California for a music industry CEO.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
A Chevy 350 V-8, bored out to 406 cubic inches, cranks out a dyno-tested 410 horsepower worth of motivation. A Comp Cams camshaft, Holley carb and Sanderson headers help make that happen.
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Interior accommodations include a Glide bench/bucket seat setup covered in light gray tweed material, with matching upholstery done in vertical pleats wrapping the cab.
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The all-steel body on the car has original sheet metal, with the top left unchopped. Mercedes cloth covers the roof insert for added character.
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Mike Berry / The Wichita Eagle
Most of Cooper's cars were built inside his old-school welding shop, a former grocery warehouse now filled with car parts.
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Polished chrome and stainless steel accent the underside of the green coupe. This view shows the 3-1/2-inch exhaust extensions tucked up under the custom fabricated gas tank.
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The wire wheels that were on the coupe when Cooper bought it were quickly removed and replaced by a set of American Racing Torq Thrust II wheels. The fronts are equipped with BFG 205/R70/15 blackwalls, while the rears mount fatter, wider tires.
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The other car currently in the Cooper stable is this bright orange '28 Ford Tudor, currently being refitted with a '32 Ford grille shell. It does daily driver duty in and around McPherson, where Gary and Marilyn Cooper live.
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Running a 5-inch dropped Super Bell front axle, the 5-window coupe presents a perfect profile, with its distinctive grille shell leading the way.
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Not a reproduction greyhound, but a replated original in full stride, graces the nose of the beautiful hood on the '34.
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Gary Cooper is semi-retired, but still does welding for both farmers and car buddies in his old-fashioned shop.
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A pair of highly polished stainless steel Magnaflow mufflers are mated to 2-1/2 inch pipes, producing a nice rumble out of the oversized exhaust outlets.
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Tucked tightly into the flowing contours of the rear fenders is a set of BFG 255/R70/15 tires, mounted on 8-inch wide American Racing Torq Thrust II wheels.
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The tweed upholstery theme carries over all the way to the headliner, which includes an accent panel to match the inside of the suicide-style doors.
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An ididit tilt steering column equipped with a column-mounted shifter helps preserve floor space in the coupe's tight confines. A leather-wrapped LeCarra steering wheel completes the package.
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Standard coupes of the day came with only one tail light, but this car is equipped with an extra one, adding not only symmetry to the rear of the car, but safety as well.
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Another view of the power plant illustrates how neatly all of the plumbing and fittings have been run inside the snug engine bay. Cooper's coupe is equipped with Vintage Air air conditioning and MSD ignition.
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The original front and rear bumpers were used in the restoration of the coupe, with both being smoothed and replated before being installed on chromed frame horns. The coupe is a rumble seat car, but the rear compartment is usually stuffed with car show equipment or luggage for road trips.
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