The 2019 Winfield winner Steve Mendenhall received the
beautiful trophy and a $10,000 check from Meguiar’s.
The 2019 Winfield Select Six
Steve Mendenhall of Wadsworth, OH
1968 Chevy Camaro
Steve Mendenhall’s 1968 Camaro is the ninth first generation Camaro he’s owned, and it’s a car that represents a different approach than he’s taken with other cars.
“This car is way farther than I’ve ever gone with a car before, but I took it from start to finish in eight months,” Steve said.
“I wanted to do something different that hasn’t been done before,” he added. And even though there are thousands of Camaros throughout the country that have been modified, customized, and restored.
Steve said the body modifications to the car include a three-inch chop, a three-inch section, and the roof was lengthened. Additionally, the car was channeled to lower its stance, plus it’s on air ride.
The engine is a Chevy LS, but it too was modified with Trick Flow 235 heads, a Callies crank and rods, and dual quad fast fuel injection, all working with a custom cam.
On the inside Steve said he wanted something as special as the exterior, so there’s a hand made aluminum dashboard, custom floor and wheel tubs, and custom seats and roll cage.
Additionally, he installed Auto Meter gauges, Vintage Air, and Boze Alloy wheels. The Camaro was finished off with BASF R&M brands Carrizzma Candy Blue mixed over several different base coats that give the paint unique shading.
Steve gives Bruce Harvey, owner of Pro Comp Customs, all the credit for the paint work, saying “he’s a genius when it comes to painting.”
Chad Martin of Saluda, SC
1937 Chevy One Off Custom Dually
We’re pretty sure not many people have ever seen a pickup like Chad Martin’s ’37 Chevy dually.
It’s Chad’s first build from the ground up, although he’s done many high-end restorations, a lot of custom paint work and air brushing for customers at his own shop, Chad’s Custom Dreams.
When you look at this highly modified truck, which is 20 feet long, visitors will probably wonder what kind of truck it was? Well, it wasn’t a truck; it was a 1937 Chevy sedan.
Chad has had this truck in his mind since 1999, when he put pencil to paper and drew what his dream truck would look like. “I drew it not knowing that one day I would build it,” he said.
Chad’s reasoning for this truck is that builders, and owners of shops such as his that do custom work for clients, “have to do something extravagant to get noticed.”
So that’s exactly what he did, he built something that gets noticed everywhere it goes. “I thought, nobody has ever built anything like this, so I’ll do this truck.”
The build took Chad two years, a long time, but a relatively short time for such a big project. Most of the time it was Chad and one of his employees working on the truck. “I worked on it every day, I had to or else it wouldn’t have been finished,” he said.
As it turns out, very few parts of the old Chevy sedan were used on the truck. Most of the work was done by hand, such as the roof and bed. The front fenders are from a 1940 International, but they had to be extended one foot, and the rear fenders are from an old Diamond T.
The inner fenders are all custom, well, the entire vehicle is all custom. The engine is a Cummins 24-valve 5.9-liter diesel, and the transmission is a Dodge NV4500 five-speed.
The engine has a back story, too. The engine was in a truck owned by Chad’s uncle; the truck was stolen but the thief didn’t get very far because he crashed into another car. “My uncle bought the truck back from the insurance company and I bought it from him to get the engine,” he said.
Paul & Cheryl Jurewicz of Shelby Township, MI
1957 Studebaker Golden Hawk
You’d be hard pressed to look at this car presented by Paul and Cheryl Jurewicz, and identify it as a Studebaker.
This one-of-a-kind creation is a bit of an alphabet car, meaning it utilizes fenders and doors from a 1960 Pontiac; a hood from a 1959 Thunderbird; firewall and cowl from a 1957 Studebaker; door frames from a 1957 Studebaker; the rear section of a 1963 Corvair, and the sunroof from a 1989 Audi Quattro, which is the car’s trunk lid; 1966 Corvette front suspension, the rear suspension from a 1986 Jaguar, and Harley-Davidson headlights.
On the inside the alphabet approach continues, with parts from Studebaker, Chrysler, Corvette, Harley-Davidson, Mustang, and an Oldsmobile Toronado.
Paul said he was inspired by Bill Cushenberry’s Car Craft Dream Rod built in 1963, one of the first original Hot Wheels cars. In fact, he was so inspired that he actually bought the Dream Rod.
Paul said he and a friend were driving one day when they spotted the Dream Rod, apparently abandoned. “I knew immediately what it was, so I bought it, but then realized restoring it was beyond my abilities at the time. So, he sold it to a man who did restore it. Paul said he always regretted letting it go.
So what was the next best thing? You guessed it; building a similar car.
When Paul finally decided to build this car, he knew he was going to keep it forever, especially since it took him 15 years to complete this one-of-a-kind.
The engine is a 4.6-liter V-8 from a Lincoln and the transmission is a Ford C4 automatic. And, by the way, Paul painted it himself, House of Kolor Sunrise Pearl.
Tommy DeFranzo of Windsor, CT
1969 Hot Wheel Twin Mill
This year we’re honored to have not one, but two cars inspired by Hot Wheels models. This car, owned by Tommy DeFranzo, of Windsor, CT., is a full-size exact replica of Hot Wheels’ Twin Mill car.
Tommy has an extensive collection of Hot Wheels cars, and several years ago, when his son, Andrew, was eight, Andrew opened without permission a box that contained the Twin Mill car. Four years later, Tommy told Andrew that they could build a full size Twin Mill car.
They started with a 1968 Corvette that was a donor for chassis parts and other bits. But the Twin Mill is an all-metal car with sheet metal shaped with an English Wheel and Body Dolly.
“I bought an English Wheel and learned how to use it, and we went from there,” he said.
So, 6000 hours and four-and-a-half years later, the Twin Mill car emerged, finished in PPG’s Tommy’s Purple Passion with Ruby Slipper and Super Flake. A man named Scott King, did the paint work, graphics and striping. The car’s interior is white leather with diamond stitching, and Cheetah inserts.
But that’s only part of the story; remember this car is called the Twin Mill and there’s good reason for that. It’s powered by two, 1000-horsepower, Chevy experimental engines. Big Al’s Toybox, in Gaylordsville, CT., did engine modifications. The transmission is a Chevrolet Turbo 400.
We don’t know how well the car will do among the Winfield Select Six, but it’s going to become a TV star soon. Tommy said he’s working on a television series called The Hottest Wheels. And you guessed it, the Twin Mill will star in the pilot.
Jacob Machowsky of Huntington Beach, CA
1940 Dodge Businessman
Jacob admitted up front that the Dodge he’s brought to the Syracuse Nationals, was well on its way to being completed when he bought it about one year ago.
“I have five cars (custom) right now and most of the time when I start to work on one of them, I try to get it finished as quickly as possible,” he said.
When he got the car it needed an interior and the chrome needed to be refinished. He said the engine, a 1954 Chrysler Corp., Hemi 331 V-8, was taken apart, powder coated, and refreshed.
The old school engine was modified with heads from a 1955 Hemi 354, a high-performance cam, a performance intake among other touches, including striped valve covers and air cleaner. The paint work was done by Scott Menges, and the striping was done by Kiera Brady.
The Dodge has a five inch chop and a 1941 Lincoln Zephyr grille. The front and rear fenders are molded and it has custom made front and rear skirts.
“One of the things I like about the Dodge is that it has an art deco look, inside and outside,” he said. For example, the dashboard, which also reflects the art deco era, was kept in place.
But, Jacob said his car isn’t a trailer queen, “I drive it to local cruise nights and I try to do a couple larger shows with it,” he added.
“When I got my first hot rod probably 10 years ago, I never thought I’d have a car of this caliber,” he said.
With a custom interior, a suede headliner, triple plated chrome, custom splash pans, custom brass taillights, and custom touches everywhere, Jacob said he feels like he’s arrived with this car.
Geno Walker of Dewey, OK
1955 Ford Pickup
How’s this for dragging out a custom build; Geno Walker, of Dewey, OK., took 20 years to build his 1955 Ford custom pickup.
The truth is, Geno said he spent maybe one full year of actual work, but he spread it out over two decades.
“When you build cars for everyone else, your own comes last,” he said.
Geno said he’s been building custom cars for 45 years, and when he builds cars, he does everything, including the upholstery.
This Ford was an idea he got from a cartoon, but cartoon or not, this truck represents serious work from top to bottom.
The truck’s body is chopped, channeled and sectioned, four inches for each, and all of the sheet metal was hand fabricated. The custom work includes the bed, tailgate, running boards and hood, which is pancaked. The dashboard is from a 1960 Chevy Impala, while the bumpers are from a 1955 Thunderbird. The taillights are from a 1961 Ford Galaxie.
But this Ford isn’t just show; it’s got a lot of go, too, thanks to a 1969 Pontiac Firebird high output 400 cubic inch V-8. But, get this, the engine is disguised as a 392 cubic inch Hemi V-8, thanks to custom valve covers, headers and air cleaner.
Geno said he handmade the interior, too. His handywork includes a custom console, modified seats from a Chevy Cavalier, a modified steering wheel, and a tilt and telescoping steering column from a Cadillac.
When all was said-and-done, the only piece on the truck that isn’t modified or custom made, is the stock 1955 windshield.
