The Car Addiction
The Beginning of My Car Experience
In 2021 Covid would create the perfect storm, with the lockdowns and inability to travel, I saw a posting online for an estate sale and a 1954 Belair sports coupe that was in need of restoration.
Now, I have always loved the old cars, the dressing styles and even the music of that era. So I thought to myself well here is your chance, if your ever going to own a car you need to build one for two main reasons. First, you have to earn it, you have to learn so you can maintain it, and if you build it it will be an adventure. Second, I couldn't possibly justify spending 50-80 thousand dollars for a car.
I’ve always been drawn to the charm and style of the 1950s. There’s something about that era—the cars, the clothes, the music—that’s always captured my imagination. So when I saw that Bel Air, it felt like more than just a car; it felt like an opportunity. I told myself, “If you’re ever going to own a classic car, this is it. And if you’re going to do it, build it yourself.”
There were two main reasons behind that decision. First, I wanted to earn it. I didn’t want to just own a piece of history—I wanted to understand it, to get my hands dirty, and to learn how it worked from the inside out. Restoring it would be an adventure, a challenge, and a way to truly connect with something I’ve always loved.
Second, let’s be honest—spending $50,000 to $80,000 on a fully restored classic car just wasn’t in the cards. Building it myself was not only more affordable, it was more meaningful.hat decision sparked a journey—one that’s been filled with learning, unexpected setbacks, and moments of pure joy.
However, there was a twist someone else bought the entire state before I could get to the car. That person turned out to be a close friend of my dad. He called me a couple days later and told me he had a car that I may want to buy. Sure enough, it was the very car, so uncle Joe, as I call him now, sold me the car.
He was the first to teach me about car stuff. He taught me how to rebuild the carburetor, installed new points, cap and she fired up. I always say, he got me started on this car craze world, it was his passion for cars that inspired me to build the best car I could. And to jump head first into car building world.
The rest as they say is history!
And through it all, that ’54 Bel Air has become more than just a car. It’s a symbol of passion, persistence, and the belief that even in the toughest times, new adventures can still begin.
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