He used a solvent-based PPG paint with a 1957 Chevy turquoise color; it’s the same color in his staff’s uniforms, on the shop’s sign, and on just about every piece of branding for the company.
Piecing the car together once painted meant using a lot of aftermarket pieces. Surprisingly, it only took just three months and $22,000 to finish the work.
Fortier admits that not a lot of what they put in is special. He calls the engine a “baby motor,” a brand-new Chevrolet 350ci crate engine that makes 290 horsepower. He did put chrome and polished aluminum on it, but says it’s really just a stock engine.
What he was really inclined to do was maintain the look of the car, as that was the point of buying it. To do that he installed a complete drum brake system.
“That’s what it was built with many years ago,” says Fortier.
He felt that being able to look through the wheel to see the drum made it more period correct.
The looks do the job they’re meant to do. The car is taken to business expos and the local mall for thousands of people to see it.
“It’s worked for us for five years,” says Fortier. “When we decided to brand ourselves six or seven years ago, we went full-on with these colors. We had black and turquoise before it was cool.”
The color scheme has worked.
“The area I live in in Oregon, I drive around and everyone knows who I am and where it’s from,” Fortier says.
