a offroad hudson

one cool filler neck idea ...

filler neck

the big beauty ...

damn, the original bed high is over 62", looks like my 6" lifted dodge truck.

original look

towing the parts to street classic

the plan was to deliver all needed parts for step 1 (build off the frame with new camaro front & rear axle, engine and transmission) to the customer street classic at the beginning of december.

damn, yesterday i got one mail from street classic that they don`t have time at december. street classic want to expand and they need a little bit more time - so now i have to deliver all parts at the end of january 2008.

next week i want to install the bed and the rest on the old frame ....

IN PD - FREEZE !!!

what a funny and cool night - this week i saw a 94 chevrolet impala classic police car from indianaplis at a local used car dealer. no sooner said than done, i rented the chevy for the cruizaders hang out at friday night.

Chevrolet Police Car

used new wheels ...

normally i wanted to buy brand new wheels but i got one cool chance and i had to knock down. a business colleague had two brandnew wheels (245/45R18) with a nail in each and i got them for free. so now i only need two more used wheels in the size 275 /40R20 to build off the truck on the new rims.

now i have time to save some euros to buy a brand new set of yokohama advan st in the size 245/45R18 and 275/40R20!

the postman always rings twice

and provided me my new wheels, fresh from california...

California Smoothie

customs from the old country

incredible, my project in the custom classic truck magazine (issue 09/2007):



Think that only Americans dig old custom classic trucks? Think again. Christian Kuhner, clear over in Germany, is right smack dab in the middle of building a way cool Hudson hauler. Check out just some of the stuff Christian is doing to the Hudson: "Many years ago I became a member of the custom car club www.cruizaders.com with my Dodge Ram pickup, and the dream to own a vintage truck came back. What kind of truck was easy - the truck must be a Hudson pickup, just like my dad had. After buying the exact truck my dad sold years ago, the journey began. I wanted design sketches like the big prototype designs of famous custom cars. After a few e-mails with some custom studios, Brian from Problem Child Kustoms wrote back, and the deal with Problem Child Kustoms was done. After two months of working and thinking, I recieved the final sketch from Brian. When the rendering was finished, I printed an A0 Poster of the truck and hung it in my office. That way I look at it everyday and it gives me a goal to work for.

"After a lot of phoning around, looking for someone to build my frame, I got in touch with Customer Street Classics from the Black Forest. With a lot of e-mails, meetings, and phone calls later, it was clear - the front must be a 1978 Camaro front clip with disc brakes, the rearend must be a 9-inch Ford. I also decided on Centerline California wheels in smoothie style, sizes 18- and 20- inch. The engine is a GM 350 with 300hp, and a three gear automatic transmission with overdrive is also in plan, as well as a 78 Camaro adjustable steering column. The exterior of the project will feature a `48 Cadillac grille for the front, Hudson sedan trim, and the cool color from the new Lamborghini Gallardo called Ballon White. The second color is red apple candy metal flake. My plan is to have the project finished for my 30th birtday 8.12.2010

12. September 2007 - Custom Classic Trucks

nice wheels

one of the longest journey - finding some vintage style wheels. a few weeks later i found some gorgeous wheels on the internet - centerline california smoothie in 8x18" and 8,5x20"

visit the custom shop to get an offer...

Street Classics

my Girl 2

i found one lady dummy - now my 50ies lady guards the truck

the 50ies Lady

kill the camaro ...

i bought one 78 camaro z28 this summer in the switzerland to spend some parts for the project - the pickup gets the camaro engine & transmission, complete frontclip incl. discbrakes, the rearaxle, ...

the body incl. the 4 alu wheels, interiour,... is currently 4sale

kill the camaro

one wrecked caddy grille

i bought a wrecked cadillac grille from ebay.com - wow it`s not in a good condition

Cadillac Grille

build off the original suspension

to get all the original frame measurements i had to build off the original suspension

the original suspension

powder coating some small parts

powder coating

this frame never bend again ...

a fully boxed hudson frame ;-) towed with our oldest- and pick up`d with our biggest towing truck - thanks to Sabine & Domi

a frame build to resist

the old leaf springs ...

ca. 200 euros and 2 months later .... - perfect work !!!

the old leaf springs

pimp da garage 23. September 2006

special thanks to ikea for the low priced rack`s ;-)

the custom garage

dismantle @ the previous owner - September 2002

the only existing pictures ...

dismantle @ the previous owner

taking the truck home - September 2006

special thanks to my buddies Louy & Andi

taking the truck "home"

creating a hudson custom by brian @ problem child kustoms studio

creating a hudson custom

the story by brian @ problemchildkustomsstudios:
I'm always psyched when someone refers me to another builder, and this project went above and beyond that. I had received an email from Christian, all the way from the Black Forest in Germany... very cool. He proceeded to tell me a bit about his project, a 1947 Hudson pickup that was getting underway, and was seeking to commission a rendering and some design ideas. Even better, Christian had some killer ideas right out of the gate that would make this rendering a blast. I then asked how he had stumbled across my work, and my day was made with his answer... "Herb Martinez," came the reply...Wow... a legendary pinstriper and hero of mine liked my work enough to send a client? Awesome.

In any event, Christian and I began throwing ideas around, and I whipped up a rendering worthy of his cool project. What we have going on is a lot of slick little stuff that will make the truck unique, aggressive, and undeniably custom in nature, while still paying homage to the classic design. We decided that some mild de-chroming on the front fenders was in order, as well as swapping out the truck hood spear for a unit lifted from a sedan. Moving along, we removed the center hood trim, and lightly peaked the hood to blend the lines into the split windscreen, keeping the original flavor, and tying in the remaining brightwork.

Ideas were passed along to perhaps pancake the hood slightly, but after dropping in the Cadillac grille, the decision was made to keep the stock hood line, and clean up the front by frenching the headlamps, giving the light area an almost late-1940's Ford look along the fender. This really gave the truck a unique look, and, while customized, it is recognizable as a Hudson, which was the goal from day one.

Moving along, we tightened up some seams, and lightly bowed the rear fenders for an understated aggressive look. A light shave out back and along the doors, and tunnelled Caddy lights out back were next on the bill. A rolled pan, and cleaned-up tailgate (but retaining the Hudson lettering call-out) were in order, provididng a clean surrounding area when viewing the all-new wooden bed floor.

Paint was set to be red and white from day one, and we simply worked with the body lines to create a nice two-tone that emphasized the hood line, and played up the hood sidee trim to maximum effect, while the color-matched smoothie wheels are timeless, and work to help bring the red from the top into the lower region for balance.

Interior renderings will be next, with some more sneaky tricks to emphasize the classy nature of the truck, and blend some more new and old tricks. Stay tuned as it all comes together...

getting our old truck back

The Story: My Dad bought the truck from a friend who settled out to South Africa in year 1992. After 1-2 years, my dad sold the truck to a paintshop near our office. The new owner want to restore the truck (a frame off restoration).

He starts working to rebuild the truck, welding some parts, painted the frame, and then he stopped working on the truck. He stocked all the parts into a container for the next 5 years.

Last summer (2006) I startet my journey - buying the truck back.

the old 178 Hudson Truck