Challenger Superbird is Road Runner Fast

By Darrell Nicol

I am an old school Iowa farm boy. I have had some schooling in commercial art, auto body repair, and electronics in the Air Force. In 1988 i got out of the Air Force, purchased a body shop and have been doing that ever since. I have done restorations, rods, Corvettes, but mostly collision work.

I first found out about Cool Rides Online when I saw a little ad off to the side on Facebook and sent in some pictures of my car.

Right now, my Cool Rides are this Challeger Superbird, a 2012 Camaro I put a zta trans am kit on, and a 1952 Willys pickup I am putting on a 1989 Chevy 4×4 drive train. It is going to be Wile E. Coyotes truck with Acme sales and service on it to show with the road runner.

I also just got a 1972 Buick Riviera I am kind of rat rodding for now: painting it satin black. I guess my favorite Cool Ride is the Superbird just because it is so different: purple, wing, air ride, supercharged, etc.  I’m not sure what would be my next ride—I need to finish what I’ve already got. Plus, I just got the rivi last week.

I think my best memories with the Superbird are when people at car shows just go nuts over my car. Putting a 1990 trans am drive train in an old s-10 pickup was the most difficult modification I’ve made due to the wiring mess, body, paint, and mechanical.

I am not sure I would be able to narrow my dream car down to one as it is ever-changing.  I would like to do the Riviera as a gasser— up in the air, tubbed, and with a blower sticking through the hood.  However, I would also like an old Plymouth truck or just one more car.

My tip for taking care of Cool Ride is to get them out and drive them at least once per year. If they are just going to sit then sell them to someone else. Storage is always an issue if you are on a budget but luckily I have a building which I rent out and there is space left for my cars.

I am just a guy trying to help people with their cars in a little town in Iowa. The collision business is getting hard as insurance companies want to send all work to big shops. So, I might have to start doing some resto work to stay in business. Thanks for liking my car and sharing my story. God bless America.