Ortonville – What began as a pile of junk to some, ended up as a cherry red hotrod classic.
Just to see if he could do the job, Glenn Westfall of Ortonville bought a trailer full of 1931 Model A body parts and turned it into a cherry red, classic street rod.
‘I’ve always wanted to try to do it and I did the whole thing myself,? said Westfall.
On the frame of a California street rod, it took him two years to put the puzzle of parts back together, sanding, polishing, brushing, oiling, and fine tuning the antique cruiser, piece by piece.
Next, Westfall found the red 1972 Corvette his wife Kathy had always wanted and bought it to her for as a birthday gift.
‘He found it in a trader magazine and it happened to be the color I wanted,? said Kathy. ‘The body was well taken care of so it didn’t need any refinishing, but it needed mechanical work.?
Westfall rose to the challenge of his new found hobby and refurbished the mechanics of the car.
‘If you own a cruiser, you have to like to tinker,? he joked.
Soon, Westfall and his wife were both winning awards for their classic red beauties.
Hooked on classic car fever Westfall developed an eye for scouring car part auctions, swap meets, trader magazines, and yard sales.
In July 2000, just before his retirement from 38 years as a pipe fitter for General Motors, Westfall stopped at a garage sale on his way home from a hair cut. Tucked away in a barn was the scattered remains of a red 1959 rag top, Chevy Corvette coupe.
‘The owner had spent six years disassembling it and putting it back together,? said Westfall. ‘He no longer had time to restore the car so he asked me if I knew anyone who would be interested in buying the car. ?
‘If you spend more than two years on a car it gets to be a hassle.?
Westfall didn’t hesitate to pack up the precious parts and tote the package home.
‘People think it’s going to be a six month project and it turns into years.?
For more than two years Westfall, with occasional help from his son David, restored the body of the American classic detail by detail.
Having successfully painted the ?31 Model A, Westfall began sanding, stripping, and filling his new treasure.
‘When you redo a car you basically put it together and take it apart about ten times,? said Westfall.
With occasional help from his son David, detail by detail, wire by wire, Westfall completed the restoration of the American classic started by his garage sale merchant.
‘We had basically everything with the car to put it together.?
‘There are a lot of little details like interchanging or fitting doors and panels?? you just have to find out all those things as you go along.?
After two years of restoring the Vette, Westfall wanted perfection right down to the last sparkle in the six layer lacquered paint job so he hired a professional for the icing on the cake. Painted six lacquered layers of the original Mille Megla Red, Glenn Westfall has won several stock show awards for originality.
‘If it’s not red we won’t own it,? teased Westfall.
Westfall said his 283/230 horse powered Vette is unique because 1959 was the first year Chevy included power windows in the car and his is one of the 587 that had them.
The four-speed transmission was also optional along with the Wonderbar radio, heater, windshield wipers, and visors. The Westfall’s ?59 has all the original options with a retail price tag of $3,875 in 1958.
‘This car was meant to be.
‘He found it at garage sale right up the street, it’s my favorite color and was built the same year we were married,? said Kathy .