By Brian Brennan – Photography By Tommy Koppinger
If you listen to Dave Hooker from Arizona, you read the benefit of two stories in one: first, a compelling human-interest story, and second, the fulfillment of a long-held dream—his 1929 Ford highboy roadster. Dave starts by telling us how it all began.
“It all started in the early 2000s when my wife and I had been longtime attendees at the Goodguys car shows in Washington, making our yearly trips to the Goodguys West Coast Nationals and Pleasanton, California. After returning home one year, we decided we wanted to be part of the sport.
“It all started with a feature article in Street Rodder magazine in February 2006. That was the car—what I was determined to build. My goal was to make it even better.” (FYI: Having some history with Street Rodder magazine, I’m very familiar with the highboy roadster that appeared on the Feb. ’06 cover!)
Dave tells us that he ordered the body and chassis package from Brookville Roadster and picked up the parts for the upcoming project on his annual trip to the show in Pleasanton. As is often the case, there is generally a flood of rounded-up parts and pieces that begin to come in during the early days of “the” build start. Dave went on to tell us life wasn’t finished throwing curveballs at him. Job layoffs and his wife’s long battle with cancer forced them to take a long break from working on the car—it could wait. Unfortunately, Dave’s wife, Renee, lost her battle with cancer, but it was believed that he would finish the roadster in time and enjoy their project for her.
It was back in 2020 that Dave began in earnest, and this time the roadster reached completion. What proved to be a catalyst was striking up a friendship with Dean Livermore of Hot Rods by Dean, as he would take what Dave had rounded up and, with a little massaging here and there, build the roadster he and Renee had wanted for so long. Luckily, I was able to watch the highboy come together from those early days, and I would snap some construction photos now and then during my visits to Dean’s shop as I spend a lot of time there following various hot rod builds.
The engine is a vintage 1968 Ford 289 with JE pistons featuring a 0.030-inch overbore, mounted to H-beam rods, and equipped with a K-Code (HiPo 289) steel crank, now producing 325 hp. Internal components include a Comp Cams roller cam and lifters along with Crane Gold Race rocker arms. It features an Edelbrock intake, a four-barrel carburetor, Edelbrock Performer heads, and a PerTronix ignition. The exhaust system, based on Sanderson’s FF5 header set, was fabricated at Hot Rods by Dean and features Teflon-bushed exhaust mounts. Engine accessories include polished and painted Battle Born finned valve covers, custom headers, and a pair of Flowmaster HP2 mufflers. The cooling system consists of a Johnson’s Radiator Works copper and brass radiator and a Vintiques overall canister. The transmission is a Ford C4 equipped with a Gennie shifter hooked via a TAD driveshaft to the quick-change.
The frame is a replica of a 1932 Ford built by Brookville Roadster, along with the body. It features Vega-style steering, a chrome Magnum 4-inch dropped-and-drilled I-beam axle along with tube shocks. The rear suspension has a Winters quick-change setup with a four-bar design and Bilstein coilover shocks. It comes equipped with a limited-slip differential, 3.50 gears, and Dutchman axles. The front brakes have a Wilwood disc system with Dynalite calipers, while the rear brakes are drums all pressed into service through a Wilwood master cylinder. A closer look reveals a Moon tank (though its presence is symbolic), with custom mounts attached to the front framehorns in tribute to early lakes and drag racing hot rods. Referring to gasoline, a Tanks stainless steel tank is located in the trunk along with a Hot Rods by Dean external racing cap, providing access to 16 gallons of fuel. The front features a chrome spreader bar while the back has a custom Nerf bar, another Hot Rods by Dean fabricated item. Regarding the brightwork throughout, it is courtesy of Dan’s Polishing & Chrome.
The wheels are from Real Rodder (one-piece cast, just like the originals). The Sprint model wheels measure 15 by 5 inches in the front and 16 by 10 inches in the back. The tires are supplied by Firestone/Coker, with 145R-15 fronts and Coker/BFGoodrich rear tires sized P285/60R16.
The body is a 1929 Model A roadster recreation by Brookville Roadster. The custom color is based on PPG Toyota blue, which features an additional tint added by Hot Rods by Dean; they also handled the bodywork and applied the paint. The headlights, mounted to Hot Rods by Dean fabricated stands, are Deitz, and the taillights are replicas of the hot rod favorite 1950 Pontiacs. The interior features a 1932-style dashboard with a finned insert from Speedway Motors, one of the last from Gary’s Rods and Restorations, designed to hold a set of Classic Instruments and a column-mounted tachometer—a “knee-knocker” special. The steering column is from Flaming River, topped with an Eddie Motorsports wheel. The bench seat was custom-built and then upholstered by Daniel Hurtado and his crew at Bell Auto Upholstery in a light cream-colored leather. Other interior appointments include a Vintage Air Streamline Heater and Lokar pedals. Something we haven’t mentioned, but Dave is a “big boy” at 6 feet 2 inches. (Why is it, the big guys like the “little” roadsters!) Given that Dave is a tall individual, it was decided that the windshield would be kept at its stock height (approximately 14-5/8 inches). Normally, we would see the windshield cut down roughly 3 inches, but not in this case.
The car made its debut at this year’s Grand National Roadster Show and appeared in the Hot Rods by Dean booth. It was well received, and Dave has had the opportunity to drive the hot rod to several events, enjoying his lifelong dream and honoring the memory of his wife. A great hot rod story for sure. MR
Check out this story in our digital edition here.
