This is the last of our articles on building the BBT Fabrications 1959 Impala, which was featured in (and on the cover of) the Sept. ’24 issue. This time, we’ll focus on the extensive work done on the car’s front end.
Every panel on this project needed attention. Some damage to the front fender had been poorly repaired.
Like most cars on the road for 65 years, there was some rust damage poorly repaired in the past and a host of nicks and dings. Every square inch of the sheetmetal was gone over carefully, and any defects were either replaced with new metal or straightened to perfection.
All the metal compromised by the previous repair was cut away and replaced with fresh metal. The new patch is tack-welded into place here.
The hood’s fit was compromised on all sides, so the BBT crew decided the best way to make it perfect was to cut off all the damaged edges and replace them with angles formed from new 18-gauge sheetmetal. This is a labor-intensive process, but it will ensure the gaps are laser-straight and that the hood edges are full-thickness metal for enhanced durability.
With the upper portion of the patch welded and the metal finished, the lower portion was put into place. The lower edge is left “wild” and will be trimmed to size after the metal finishing.
The inner hood panel was serviceable, but the crew decided to remake it from new metal, adding styling touches that continued the character of the beautiful underhood metal fabrication we saw in the last article.
Here’s the front edge of the fender after the repair work has been completed.
The areas around the headlight bezels had been poorly repaired, so new metal was meticulously shaped to replace anything sketchy. While this area looks similar to the original sheetmetal, the fit and finish are much higher than those in stock.
The gap between the hood and fender was irregular, so the entire edge of the hood was removed and replaced with an angle bent from sheetmetal. This is the ideal way to make the gap uniform and to ensure the hood is structurally sound.
The original headlight bezels were trashed, so BBT CAD was designed, and CNC milled stout and accurate billet replacements.
The lower portion of the front fenders also had some poor repairs. These areas will be cut out and replaced with solid new metal.
A completely new front bumper was made. It has the same general profile as the original but is pared down to be more svelte. It is neatly tucked in and recessed, so it doesn’t protrude from the front end like the original bumper.
Here’s the patch piece after being shaped, smoothed, and tack welded into place. You can see just how flat the front edge of the fender is where the headlight bezel will attach.
A custom grille was CNC machined from billet as the finishing touch for the front end on this meticulously constructed car. The accompanying photos tell the story in much greater detail, and we’re sure you will enjoy seeing the attention to detail lavished on every part of this project.
After the patch piece was welded and the metal finished, a new section was added to the lower edge of the fender, ensuring that the area was perfectly level where it joined to the lower panel.
BBT Fabrications formed a new panel from fresh metal to fit just below the headlight.
Two pieces of metal were formed and joined to make the panel that fits behind and below the custom-made bumper.
Contoured side pieces were formed to round out the corners of this complex panel.
The front bumper was entirely handmade at BBT Fabrications. Here, the top piece of the highly contoured corner is being fitted to the center portion.
The corner of the bumper is finished here, ready to be tack welded to the center portion.
The bumper is recessed slightly into the body. Here, the complicated indentation is formed from many pieces of metal.
The inner portion of the hood will be completely scratch built. Here, some of the perimeter pieces are being fitted into place.
The center portion of the inner hood panel is shaped from a single piece of metal, with the detail work done on a Pullmax machine.
Here, the inner hood panel’s inner and outer portions are fitted together.
The inner hood panel looks factory-made after welding, smoothing, and metal finishing.
New headlight bezels were CAD-designed with Fusion 360. These will be much more uniform and durable than the stamped sheetmetal originals.
With the CAD design completed, the headlight bezels were CNC machined from billet aluminum.
The finished bezel is like a piece of jewelry that fits the car perfectly.
Here, you can appreciate how well all the components look when assembled. The custom bumper fits the car perfectly, and the CNC machined grille bars, surround, and honeycomb mesh blend together perfectly.
With the hood open, most of what you see is entirely handcrafted while at BBT. While it has the character of the original 1959 Impala, the fit and finish are at a much higher level than when the car left the factory, and there are lots of design tweaks that set this car apart from any other.
