Unusual Hot Rod Cars

It's been nearly 20 years since HOT ROD broke the tradition barrier by saying that it's socially acceptable to build oddball cars. Back then, we featured bullet-nose Studebakers, big '70s cruisers, and some truly weird street rods, and they were all cool because they were far enough removed from the mainstream to be fresh and innovative. However, in those days, all you really had to do to get noticed was be the first person to put fat tires under a DeSoto. Times have changed, and today you'd be hard-pressed to find a body style that hasn't been modified in some way.

With the current frenzy still swarming around musclecars and the whole Pro Touring thing, we thought it was time to break with convention yet again and show a few hot rods built from an entirely different perspective. That's what you'll find on the next 25 pages or so. Some are current styles imprinted on uncommon models. A few are high-dollar jobs that are offbeat but cool nonetheless. And a couple are just plain weird . . . and we mean that in a good way.

Above all, these are hot rods, and hot rods that you don't see every day. Ultimately, our goal is to inspire creativity and help you see the potential in a blank hot-rod canvas that others consider a mere appliance or even an abomination. The first Dare to be Different story in HOT ROD way back in 1989 started a new trend. Will this one revive it?- Rob Kinnan