When Mort Hall of Coquitlam-based White and Peters Ltd. gave the thumbs up to buy a 1950s bread truck for $4,000 he figured the vehicle, once overhauled, would nicely mark the company's 50th anniversary.
Jump ahead a few years and that truck — now valued at $248,000 — will be on display Saturday at the Ultimate Car Show at the Hard Rock Casino Vancouver in Coquitlam. The overhaul by 360 Fabrication Inc. covered the vehicle from stem to stern, inside and out, and now resembles more of a party bus than a bread delivery truck.
"I had the final say on it but I kind of let them do what they needed to do," Hall said. "It all seemed to work out very well."
It almost didn't happen, however.
"We found this truck but when we got the approval from White and Peters, somebody else had already bought it," said Rick Francoeur, owner of 360 Fabrication and host of the car show. "We had to quickly go into negotiation mode and buy it back from them."
Sixty-year-old delivery trucks are a rare, hot-ticket item, Francoeur said. They "last forever" and the aluminum body means they don't rust, but "they don't look too pretty when you first get them."
The project, which was started in 2012, took about seven months to complete and included a new power train, Art Morrison chassis, a 383 motor with 400 horsepower and four-wheel disc brakes. The interior was done up in a 1950s diner theme, with a wide banquette and topped off with a "crazy, crazy sound system."
The exterior doesn't look too shabby either.
It's bright blue but car connoisseurs will appreciate that it's the first vehicle in North America to be painted in waterborne candy — a top-tier version of the eco-friendly automotive paint similar to applying six to eight coats of colour.
"It has way more depth to it," Francoeur said. "It's pretty cool stuff but it's hard to use. Most painters are scared of it."
Hall is hoping the bidders won't be too scared of it when it comes up for auction this fall at the Barrett Jackson collector car auction in Las Vegas; he'll be donating the proceeds to the Shriners Hospitals for Children.
The public can get a glimpse of the truck before it heads south at the Ultimate Car Show on Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., where there will also be a 1963 Lincoln valued at $1 million, a by-donation pancake breakfast at 8 a.m. and, throughout the day, live entertainment, prize giveaways, food and a beer garden.
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