Hot Rods by Boyd and Maximum Drive Magazine are proud to announce the Birth of Smooth: The Vern Luce Coupe. This documentary tells the story of the Vern Luce Coupe. The car that defined the Boyd Look. In 1981 my dad rolled out the Vern Luce Coupe and it changed the direction of hot rodding forever. This is the story. We hope you enjoy it.
Special thanks to Jason Mulligan, Marcel Venable, Bob Bauder, Diane Coddington, Gary Humenik, Gary and Wendy Brown, and Maximum Drive Magazine.
The latest issue of Maximum Drive magazine hits stores today. Last year we had the pleasure of having the Vern Luce Coupe stay with us for awhile. The Coupe wasn’t the first car my dad built but it was the first car that defined what is now known as the Boyd Look and changed the direction hot rodding and custom cars were going in the late 70’s and early 80’s. We had a great time taking the coupe out to shows and Jason Mulligan of Maximum Drive was there to document it. Jason put together a really nice article that talks about my dad, the coupe, and it’s important role in Hot Rodding and Boyd Coddington history.
Every year we look forward to going to one of the cooler car club picnics in So Cal. That would be the Outriders Picnic. A great gathering of old friends, car people, and great cars. This year was special because we were able to take the Vern Luce Coupe along with a 33 Vicky and a 32 3 window that were both started at Hot Rods by Boyd in the 80’s. Duane Mayer drove the Vicky and Ron Pfeifer drove his flamed 3 window and they followed my daughter Jenna and I as we cruised the Vern Luce Coupe. It was cool to see all 3 of these cars driving down the road together and parked next to each other. We had a great time hanging out with everyone and checking out all the cars at the show. So much Southern California car culture history at this show. Looking forward to next year.
This past weekend we attended the Good Guys West Coast Nationals in Pleasanton, CA. This is probably the best show on the west coast and is a must attend for any hot rodder in the western US. This year celebrated the 27th anniversary of this show and it definitely seemed like the biggest one to date. Duane Mayer of American Hot Rods and myself took the trip up to Pleasanton with the Vern Luce Coupe and our wheel display in tow. Good Guys set us up with a really nice spot in front of winners circle and we were lucky enough to have some really cool Boyd cars at our booth. David Lozano brought out the 32 Sedan my dad built at the Orange Ave shop for Don Smith. David takes amazing care of this car and it still turns heads. One of the best looking sedans and one of my favorite Boyd cars. Jerry Ruskin brought out his 33 Vicky and displayed it at our booth. This 33 Vicky was started at the hot rod shop on Monroe St but only got to the primer stage before it was sold. Having this Vicky parked at our booth next to the coupe was something to see. They looked like a reunited brother and sister sitting there side by side. Saturday’s attendance was insane. The busiest I have ever seen it. We had our new 2013 wheel line up there along with some new additions and we talked to tons of people and handed out tons of catalogs. While I am at the car show working it doesn’t really seem like it. Catching up with old friends, talking to spectators and potential customers make the whole time enjoyable. I had a great time hanging out with Duane and watching him interact with the fans. We’ll be back again next year. Special thanks to Dave Lozano, Jerry Ruskin, John and Caroline Hill, Gary and Wendy Brown, and the Good Guys organization.
Another great year at the LA Roadster Show. I have many fond memories of this event. Father’s Day for me and my family always meant going with my dad to this show. It was a family tradition that I am happy to carry on with my family. This year we brought out our new wheel line up and we had a very special treat of displaying the Vern Luce Coupe in our booth. This car was the car that put my dad on the hot rodding map. Everyone remembers and recognizes Cadzilla, Chezoom, and the Boydsters but the Vern Luce Coupe was the car that started the ‘Boyd Look’. It was pretty cool to watch people come up and check it out. You had people that remembered the car then you had people that it was their first time seeing it. Some people that had never seen it before were blown away that the car was built over 30 years ago. While these events are technically “work” for us we have such a great time talking to customers and running into old friends that I would do this kind of “work” anytime over a 9-5 job working for someone else.
We get a lot of requests for pictures of our ceramic clearcoat on wheels. Pictures don’t do it justice. You really have to see the stuff in person to appreciate it. The stuff is so clear it’s hard to tell that there is anything on the wheel. This HR-01 has brushed tops and polished lip and windows. The entire wheel was then clearcoated with our ceramic clearcoat. This HR-01 sits next to the Vern Luce Coupe with some original Boyd Coddington machined knock off stars circa 1981.
A couple of days ago I received a call from Grant Peterson and Thom Taylor from Hot Rod Magazine. The Vern Luce Coupe was in town and they wanted me and my brother Gregg to drive if out to the LA Fairplex in Pomona, CA for the Hot Rod Magazine Homecoming. Stoked beyond words I accepted without hesitation. For those that don’t know the Vern Luce Coupe was the car built over 30 years ago that launched my father’s career and started the Boyd Look and the billet movement. The car has been in Australia with it’s current owner for a number of years and Thom and Hot Rod Magazine made the arrangements to bring her out for the show.
So Gregg, Shane and I roll over to Hot Rods HQ and garage in El Segundo, CA. Hot Rod Magazine’s garage is a pretty cool set up but it was hard to check it all out once we walked in the door because we saw the coupe and were immediately distracted by it’s presence. I was only 6 years old when this car was built but I remember it well. Very little was changed from the last time I saw it and that was nice to see.
Gregg and I decided to toss a quarter to see who would drive it and he won the toss. Decked out his in vintage Grand National Roadster Show shirt featuring the Vern Luce Coupe and our dad’s old snake skin boots Gregg slid behind the wheel. It’s been at least 30 years since those boots touched those billet pedals. Sitting inside the cab brought back a lot of memories. Even being twice the size now as I was back when I last sat in the coupe it still was comfortable. Gregg fired the engine and we pulled in behind Grant with Shane bringing up the rear to venture out into LA traffic. For those outside the area this part of LA is pretty hectic. It’s really close to LAX and some of the nicer south bay beach communities and the traffic gets pretty bad. Once on the 405 fwy the car felt pretty good. I could really see the enjoyment in Gregg’s face as we merged into traffic and moved down the highway. So many memories of sitting in the passenger seat while my dad took me out for rides in his hot rods came to my mind.
We started to hear some noises and being a little paranoid about getting her there in one piece we pulled over. Nothing major just some noise we attributed to the drivers door moving a bit on the bumps. We transitioned onto the 91 fwy and about 5 miles down we saw smoke coming from the right rear. Not good. We safely pulled over to the side of the road and I jumped out. My first thought was “Oh NO, FIRE and no extinguisher”. Luckily I was wrong and as we ran to the back of the car we realized right away that the passenger side carrier bearing in the upright was blown. Not wanting to leave it on the freeway we limped it off down the offramp and parked it in a Best Buy parking lot. It was a bummer. A short lived trip and a bit of a disappointment as both Gregg and I wanted to see it all the way to the Fairplex in Pomona. As we sat in the parking lot waiting for the tow truck we got to really look the car over and just appreciate the history of it all. Thinking about how the car and what it did for my dad and our family and the hot rodding industry made me really appreciate everything. To think that my office is in the exact place that this car was built over thirty years ago and that I see the original Thom Taylor rendering that this car was built from made me really reflect on my father’s career and give thanks to him.
Thanks to Thom Taylor, Grant Peterson, Hot Rod Magazine, and Gary and Wendy Brown for letting Gregg and I drive 15 miles down memory lane.
