The definition of a hot rod is simple: any old or classic car that has been rebuilt, modified, or designed to perform better than the original car.

But if you’re going to build it, you have to drive it. That’s what Fred Bottcher believes, and so, even on winter days – when the roads are dry – he’s known to pack up his gear and take his customized 1957 Cadillac for a spin on the path around home in Oshawa, ON.–

It was built in his garage, almost entirely by himself, and his main pride was that it could compete with many professionally built cars at much higher prices. .

“I always wanted a 50s car,” he said. “I was looking for a Chevy, but that was around the time when ’57 Chevys were really starting to take off and it was cheaper to buy a Caddy. I restored it to stock, but keeping it that way while driving it all the time was a challenge. There was no real aftermarket support back then.–

The car hit the road in 2003, but between finding the time and making sure it was done right, it wasn’t finished until the summer of 2014. There was a lot of trial and error and more work had to be done. a few more steps. done twice, either because things went wrong, or because an idea didn’t work out as planned. “It’s definitely a love-hate relationship,” he said. “There are days when I want to burn everything. But I can’t, because it’s not inside so there’s nothing to burn.”-

During the construction process, he always knew exactly what he wanted: a car that looked like it was modified from the 1960s, clean and tidy but still traditional. The chassis features a new front clip with the Camaro frame section. He also shortened the wheelbase by an inch and a half, which solved something that drove him crazy in the car: when the wheels weren’t perfectly centered in the wheel wells. In its green machine days, the car rode low but the suspension remained static. This time he installed the hydraulic system, a basic two-pump setup with an accumulator to raise it to driving height or drop it for parking.

As for the engine, well… Fred also owns a 1966 Dodge Dart convertible and a 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8, and what could be cooler than a Mopar in a Cadillac? Fred wanted power so he had power.

The car runs a 440 six-cylinder engine and a 727 TorqueFlite transmission, which pleases both core GM fans and die-hard Mopar guys every time he pops the hood – which he rarely does , because showing it that way broke the whole long, smooth timing. look he worked very hard to achieve. If there was one thing Fred had, it was vision. He knows what will work even when it seems like it won’t, and in the end it does. And that’s how it goes with paint. “I knew I wanted gold and I knew I wanted a boarded-up roof. Flake was the choice for 1960s car hoods and I had to have it. My choices go to red, green, or blue, and I choose red. On the body of the car are the words Volkswagen Futura Gold and a red House of Kolor scale on the roof.”

Interiors are a two-step process. He bought a set of aftermarket circular gauges and put each one in his own box that he made and soldered to the dashboard. “But once it was finished, with the dashboard painted white, it looked like six round cans in a snowstorm,” he said, tearing it all apart. Two years ago, at the SEMA trade show in Las Vegas, he discovered CON2R, an Oregon-based company that makes aftermarket gauges and steering wheels. The company created a one-of-a-kind instrument cluster and matching clock, made in metal on a 3D printer. The gauges look similar but they are fully electronic, including a GPS-operated speedometer.

Luckily, the rest of the interior went without a hitch. To fit the Mopar parts under the hood, he found four front bucket seats from a 1964 Chrysler 300, which became both front and rear. At the Hershey auto flea market, he found a rare 1961 Plymouth “Aero” square steering wheel, still in its original box. It wasn’t cheap but it was exactly what he wanted, and we’re back to his vision of exactly what would look good. “It’s a square cluster, a flat dash, and it fits that theme,” he said.

This yellow custom Caddy is traditional but modern at the same time. But hey, remember that there are no rules when it comes to building a custom.