Street Feature: Doug Smith’s Road-Tripped 1955 Chevrolet

1200-2There is something special about taking your classic on a road trip, especially those big Chevrolet tri-fives. They just float down the road and they have plenty of room for luggage and souvenirs – and people. Just driving around town in is a lot of fun, don’t get us wrong, but it just seems like the longer the drive is the more fun it is as well.

Doug Smith of Silverdale, Washington, owns a Vintage Air cooled ’55 Chevy that he just took on a nearly 2,000 mile round trip with 22 other classic cars to Yellowstone National Park and back — hence the reason we mentioned the Vintage Air, in case you didn’t know it, Montana and Wyoming are hot that time of year.

Doug has had the car for 15 years. “I was driving one like this when I met my wife Joanne 50 years ago,” Doug told us. “That was at Central Kitsap High School.” They bought this car from the second owner who had done a nut and bolt restoration on it. The first thing they did was re-power the car and redo all of the suspension.

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Fully loaded with options, and we really mean fully loaded, this car features a ZZ4 350 cubic-inch engine with a Holley performance carburetor and turbo 350 automatic transmission. It has a Ford 9-inch rearend with 3.50:1 gearing and a 31-spline axle. The upgraded stereo is operated by Infrared equipment and is a powerful 100 watt output system, all hidden behind the leather backing in the trunk.

Notice the antenna connector by the bumper for a CB radio? That was how they were communicating with each other on the trip to Yellowstone. Old cars and old school communication!

The front suspension features QA1 adjustable coilovers, a 7/8-inch sway bar, drop spindles, adjustable upper control arms, and power rack and pinion steering. The rear suspension is Detroit Spring four leaf with QA1 adjustable shocks to match the front, another 7/8-inch sway bar, and adjustable traction bars. The braking system has also been upgraded all the way around with Wilwood disc brakes. The interior and leather work was all done by Tony at Stitches.

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If you want your car or truck to be a part of our Street Feature series, all you have to do is shoot us an email and tell us about your ride and we will make it happen.

About the author

Kyler Lacey

A 2015 Graduate from Whitworth University, Kyler has always loved cars. He grew up with his dad's '67 Camaro in the garage and started turning wrenches at a young age. At seventeen, he bought his first classic, a '57 Chevy Bel Air four-door, and has since added a '66 Plymouth Valiant and '97 Cadillac Deville to his collection. When he isn't writing for Power Automedia, he's out shooting pictures at car shows, hiking in the forests of the beautiful Pacific Northwest, or working on something in the garage.
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