Any red 1957 Chevy is going to turn heads, but this unique version makes auto enthusiasts do a double take. Whether on the highway or in a parking lot, it is immediately clear that something is different about this car. Yes it’s a wagon, and it has two doors, but it’s also more than 30 inches shorter than the standard ’57 Chevy.

This one of a kind 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air belongs to Dave Leigh of Spokane, Washington. Dave has always loved cars, and he tells us, “My interest in cars was probably for the same reason you find yourself interested in cars. I liked dating girls, and if you didn’t have a car, you didn’t have a date.”

The idea for a custom, “short wagon” came from an encounter in 1990, when he saw something similar at a car show.  The one he saw looked like someone had done it in their back-yard, and he liked the idea, but wanted to do it better. From start to finish the project took three cars, ten years, and nearly $30,000 to build this one of a kind car. “Of course I’m happy with it,” Dave says. “It is a one of a kind ’57 that I’ve been proud of over the years.” After all of the time and money that went into it, he is still happy when recollecting about the process of modification, and the years of ownership and use.

Although it looks great now that it is complete, it wasn’t always that way. Cutting three of what Dave calls “rusty Chevys” into pieces and reconstructing one smaller car from all the parts was a big task, and a lot more complicated than one would think. When asked what the biggest challenge was in the project, He just says, “Cutting 30 inches out of a perfectly good car and making a four-door into a two-door is a major hurdle to overcome.”

With all of the work that went into the appearance of the car, one might expect to find a performance engine under the hood. Instead, Dave tells us, “There is nothing special under the hood. It’s a chromed-up stock Chevy 350 with an M-21 manual four speed.” He wanted something that felt “old school,” and that’s what he got.

What do you think of this unique ’57 Chevy? Have you ever considered modifying a car like this, or actually gone through with it? We want to hear what you think, so tell us more in the comments below. And regardless of whether you like the way that it looks or not, you have to acknowledge the quality craftsmanship and effort that went into building the car.