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Built by Troy Trepanier of Rad Rides by Troy, and designed by Chip Foose of Foose Design, this stunning machine easily lays claim to being the most beautiful 'Cuda street machine ever crafted. Trepanier of no newcomer to the industry. A multiple award winner and hod-rod celebrity, Trepanier possesses a passion for building cars that employ the best aftermarket pieces with the highest level of craftsmanship. Designer and builder Foose has built no less than two Ridler award-winning show cars. More recently, Foose has risen to household name status by virtue of his team captain role on The Learning Channel's "Overhaulin" TV show.

When asked how the entire Sick Fish project came about, Foose explained, "Joe saw the pilot episode of 'Rides', which showed the building of my Thunderbird, the SpeedBird. He also saw the show with Chris Titus building his '56 Chevy, so Joe told [Overhaulin' producer] Bud Brutzman that he wanted me to build him a car. I said that I had a three-year backlog, so I couldn't touch it. Then I said, "Why don't we go to Troy? I'll design it, and Troy can build it." When Joe saw the Fast Forward Fastback 'Rides' episode, he was all over the idea of Troy building the car.

Trepanier talked about the thinking behind doing a HEMI 'Cuda for Rogan: "The '70 'Cuda was what Joe had growing up in New Jersey, so that was an obvious choice. The HEMI was the big deal in those cars, and was had experienced HEMI power while building the 2000 HEMI Dakota for Mopar. The raucous nature of the motor fit the wild personality of Joe. I didn't really think of anything else but a HEMI 'Cuda for Joe; it just fit him perfectly."

Jack Trepanier thinks highly of Gorilla Powdercoating, and Troy agrees with his dad, and adds that, "Gorilla has a big oven." After having sprayed the material on the car at Gorilla's shop, the entire unibody shell was rolled into the oven and baked overnight.

The result is the ultimate preparation for long-term protection.

Back from Gorilla, here's the beauty of being able to powdercoat an entire interior. Rather than trying to get into every nook and cranny underneath that dashboard with paint, Gorilla is able to apply its baked-on coating, and it covered everywhere!

Photos and text copyright (C) 2004 Build Book, used by permission.