When the Intercity truck showed up at Cotati Speed Shop, the Shadow Rods XL27 Road Tour car was well on its way, but anyone who has built a street rod knows that there are a thousand details large and small that have to be taken care of even when you start with something as far along as our Shadow Rods roadster pickup.
After delivery by Intercity Lines, the Cotati Speed Shop crew gets a good look at the Shadow Rods roller, the basis for this year's AMSOIL/STREET RODDER Road Tour roadster pickup.
One of the first chores for Zane Cullen and the Cotati crew was to install the Smeding Performance 427 Windsor. This Ford small-block stroker cranks out 462 hp with 529 lb-ft of torque and while those peak numbers are impressive, the engine's power is stretched over a broad rpm range enhancing driveability. These engines come dyno-tuned with a printout, run on 91-octane fuel, and have an aggressive idle with plenty of vacuum for power brake boosters.
Backing up the engine is a Ford AOD automatic transmission from Gearstar. As with all their transmissions, this one has all the latest factory updates along with a laundry list of performance upgrades that are proven performers. Along with Gearstar's bulletproof internals ours came with an extra capacity aluminum oil pan, 360-degree adjustable shift linkage arm, Lokar throttle pressure cable and bracket, and a 30,000 GVW cooler with an integrated fan.
With the engine and trans in place, the build team installed the fuel and exhaust systems. Following Aeromotive's suggestions, the fuel system is the return style. Fuel from the tank passes through a pre-filter, then the inline pump sends it through a return-style regulator, post filter, and onto a fuel log. For a nostalgic look the guys whipped up an exhaust system with Lakester-style headers from Patriot. Just for fun they included a pair of VaraFlow mufflers that will allow Road Tour leader, Jerry Dixey, to adjust the sound of the exhaust while he drives.
While part of the crew was working on the running gear, the rest of the gang was busy fabricating the transmission tunnel, installing the A/C, and checking things off on the long list of "to do" items. It won't be long until the Road Tour begins again for 2010. For more information on how to be part of it, check out www.streetrodderweb.com.
Zane Cullen And Cotati Speed Shop
North of San Francisco near Santa Rosa is a tiny whistle stop called Cotati, California. This otherwise-obscure destination has an exceptionally rich history in the world of motorsports. The earliest racing tradition in Cotati was a board track oval that operated from 1920-1921.
Early action at Cotati: Owner and builder of the Silhouette dragster, Otho Sichel, pilots the push car for driver Charlie "Goat" Cessano. The car runs a blown small-block Chevy in this photo but previously appeared on the cover of the '56 Hot Rod Annual with its original flathead engine.
During World War II there was a Naval Airstrip in Cotati, which ultimately became, after the war, a sports car racing road course, and, more importantly to hot rodders, a dragstrip. From the late-'50s to the late-'60s drag racers from all over the country came to Northern California and raced at a number of venues. The Cotati Raceway was one of the first to host such luminaries as Swamp Rat pilot Don Garlits and Art Arfons and his legendary Green Monster jet car
Having grown up as a complete car nut in the area where the dragstrip once was, the destination of choice for every gearhead in that part of the state, Zane Cullen felt the pull of the history and excitement that surrounded the locally legendary racing site. After operating his now widely known hot rod and custom car building business under the name Creative Concepts for several years, Cullen has elected to finish the second decade of his shop's existence under a new name: Cotati Speed Shop.
Cullen and his team place tremendous emphasis on careful craftsmanship and attention to detail and design. Clean and well organized, the shop typically has 6-10 cars under construction simultaneously. Not only is Cullen a car builder and talented painter, he is a master organizer. The shop does complete and partial builds, paintwork, repairs, and more recently retail sales.
Cullen hopes to help keep the local history both alive and revered and always available to the hot rod community. With many show successes, GNRS Builder of the Year, Goodguys Trendsetter of the Year, and '10 Grand National Roadster Show Hall of Fame inductee on his résumé, Cullen and his crew are creating some history and traditions of their own.'
