Jerry Haley got his first speeding ticket before he ever had a driver’s license.  But, he couldn’t help it: He’s had a passion for cars since he was 15-years-old.

Jerry first became involved in the automotive hobby as a high school auto shop student, when he was able to work on a 1955 Ford that he had purchased for $20.00, in 1963.  The car had been left abandoned in the desert, before Jerry got his hands on it.  But, through his knowledge gained inside and outside of the classroom, the car was up and running within a year… only to lead to that first ticket during a lunch-time cruise.

A couple years down the road, when Jerry was a senior in high school, he had moved on to bigger and better things.  He purchased a 1932 3-Window Ford Coupe and installed a Chrysler Hemi engine in the collector car.  Unfortunately, with a slight mishap, related to a failed brake installation, Jerry lost control of the vehicle, destroyed the car, and crashed into who else, but his high school principal’s wife.  He recalls that the rest of his time in school was rough… he was without his prized possession, and whenever any chores had to be done, Jerry was the man.

A few years ago, when Jerry had the urge to build a ‘new car,” he thought he might construct a 1941 Willys, but he ended up working on the 1933 Chevy, due to his curiosity regarding the car’s rarity.

“While I was on the Internet, I noticed there were very few photos of 33’s,” explains Jerry.  “There were thousands of 1934 Chevy’s, but only three to five photos of the 1933 Chevy’s.”

Jerry continued to feed into his curiosity, searching the Internet and parts books; 1933 5-Window Chevy’s were little to be found.  After some research, Jerry learned that the reason behind the scarcity was that they were only built at the World’s Fair, when Chevrolet demonstrated how the cars were assembled.

So, when envisioning his new project around that first bolt, Jerry decided that he would build the rare all-steel ’33 Chevy— And, that he did, removing the entire original wooden frame, creating an all-steel reinforced vehicle with steel tubing (more like a Ford).  Some extra features include power windows, air conditioning, an electric trunk and a remote security system.

And, now, after three years of hard work, Jerry looks forward to taking this baby on the road.

“I love the road trips,” he says. “I’m not afraid of weather, and I show up to compete.”

He recently drove the car from El Paso, T.X. to Scottsdale, A.Z., and won the Timberland Pro HomeBuilt Heaven award, and Jerry notes that it is ‘a good beginning to many shows that will follow.’

Story by: Becky McLaughlin