The legendary status of the "six-fo" in these circles
proved compelling for Mario Belcik. Five years ago, the 29 year
old got a chance opportunity to obtain his dream car, a 1964
Impala Super Sport. "My buddy's dad found it for me somewhere
out of town. It was stored in some guy's garage for over 10
years," Belcik said. "That's my dream car because
they are the number one lowrider in the U.S. I've always been
into lowriders."
First introduced in 1958, many credit the Chevrolet Impala
for starting the American muscle era. In 1964, the unique
boxy exterior trim and lavish interior of Impala SS was elevated
from a simple $150 trim package to become its own top of the
line series. The next year, it would set an all-time industry
annual sales record of more than one million units.
Completely stock and with only two small rust holes on the
bottom of the front fenders, Belcik went right to work towards
building his dream car into a fantasy ride. A set of 100 spoke
knock off wire wheels with four-inch offset filled the fenders
while 2,000 watts of Ultimate Sound amplification driving
3,000 watts of Kicker subs took up residence inside.
Next, deciding to take full advantage of the inherently sturdy
X-frame chassis found stock on the 64 Impala SS, Belcik ordered
the installation of six deep-cycle batteries to power a Pro
Hopper LA Series Chromed Two Pump hydraulic suspension system.
For greater articulation the stock three-link suspension in
the rear was tossed in favour of a custom four-link suspension.
Both the upper and lower control arms were reinforced.
Under the hood, Belcik yanked the original 283 engine and
swapped in a 350 Chevy small block V8 he rebuilt himself.
A custom dual exhaust, forced to follow a tricky route due
to the X-frame, was also added along with mirrors under the
hood to display the work. However, the engine swap is intended
to be only temporary. "It's the original matching numbers
engine but the valve covers were leaking, same with the oil
pan gasket. I wanted to take it out completely, re-build it
like brand-new and eventually put it back in. But for now
I wanted to give it a little extra somethin'- somethin'."
Returning to the exterior, Belcik had the bumpers re-chromed
to go along with new taillights, rubber door seals and emblems.
All of this was set against a new Candy Apple Red metal flake
paint job. With two full jars of metal flake under 12 coats
of clear, it is now almost impossible to see the four coats
of base.
Even though the car has won three first-place awards this
year, one each at the World of Wheels, Sport Compact Nights
and iLLconformity Summer Shocker, in the lowrider class, Belcik
is not finished. Recently he changed out the rims with a set
featuring Candy Apple Red nipples on the spokes. The arrival
of snow will bring with it a slew of additional chrome under
the hood on the fan shroud, hood hinges, latch etc.
Belcik has already begun perhaps his most ambitious winter
project, a full frame wrap. Searching for greater frame integrity,
he has taken the frame from another 64 Impala and begun wrapping
it top, bottom and sides in 3/16 steel. He then plans to grind
all the welds smooth, have it powder coated to match the exterior
paint and then re-mount his body to it.
Despite the extensive work performed on Grand Theft Auto
muse, Belcik shows no fear when cruising and showing the car's
unique suspension abilities. "I'm mechanically inclined,"
he explained. "If I break something I can usually fix
it that day. If I break a part I just get a better one."
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