Datsuns To DeLoreans: Sounds Of Summer Nights Favorites
The Sounds Of Summer Nights is a great way to spend an evening in the company of some of the best custom vehicles, hot rods, and muscle cars around. At Karl Kustoms, we love a car with a good story, and at our latest event, we chatted with many owners to get some background on their vehicles. We heard tons of great stories and picked some of our favorites to share with you.
1982 DMC DeLorean – A Time Warp Classic
The DMC DeLorean went into production over 40 years ago. Yet it still turns heads like a modern supercar. Part of its lasting fame is surely down to its starring role in the Back To The Future trilogy, and this particular model looks like it has warped in from the ‘80s in an as-new state.
“I got a Flux Capacitor in there…it does draw a lot of attention!”
Dean Hammond
Dean Hammond is the current owner, but it has been in his family since the early ‘80s. His uncle purchased the car in 1983, but it remained in storage for around 30 years. Dean had wanted the car ever since he was a kid, and his wish came true ten years ago when he finally bought it and had it trailered back to Iowa:
While it looked pristine and had done just 4,600 miles, it needed a little recommissioning to get back on the road. Since then, he has added another 1,000 miles to that total. It certainly looks box fresh, with very little to suggest that it’s over four decades old.
Dean says that you cannot do much with these cars, but the temptation to turn them into a time machine replica is always strong. He has kept the car mostly original, with just an ‘OUTATIME’ license plate and a Flux Capacitor installed for now.
1978 Datsun 280Z – Classic Coupe With A History
Steve Hall has been a longtime Datsun fan and owned a 280Z back when he was 19. His son gifted him a Datsun Z key fob one day, and this reignited his passion for the brand. But the route to him owning this pristine 280Z was a long one. Twenty-five years in the making.
“The body was in awesome shape… until I got to my body shop…[it was] a Datsun-shaped pile of rust!”
Steve Hall
Steve waited until his kids had graduated and moved out before acquiring the car you see here. He’s now owned the car for the past ten years and bought it with just 46,000 miles on the clock. Outwardly, the car looked to be in great shape. That is until Steve took the car to his body shop. Underneath the seemingly pristine bodywork was so much rust that a full restoration was the only option:
“Real cars don’t shift themselves.”
Steve Hall
A non-negotiable was a 5-speed manual transmission. Steve saw several great cars but insisted on waiting until he found one that came with a clutch pedal. Under the hood is the original inline-six 2.8-liter fuel-injected motor. It’s great to see how much effort Steve has put into getting this 280Z into such fine condition, especially with so few of them left on our roads.
Bring Your Ride To The Next Sounds Of Summer Nights Event
There’s nothing better than hanging out on a balmy summer night, talking about cars. So come and join us at our next Sounds of Summer Nights event to show off your ride and see some amazing custom vehicles.
Karl Kustoms is a machine shop, custom shop, and service shop. We do restoration, custom upholstery, custom painting, bodywork, accessory installations, and more. So, we are ready to assist whether you need an upgrade, refresh, or ground-up restoration.
Our staff are passionate and extremely knowledgeable. If you would like to know more, call us at 866-697-7805, or get in touch online. Let us make your automotive dreams a reality.