Eric “Hot Rod” Bopp earned his nickname 46 years ago, when he was 18 years old.
“The rusted body of a car, no chassis, was sitting in a field in Pawling behind a shop that restored antique cars, but it wanted nothing to do with hot rods,” says Bopp. He paid $200 for the relic, which had belonged to a 1933 Plymouth coupe.
Why buy just the shell? “It was what I always wanted,” he says. “A five-window coupe, no fenders, no hood. That to me is a hot rod.”
Bopp, who lives in Wappinger, began putting his hot rod together, piece by piece. He purchased a frame from Total Cost Involved, a California company that specializes in muscle cars and hot rods, and had it shipped to Eastern Mustang, the restoration shop where he worked in Poughkeepsie, behind Mamma Marisa’s Pizza.
With the body and frame in place, Bopp began buying one part at a time. “I built it from the ground up,” he says. “I had to weld all the brackets, all the mounts, everything.”
Unlike a restoration, Bopp wasn’t trying to recreate a 1933 Plymouth coupe. Instead, he built his rod over three or four years with parts from a variety of models, including a rebuilt 1968 Chevrolet, 350-cubic-inch engine with tunnel ram manifold; polished turbo 350 automatic transmission; twin Predator carburetors; Chrysler Dana rear end; Cragar Super Trick wheels; and Mickey Thompson Sportsman tires. The car also has a parachute and wheelie bars.
The all-black interior includes Autometer gauges, a Pontiac Trans Am tiltable steering wheel, vinyl racing bucket seats, anodized aluminum dashboard, polished aluminum floor and an AM-FM cassette player.
Bopp credits the beautiful look of the Porsche guards red paint to Vince D’Amico at Eastern Mustang.
The original Plymouth was built in Chrysler’s Highland Park, Michigan, plant and sold in 1933 for $495 to $595 ($12,000 to $14,000 today). It had a three-speed manual transmission and what was then an innovative flathead six-cylinder engine that produced 70 horsepower. Plymouth sold nearly 300,000, including 25,000 in 1933.
The Specs
Manufactured: Highland Park, Michigan
Body: 1933 Plymouth five-window coupe
Chassis: TCI, Ontario, California
Engine: Chevrolet 350 cubic inch V-8 (1968)
Transmission: 350 turbo automatic
Carburetors: Twin Predators
Tires: Mickey Thompson Sportsman
Fuel economy: 15 mpg
Weight: 2,100 pounds
Top quarter-mile speed: 82 mph
Cost: $495 to $595 ($12,000 to $14,000)
Bopp said he has no idea what his customized car might sell for, but 1933 Plymouths, either restored or a hot rod, range in price from $13,000 to $77,000.
Despite its dragster look, Bopp doesn’t drive his hot rod fast. He’s never raced it but estimates it could do the quarter-mile in 11 seconds, or 82 mph. “It’s built for cruising on a Friday or Saturday night or a trip to the Dairy Queen or local car show,” he says. He puts the gas mileage at 15 mpg.
Bopp says the car is fun to drive but admits it’s “a handful” behind the wheel. “It shakes, it’s loud, it’s uncomfortable,” he says with a laugh. “If you want comfort, buy a Cadillac.”
Would he consider selling it? “I’ve had offers,” he says. “But they’ll probably bury me in it.”
