"Cruising down the street in my six-fo"... yeah, Eazy E said it back in 1988 and many of you were living it. Most everyone remembers the days when you would spend all of Saturday charging the batteries, waxing the paint and cleaning the interior for that honey who you were going to pick up later that night. Cruising, crawling or (these days) just dipping, it was (and is) all about getting out in the car and showing what you have. Keishiro Hoshino's '64 Chevy Impala convertible, "Big Dipper," was built just for such a Saturday night cruise. Being a convertible is a big plus. With the top down, there's no doubt that a SoCal cruise is in order.
To get heads turning, first off you need the proper stance for that parking lot posing. Anthony Fuentes and the crew at Homies Hydraulics in Paramount, California, made sure that the car laid out proper like. The frame and A-arms were reinforced to make sure that the car could stand up to the rigors of rolling through the streets of Southern California. After that, all of the parts received a satin black powdercoating and they look like they came straight out of the factory.
A two-pump setup resides in the trunk with three batteries running along each side of the pumps in clean racks that look like something that Chevy might have put in. Behind the pumps reside three Alpine amps that pump up the volume with the simple turn of the Alpine head unit's knob. There's nothing like a good-sounding system to blast some music as you're dipping through the hood. An iPod Nano holds all of the old school songs for the cruise and a color bar under the dash provides the light show.
Options like power windows, power steering, power side view mirrors, power brakes... well, you get the idea, make for a relaxing drive. Air conditioning helps the occupants stay cool on those really hot days, while a compass and tilt steering keep the car moving in the right direction and an autotronic eye keeps the high beam thing in check for night cruising. A peek under the hood reveals a super-clean engine compartment, again looking like it came straight from the factory.
And to help keep it looking that way, this "toy" came in a rather interesting looking box in the way of an enclosed trailer. The car was built for cruising, but when going out of town, the trailer is a welcome addition. It was the brainchild of Anthony Fuentes, the former owner. The trailer was wrapped to look like an OE accessories box complete with the group and part numbers. Anyone who's bought old OE GM parts knows these boxes well.
Big Dipper is no doubt one of the cleanest cars cruising the boulevard. You can bet that Keishiro can be seen with a smile from ear to ear when he's dipping out on the streets of Southern California with his fellow South Side Car Club members.
Big DipperOwner: Keishiro Hoshino
Vehicle: '64 Chevrolet Impala convertible
City/State: Paramount, California
Club: South Side C.C.
Engine/Drivetrain: The '64 Chevy 283-c.i.d. engine was balanced, blueprinted and matched up with a Turbo 350 transmission and stainless steel exhaust.
Body/Paint: The paint and bodywork was performed by "Casa" at Holix Auto Body in Harbor City, California.
Interior: Freddy and Mike at Bowtie Connection in Artesia, California, installed a stock vinyl upholstery kit.
Sound System: An Alpine head unit was installed in the glove box along with an Alpine CD player, SoundField processor and iPod Nano. Three Alpine amps in the rear and two subwoofers round out the system installed by "Gordo" at 562 Kustoms in Paramount.
Setup: A two-pump setup featuring #9 Italian pump heads, three Adex dumps, 8-inch cylinders front and back, two switches and six batteries was installed at Homies Hydraulics in Paramount, where they also reinforced the frame and A-arms.
Tires: P155/80-R13
Wheels: 13-inch Zenith wires