Whether they take years, months, or in this case, days, some masterpieces are just meant to be. When Eugene Proctor of Lake View Terrace, CA bought this 1964 Impala, he knew this car had the potential to become a show stopping work of art. Using his eagle eye, Eugene spotted the car on a country farm and rescued it immediately. He purchased the Chevy, and ultimately planned to make it his own masterpiece. After about four years of conceptualizing the car's eventual look, Eugene bought all the necessary parts, and with the help of Vernon "V-Max" Maxwell, this masterpiece came together in just 26 days!
As in most cases with most Lowriders in this day and age, Eugene was on a budget for the build, so when it came time to put the car together, he built it in stages under the advice and guidance of his veteran builder, V-Max. Trips to the local Pomona and Long Beach Automotive swap meets commenced as soon as he had purchased the '64, and Eugene began buying the parts that he needed. Eugene put in a few modernizations on the Chevy before it was ultimately taken apart and redone. For instance, the car received a newer 605 gear box and disc brakes for the front suspension. The rear suspension was reinforced and molded to accommodate the Ford 9-inch rear end, and also augmented with disc brakes for the rear. They also found other options at the swap meet, including power windows and a factory tilt column.
Once they got all the options and ideas mapped out, Eugene let V-Max build the car. The Chevy was transferred to V-Max's shop, Ultimate Hydraulics in Norco, CA, to begin its transformation. The first plan of attack involved the frame, which was pulled off the car and fully reinforced. The frame then sat around for a few months until the funds were available to paint and chrome out the suspension. The car was taken to Nino's Paint & Body of San Bernardino, where Nino worked on the car for a few months, completing all of the necessary metal work and body work before ultimately spraying the two stage GM orange paint finish on the convertible. Once the paint portion was completed, V-max called Ramon Mata of San Bernardino to pull some fine lines throughout the convertible.
When it came time to install the hydraulics, V-max really wanted to build something different, so he designed a set up that would be truly unique. The finished plan involved a three-pump set up that was designed to resemble a giant "E," the first letter of Eugene's name. The unique set up consisted of three aluminum pumps, powered by four 31-series batteries. The set up was then plumbed with hard-lines that complimented the fiberglass work, which was already added to the trunk. The man behind the fiberglass and stereo system in the '64 was Miguel Romo, who worked out of the Get It Tight Auto Sounds shop in Pacoima, California. He installed an Alpine headunit that controlled the Kicker sound system. The two 12-inch square woofers packed some punch, and were also installed to compliment the design of the trunk compartment.
Now that Eugene had everything for the car completed, from the chrome that was done by Victor's polishing, to the upholstery done by V-Max's in-house upholsterer, Brad Rogers, assembled the car which was quick and easy task. V-Max's shop turned into an assembly line, as they began building on the first of February and finished the entire car on February 26, just in time to debut the car at the Phoenix Lowrider Show. Even though this wasn't Eugene's first lowrider, it was certainly his quickest to date, in terms of how it was reassembled. In this case with all symphonies, the conductor is only as good as his key players, so Eugene gives thanks to his wife Bambi, V-max for his guidance and help, and the Ultimate Riders family for supporting him.