For Simon Fawcett and Karen Savage, the unveiling of their 1946 Chevy coupe utility at the 2024 Sydney Hot Rod & Custom Auto Expo marked not only the triumphant end of a gruelling 12-year build, but also the culmination of Simon’s long history with this rare model.

First published in the October 2024 issue of Street Machine

Simon first encountered a ’46 coupe ute some four decades ago, when a friend presented one to him after discovering it on a rural scavenging run. That ute served Simon well until he reluctantly had to part with it, vowing to one day own another.

Around 2011, Simon made good on that promise when he acquired a supposedly fully restored example. The initial plan for ’46 coupe utility #2 was a simple hot rod transformation: big engine, black paint and some mags.

However, the true magnitude of what he’d taken on became shockingly apparent when the ute returned from sandblasting. Beneath layers of trowelled-on bog, a multitude of shoddy repairs and extensive damage was revealed. Even Simon, a panel beater by trade, was overwhelmed by its condition. This, combined with a serious health scare, prompted him to rethink things.

“While lying in hospital, I said to Karen, ‘If I make it out of here, I want to build it exactly how I always wanted.’ She was 100 per cent on board.”

Once Simon had recovered, he dragged the sad hulk into coach builders Woods & Woods, where he was initially told he’d be better off finding another body. But Simon was reluctant: “I’ve been to many a hot rod show in my life and I’d never seen another one – where am I going to find one like it?”

Instead, father-and-son team David and Jayson Woods spent the next several years hand-forming a host of fresh metal for the Chev. This included two new quarters, a firewall, tailgate, bed corners, rear beaver panels, inner tubs and one new guard. Unfortunately, work ground to a halt after David had a stroke, which prompted the business’s closure.

Down but not out, Simon visited Image Vehicle Manufacturing, liked what he saw, and asked Mick and Matt Ellard and the team to complete the ’46. Despite the extensive metalwork the coupe ute had already received, the Image crew spent countless hours further refining it, along with tidying up the gaps, making new 40mm-wider rear guards, reshaping and widening the running boards, and smoothing out myriad awkward factory areas.

This included radically reworking the cowl area to make it flow better. The hood sides now bolt into place rather than hanging off the hinged top, and the Image team also heat-shrunk the factory bulge out of the doors, made a new floor, and completely reworked the back of the cab.

“I never set out to build a show car,” says Simon, “but Image’s awesome work ethic and amazing attention to detail took it to this level. They nailed it!”

The Chev’s cool, W-series 409ci big-block had sat around for nine years, so Advanced Performance Machining (APM) stripped the US-built mill down for a health check. Good thing they did, as it was far from the “stout” build Simon had paid for. APM corrected the wrongs and added a host of go-fast goodies, resulting in a throaty mill that puts out an effortless 500-plus horses and 480lb-ft.

Simon likes to do the gear-changing himself, so the original Chevy shifter now operates a TKO 600 five-speed. From there, power is routed to the Winters quick-change rear via a Ricky’s Drive Shafts chrome-moly tailshaft. To help make engineering a breeze, there’s also a full Commodore brake system, albeit with Wilwood calipers on the rear.

For the paint, Image custom-mixed a green to match as closely as possible the original design rendering by Simon’s mate Chad Williams. The colour, chrome, stance, and new windows and screens from Glass 4 Classics all combine to make this truck pop.

Inside, there’s loads more old-school cool thanks to exquisite work by Hy-Tone Motor Trimmers. “It looks like a simple interior, but it was a tonne of work,” Bill from Hy-Tone says. “We started with nothing: the seat foams, hoodlining, hood bows, door cards and armrests we had to make all from scratch.” To keep the cabin looking period, there’s a hidden audio system with fibreglass speaker boxes, concealed retractable seatbelts and Tretford goat-hair carpet. Classic Instruments retrofitted the original gauge cluster with electronic gauges that replicate the look of the vacuum-operated originals. “I wish more customers were like Simon,” Bill says. “He had a clear vision – with photos – yet was open to ideas. We discussed leathers, cloths, design ideas, and it came together hassle-free.”

Mind you, buying parts for the cabin was a nightmare. “I spent hours scouring the US for parts,” says Simon. “I bought a heap of repro stuff for a regular ’46 pick-up, but virtually none of it was the same – the coupe utility is different in every way. Even the pricy repro door handles were nowhere near close. But they were nicer looking, so I had them de-chromed, machined to fit and re-chromed. This went on and on.”

It’s easy to see why this build was a 12-year marathon, and Simon reckons he couldn’t have done it without Karen. “She was supportive the whole way,” he says. “Despite it costing a bomb, she never once put the brakes on the spending.”

And was it all worth it? “Definitely,” Simon enthuses. “A lot of people don’t attempt these trucks – they’re too hard to make look good – but I now stand in my garage looking at it for hours. It’s low, it’s proportionally fat – I love it. Winning Top Hot Rod Pick-up and coming second in both Hot Rod Paintwork and Hot Rod Bodywork at the Sydney Hot Rod & Custom Expo was the icing on cake.”

SIMON FAWCETT & KAREN SAVAGE
1946 CHEVROLET COUPE UTILITY

THANKS
Mick, Matt, Paul, Burnsie, Liam, Luke and Gavin at Image Vehicle Manufacturing; David and Jayson at Woods & Woods; Bill and Kailen at Hy-Tone Motor Trimming; Aaron at Advanced Performance Machining; Glass 4 Classics; All Metal Bumpers.