In 1930s America, if you wanted to have a car that showed off your wealth and upper-class society standing, there were a number of brands and models you could choose from that would prove you were a fully paid-up member of the upper class set. There was the Lincoln Model K, the Cadillac Sixteen, the Duesenberg Model J, the Cord 812 and the Imperial, Chrysler’s top-of-the-range model that was first produced in 1926.

Although it might not seem unlikely, this amazing-looking vehicle is actually an Imperial – a 1938 model, in fact.

Saying it is heavily-modified and customised would, of course, be putting it mildly, and it is the handiwork of one man, Shane Gilchrist, owner of classic car consignment business, Firepower Customs and Classics.

For some of the older hot rod and custom car enthusiasts amongst you, this Imperial may look familiar. No surprise there as some 28 years ago, when it first emerged from Shane’s workshop after seven years of hard slog, this car stunned custom car fans, graced the cover of automotive magazines and won a glut of awards at top-level shows across the country – including Top Sedan at the 10th Hot Rod National at Penrith in 1991.

Named Fat Attack – because cars with such bulbous styling were known as ‘fat fenders’ and were unusual at the time – the Imperial is a one-of-a-kind classic and its story is a cracker.
Discovered by Shane and a school mate in the early ‘80s, the Imperial was rotting away, semi-submerged in a swamp! A complete mess, it was hauled from said swamp and off to Shane’s workshop where, over the next seven years, he slaved away, doing all the work – chassis, body repair, paint, graphics and interior – himself and all for the wildly impressive and wallet-friendly sum of $9000.

“I was 19 years old and was really interested in a ’36 Ford hot rod that was running around Wynnum at the time,” says Shane. “I had always admired it and one day I was with a mate from school and said how much I would love to get one like that. He then told me there was something similar to that one in a swamp behind his neighbour’s house!

“We went to look for it, and we could barely find it as the bulrushes had grown up around it and it was bogged down to the running boards.

“It had a flathead straight-8 engine that had plants growing out of the plugholes and there was even a tree that had grown through the passenger floor and out through the window! We spent a weekend getting the thing cleared before towing it out and down to my workshop. It couldn’t have been in worse condition.”

While the Imperial was in pretty shocking condition, it was, and is, a bit of a rarity – less than 100 of the luxury sedans were brought into Australia in right-hand drive and, of those, Shane says only three remain. However, restoring the Imperial back to factory specs was, he says, never an option.

“I never planned to put it back to its original condition,” he says. “It was ugly – they are ugly cars!”

The result of deciding to go full hot rod is pretty darn cool and is, it would be fair to say, not a bad effort for a man who didn’t do an apprenticeship and who actually ended up in the industry thanks to an interest in art and a borrowed airbrush.

“My story is a bit nuts,” says Shane. “I was in high school and didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, but my brother, who was doing architectural rendering at university, had an airbrush and during the school holidays of my last year of school, I picked it up, started messing about with it, and I was fascinated.

“I started doing airbrush art, doing paintings and selling them in galleries and art shows and so on, and I began to wonder if I could start painting cars.

“My dad ended up letting me put murals all over his old F100 ute, then rented me a little two-car garage and bought a compressor, five cans of paint and an airbrush. And off I went. I had no trade, no experience, didn’t have a clue what I was going, but did have a lot of bravado!”

Establishing Shiloh Custom Art in 1980, Shane’s career trajectory certainly is an unusual one.

His first job was to paint a sign, his second job a motorcycle, and the next a motorcycle which just happened to have a dent that the owner wanted fixed up too. An acquaintance then asked for a cheap repaint of an old HR Holden . . . and so on it went, Shane’s business slowly building with each job, and each job offering a bigger challenge than the one before.

Murals on panel vans followed, and the sale of one of his own vans led to the purchase of an XB Falcon hardtop which Shane customised and quickly sold.

“When I sold the XB, I thought that maybe I could make a bit of money by customising and I subsequently got interested in hot rods and started the Fat Attack project,” he says. “During the period of that project I did a few T-buckets – they were cheap to buy and quick to build – and worked on projects for club members, so although Fat Attack was my first project, by the time it was finished I had completed quite a few.

“I then drifted over to do smash repair as well but there was no satisfaction in that work, so I got out of that and began doing restorations of XY Falcons and HT Holdens.”

After 20 years of working hands on in the business, stress and financial pressures were taking their toll and Shane chose to sell the business and take a different direction until about four years ago when he established Shed 27.

Shed 27 is a social enterprise and community hub that, through automotive restoration and other projects, enables participants to learn new skills in auto electric, mechanics, fabrication, panel beating, spray painting and auto upholstery. Its main clients are those with disabilities, the underemployed and retirees.

Something of a philanthropic endeavour for Shane, who has kept the project going with minimal outside funding, it is partly the reason behind the development of his newest venture, Firepower Customs and Classics.

“Shed 27 started as a noble idea that I could do something for the community – that it could be somewhere where those who were lonely or who had problems could come and mix with others and work on projects together,” he says.

“Four years on, we have accomplished a lot. We have about 30 guys that go there all the time and who work on projects and it’s a hive of activity. But it has been tough financially and out of necessity I’ve have had to find ways to make money to stay open. So, I do car restorations, trailer fabrication and metal fabrication for clients. And the latest thing is the consignment selling of classic cars through Firepower Customs and Classics.”

Now into its third month in business, Firepower Custom and Classics has 14 classic vehicles on its books, including a ’57 Thunderbird, a ’71 Dodge Challenger RT, a ’59 Chevy Belair and a selection of classic trucks including a ’58 Chevy Apache and ’65 Chevy C10.

“In America, consignment car sales yards are huge, and I have said for years that it would be great to have a place like that,” says Shane. “My model is a little different to other consignment businesses though. At the moment, the seller keeps hold of the car and can continue to enjoy it up to the moment we sell it. They don’t have any of the sales hassle, that’s on me. All they have to do is provide the car for a photo shoot and be available to show the car for a viewing if a serious buyer comes along.

“We are going to a virtual world and a lot of car sales happen online,” he adds. “I’ve talked to a lot of used car dealers and the question is whether there’s a need for a showroom anymore – people often know whether they want the car or not and often have already decided they’ll buy it because they like the photos and the price.

“So, the model is changing, and I’m looking to see if that works. I do have a building that will work as a showroom should that prove to be a better model, but we’ll see how we go.”
One car that isn’t for sale, at least not at the moment, is Fat Attack, though there has been plenty of interest.
“I was offered $100,000 for it about six years ago but I don’t think I’ll part with
it . . . though I’d never say never,” says Shane. “In fact, I have been thinking that I might rebuild it.

“But there’s a bit of irony there” he adds. “It’s a nostalgia hot rod and it’s actually probably worth more if it stays as it is. It’s nearly 30 years old, has never been changed and is a bit of an icon in the community. So, do I leave it alone or do I rebirth it as a new design? That’s the dilemma.”

To keep a classic, brilliant-looking hot rod or spend your time following your passion and build something new? Sounds like a nice dilemma to have!