Jim Presten’s 1940 Chevrolet / Corvette

I purchased the 1940 Chevrolet Special Deluxe coupe from my brother in 1959 – I was 15 years old. At the time, it had a highly modified ’58 Corvette engine, originally set up for drag racing.

In 1990, I began complete disassembly with the idea of installing a crate engine, automatic transmission and modern suspension. Shortly after that, I got a call inquiring as to whether I’d be interested in buying a 1985 Corvette that had been totaled. I jumped at the idea after a little research and determined that the components could be adapted to my Chevy.

Grafting the Corvette components turned out to be pretty straightforward. Shortly after completion, we made a trip to Spokane to reunite with all of the previous owners. Sadie Mills had purchased the car from Buchanan Chevrolet in December 1939. She drove it until selling it to Chad Mitchell (of Chad Mitchell Trio fame) in 1953. My brother purchased the car in 1956 and flew in from St. Helena to complete the reunion (see photo)

In July 2006 my wife and I drove to St Helena, CA to meet up with my brother and his wife to drive our two 1940 Chevys to Louisville, KY for the NSRA Street Rod Nationals. This 30-day, 7000 plus mile trip turned into a memory we still share.

Upon returning from the Louisville trip, I decided to update the engine and transmission combination to the current setup – 2006 Chevrolet LS 2 engine and 4L65 automatic transmission. Twenty years after the completion and the car still looks good and performs very reliably. Memories of dating my wife, Betty, recur each time we take the car out for a drive! – Jim Presten