2021 Goodguys Speedway Motors Homebuilt Heaven Winners
Speedway Motors is proud to sponsor the Goodguys Homebuilt Heaven and Traditional Homebuilt Heaven awards. These awards are given out at Goodguys shows in honor of enthusiasts who choose to build their cars in the home garage with passion, skill, and patience (and maybe a Speedway Motors catalog or two!)
At the end of the 2021, the winners from throughout the year were placed on an online ballot to determine the yearend winners in each category. After the votes were tallied, both winners happen to be ’34 Fords, but they’re wildly different from one another. Check it out below and you’ll see what we mean.
’34 Ford Cabriolet - Jerry and Rosalind Payne
The Traditional Homebuilt Heaven winner is this timeless cabriolet the the Payne’s have owned for 30 years. The car was already a street rod when John picked it up, and he’s refined it over the years.
There is nothing wild on this car, no superchargers or crazy graphics, and it really embodies the “timeless” spirit of the Traditional Homebuilt Heaven award. The Chevy 350 and TH350 make it a reliable driver, and the well-worn leather upholstery makes for a comfy place to watch the miles click off on the Classic Instruments speedometer. The black paint has been on the car for ages, but still shines up nicely when Jerry and Rosalind hit the road to Goodguys events across the country.
’34 Ford Coupe – John Martin
John Martin’s ’34 coupe occupies the opposite end of the spectrum from the Payne’s subtle cabriolet. This car is anything but subtle, and these two together show the wild range of what can be done in the home garage.
John was a drag racer in the old days, and his coupe pairs the outrageous look of the Funny Cars and Fuel Altereds that he saw on the strip back in the day with modern tech and safety to make it a driver. But don’t worry, that wild, stack-injected big block hasn’t been de-tuned for street manners. In fact, it makes 850 horsepower from a staggering 693 cubes. That cool looking injector is made livable on the street by a FAST system and custom plenum, and the zoomies can be closed up in favor of an under-car system with mufflers.
The cockpit features an NHRA-certified cage, leather upholstered Speedway Motors bomber seats, and Hurst shifter that gives order to the Powerglide that’s beneath the fabricated console and switch panel. Outside, the top was chopped about 4-inches and the John built a custom firewall to reflect the shape of the ’34 grille shell.
Two ’34 Fords, two well-deserved Homebuilt Heaven awards. We can't wait to see more great Homebuilt Heaven contenders in 2022!
Images by Goodguys and John Jackson.