LONG BEACH, Calif. - For the past 23 years, Jerry Dixey has been leading the Street Rodder Road Tour across the United States. An estimated two million event spectators will see the classic truck with its modern upgrades as it makes its journey across the United States to attend nine total events in nine different cities. This year, he is driving a 1932 Ford truck with a truck body created by United Pacific Industries (UPI), the company which is the name-in-title sponsor of the 2018 Street Rodder Road Tour.
The '32 Ford truck body is an officially Ford-licensed exact replica of the original 1932 truck with more than a few modern touches added to the vehicle. Additions include: superior braking supplied by Wilwood Disc Brakes built into the vehicle, climate controlled heating and air-conditioning from Vintage Air, Flaming River steering components, Roadster Shop framing, a Ford Performance engine, Powermaster Performance alternator and starter, SPW power windows and wipers, Dakota Digital instrumentation, a modern radio with a classic look from Custom Autosound and Vintique Wheels mounted on Coker Tires. In total, 33 automotive companies sponsored this vehicle with their products.
Now that the Ford F-150 is the most popular truck in America and Ford has been producing trucks for more than a century, bringing this classic '32 Ford pickup truck to national events is a point which is not only fitting but also draws interest and intrigue. Built by Hot Rods by Dean in Phoenix, Arizona, the UPI '32 truck will travel more than 20,000 miles across the country, and Dixey is excited to be leading the tour once again.
"The Street Rodder Road Tour has been a lot of fun for me for the past 23 years. I get to meet a lot of people and see a lot of sights. I'm enjoying making a living getting to do exactly what I'd be doing if I was retired," Street Rodder Road Tour Leader Jerry Dixey said. "The past few years, I've been driving cars from the 50's and 60's, so it's been great to go back to the classic idea of a hot rodder for this tour."
"These custom, hand-built street rods are so different from modern vehicles. The suspension is unlike any other suspension on the roads today, so that brings some adjustments on my part every time I get behind the wheel of a tour vehicle. I absolutely trust the vehicles because they're handcrafted by the best in the business and are state-of-the-art. Now that I'm halfway through the tour, I can really feel how well this truck drives. It's a well-built truck and performs exceptionally," Dixey said.
United Pacific Industries offers the 1932 Ford truck body to make it both easy and convenient for rodding enthusiasts to build their own while eliminating any of the difficulties typically associated with restoring a classic vehicle. And a big upside to choosing the United Pacific truck body panels is that modern engineering has gone into producing the parts, making them stronger than the classic parts one would salvage from a junkyard.
"We're really excited to be sponsoring the Street Rodder Road Tour this year, and all of us at United Pacific are proud to see how enthusiastically this '32 Ford truck has been received by rodders across America," said Jai Baek, marketing director for United Pacific Industries. "Our company has deep roots in developing classic car parts with a modern edge. It's great to be able to offer our 1932 Ford truck body panels to automotive customizers, and we're really pleased with how Hot Rods by Dean has completed the vehicle."
Street Rodder Magazine will create a one-of-a-kind newsstand special which concentrates on the buildup of the car with in-depth how-to articles in the "A Guide to Building a Street Rod" issue. The magazine will also create the technical manual giving detailed instruction on how to build this vehicle, which will be available for purchase on amazon.com. Hotrod.com will post the complete construction of the truck and serve as an online instruction manual for installation of each product used in the build. In addition, each leg of the Street Rodder Road Tour journey will be updated on the website with photos and videos of the events.
Street Rodder Road Tour leader Jerry Dixey will be posting regular updates about the tour on Street Rodder Magazine's Facebook page, located here: www.facebook.com/streetroddermag/.
About United Pacific Industries
United Pacific Industries is a leading manufacturer of heavy duty truck and classic vehicle parts. With parts engineered with superior reliability to meet the demands of customers and automotive enthusiasts, United Pacific sets the standard for quality, design and innovation. More than 20,000 parts are available from United Pacific for big rigs and classic cars. For more information, call 866.327.5288 or visit UPauto.com. Follow United Pacific: facebook.com/UPcarparts or Instagram: @unitedpacificlongbeach.
