Bill Neumann has been crafting show-stopping hot rods since the 1950s, yet he’s probably best known for his Neuspeed go-fast parts for imports.
When I knew Bill Neumann he was an accountant, Treasurer of the Draggin Wheels hot rod club I was a member of, and the builder of a stunning red Model A roadster channeled over ’32 Ford rails and fitted with a tri-power Chevy small-block. That was the mid-1950s, when I drove a mildly customized, Cadillac Blue ’40 Mercury convertible sedan powered by a stock flathead with duals and twin Stromberg carbs. I also owned a much-modified MG TC with left hand drive, cycle fenders, louvered hood and powered by a bored & stroked Ford V8-60 Flathead built by Bronx, NY Indy and Sprint car builder, Tony Bonadies. It was finished in grey primer because I couldn’t afford a paint job. Today, that’s Rat Rod trendy!
I was the club’s Publicity Director and one of the first pieces I wrote and placed was the front page story in the bi-monthly January-February 1956 KOA Club News, published by the Kustoms of America: First Annual Draggin Wheels Autorama Held in New York January 11-15. At that show, Bill Neumann, above with V12 roadster, won a First in the Roadster Class and the trophy for Best Upholstery with his red roadster. Later Bill hightailed it for sunnier climes in California. In the 1960s he was editor of Rod & Custom magazine and later founded Neuspeed that he still runs.
After all these years, Bill is still doing what he does best, building head-turning hot rods. And, they are still red. His nostalgia or old-school ’32 Ford five-window coupe is chopped and channeled and sports a Chevy small-block crate motor with three-twos, above. The latest, a radical ’32 Ford roadster relies on BMW V12 power, below, with BMW styling cues evident in its grille.
Bill Neumann’s hot rods were photographed for the Car Guy Chronicles at the Wheels & Waves Show on State St., Santa Barbara, CA by our good friend Jim Palam, http://jimpalam.com/
For the complete build stories on Bill Neumann’s hot rods, please visit
http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/build/billneumannbmw/
http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/build/BillNeumann/
To see what Bill Neumann does when he’s not building and showing hot rods, check out http://www.neuspeed.com/splash.aspx
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