1956 Ford Pickup Isn’t Your Ordinary Daily Driver

Southern California auto enthusiast shares with LS1Tech his story of how he turned this fantasy truck into reality. 

This 1956 Ford pickup started life as farm truck in Blythe, California, before our buddy Jesse Alvarez got a hold of it. We recently met the Southern California auto enthusiast after a random encounter in a local parking lot, where we stopped to admire his classic truck. Jesse was cool enough to share the story behind his ’56 Ford, which he initially found while working on a customer call during his day job as a copy service technician. From its meager farming life, it was left sitting until he bought it and took it home. The 1956 Ford pickup was the style of truck that caught Jesse’s eye and he knew he had to have it.

From vintage beauty to modern-day badass.

It was hard work and dedication that transformed this 1956 Ford pickup into the truck you see now. Under that amazing body is an F-body Camaro front clip welded on, with a carbureted Corvette L99 sitting between the frame rails. Sending the power from that former ‘Vette engine is a rebuilt 700R4 automatic transmission that runs into a four-linked F-body rear axle. That killer static look is thanks to an air ride system that Jesse built himself. What’s more impressive is that this allows him to tackle the corners like a C5, perhaps even better than a C5.

So, why go through all that trouble to make a Ford into a Chevrolet? Cost and sourcing parts, explains Jesse: “I would have loved to go with Ford parts, but GM parts are readily available and cheaper for a build.” Well, as they say, you can find Chevy parts everywhere, even at your local 7-Eleven. However, that’s not to say that the build isn’t high quality.

This certainly isn’t just some budget build.

Equally impressive is the interior and metal work he’s done. The original driver’s side fender once held the spare tire but that’s been replaced by a passenger-side fender, since they are shaped and bolt on the same. Also gone is the worn wood bed and in its place is a four-plank version Jesse did himself. Inside, the interior has been completely removed and replaced with custom touches, including a Vintage Air air conditioning system sitting behind that all metal dashboard. The original speaker hole in the center of it has also been welded and filled for a smooth finish.

Is this truck simply too awesome to drive daily?

Would you daily-drive this truck with its show-quality looks? Well, Jesse does and without fear. However, that doesn’t mean it hasn’t had its share of accidents, either. The front has been wrecked and replaced, as has the rear bumper and tailgate. That last part was especially tough to repair. The man who originally painted Jesse’s truck was unavailable and a new painter had to match the tailgate to its original scheme.

‘There’s only one reason to drive a car daily: You only live one life and you build the car for your satisfaction and happiness.’

The front has been wrecked and replaced, as has the rear bumper and tailgate. That last part was especially tough to repair. The man who originally painted Jesse’s truck was unavailable and a new painter had to match the tailgate to its original scheme.

Despite that, Jesse continues to drive the truck daily. In fact, that’s how we met him, in the parking lot of a Stater Bros getting groceries. “There’s only one reason you would choose to drive a car daily: You only live one life and you build the car for your satisfaction and happiness,” says Jesse. “The only challenge I have is that [I hope] people respect your car as much as you do and not destroy it.”

Everywhere Jesse goes in his ’56 Ford, he says that people slow down, take pictures, and remanence about their own builds or former dreams of a vehicle like his. Some even offer to buy the truck outright, cash in hand, for more than even he put into it. Even so, this has been his own dream vehicle and he’s yet to take an offer.

“If it was going to go overseas, then yeah, I’d probably sell it,” Jesse says just before we part ways. “I wouldn’t be able to bear seeing it after everything I’ve been through with it.”

At the end of the day, we can’t blame him.