It’s car show and cruise night season, and all over the country the weekly and monthly cruises are keep enthusiasts pretty busy. A typical cruise-in will include food, beverages, a bit of a car show, and lots of ideas and motivation. But one monthly cruise that we recently visited also included a shop tour at The 401k Club Hot Rod Shop in Anaheim, California.

Melissa kept everyone fed, and entertained us with music all day.

The open garage happens monthly, with cars rolling in at about 9 AM, and lasts through lunch until about 1 PM. Some people show up and hang out for an hour or two, others stay for the full day, chatting it up and just socializing with other enthusiasts. Lunch is always provided, with either hot dogs or burgers, chips and sodas, and music to keep everyone entertained.

It’s a small parking lot that fills up on occasion, and the variety of rides varies, with gassers to modern musclecars and just about anything in between. A few are regulars who make the drive in their classic car every month – which is a great reason to get out and drive, and maybe show off a little as they leave.

Shop owner Dana Manier opens up his shop to anyone wanting to see what they do, and allows visitors to walk through the shop and check out the vehicles in various stages of build. Manier said, “Some shops keep things covered up, and hide their projects from potential customers. I want people to come in and see what we can do, to see what we’re capable of building, and to see how much work we put into our builds.”

It really makes sense, too, that potential customers can see what kind of work they can do, which includes paint work that they do at a separate location due to zoning regulations. One of the cars that was in the shop for us to see was a very cool 1956 Gasser project that just had the dark brandywine paint applied. Without lighting, the car appeared black, but Manier put some lights on the car so we could see the finish and the slight hint of brandywine in the paint.

The car has a custom coilover suspension front end with rack-and-pinion steering, and a full eight-point cage. We hear the motivation for the Tri-5 is going to be a blown 454, making this a rather unique Gasser being that it has modern luxuries like the steering, and electric brakes, as well as a full custom-made console. They applied sound deadening on the floor pan, roof, and instrument panel, which will also help to keep the heat down a bit.

Another car in the shop that caught our eye was the classic Jaguar XKE, with triple Weber carbs and some very cool detail work done to the engine. The paint looked great and it truly brought us back in time, with a car that we rarely ever see anymore. It just showcases that The 401k Club can do it all, and then some.

Manier opened the shop initially to store vehicles for people like himself with too many cars. Eight years ago, the restoration business took off and became what it is today. We asked about the catchy name, and he said, “After my father stopped working, he asked me if I thought he should spend some of his nest egg on a custom car.”

He asked his father which he liked looking at most, the paper or the car, so he invested some money in a 1956 Chevy Nomad, and over the next 15 years they kept building it and working on it. When he finally decided it was time to stop driving, the car was sold at Barrett-Jackson.

Looking back on all of the friendships that were made through various car clubs, the car had become a great investment that was more valuable than money, and the name was created. As his business cards read, “Drive your investment”, it makes for a catchy name for a hot rod shop. Manier says that he loves the automobile, and he loves driving them. He had been working on cars since he was about 15 years old, and left real estate and construction jobs to pursue his own investment – The 401k Club.

Tom Horvath can polish a fender, providing that fender is worth polishing. We stumped him.

We also ran into Tom Horvath, who regularly comes out to polish up a quarter panel or fender, showing people why he’s the man when it comes to detailing. Throughout the day, he showed participants how they can clean up their rides and put some shine to their paint. We invited him over to our patina and rust Belvedere, and he shrugged.

Next month, July 19th, 2014, the regular open garage will have a slight twist to it. For this show, the venue has changed slightly, running from 9 AM to 3 PM, with awards being handed out at 2 PM. There will be an entry for this show at $30/car, with proceeds benefiting the Children’s Miracle Network. There will also be a raffle for those who wish to buy raffle tickets. Be sure to come and visit The 401k Club Hot Rod Shop if you’re in Anaheim next month, it’s for a great cause and you get to hang out with a bunch of gearheads. How can you go wrong?

In the meantime, enjoy the gallery below from last weekends Open Garage at The 401k Club.