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John Seifert has had a love affair with classic cars since the age of 13. His ’54 Delivery was the result of patience and persistence. John had originally purchased the Delivery from his neighbor at the time, Harry Provolt from Simi Valley, CA. Although his neighbor was in California the Delivery was in Grants Pass, Oregon. During a divorce in the 90s John had ended up selling the Delivery back to his neighbor but in 1996 he bought it back. A clear example of keeping your eye on the prize.
Rod Authority wanted to know if John had given this custom Delivery a name, he told us, “When younger guys would come over to look at the Delivery they would say, ‘man that’s extreme.’ They said it one time too many so the Delivery became Extreme.”
The original cost of the vehicle was $600. More than $200,000 worth of custom work has been put into the Delivery. Extreme was finished in May of 2013. According to On All Cylinders, “John spent two years block sanding the entire vehicle. After that, it spent seven years at Scott’s Hot Rods in Ventura, CA where it received a new chassis.” Here are a few highlights about John and Judy Seifert’s ’54 Chevy Delivery:
- Power Train: 1969 350 Chevy Hillborn Injected. Richmond 5 Speed Transmission. Crowler Cam. Track 1 Heads. Headers hand built by Ferdies Classy Chassis.
Wheels: E.T. 10 Spoke 15×6 Front 15×15.5 Rear- Front/Rear Suspension: Air Bags
- Steering: Flaming River Steering Column
- Brakes: Wilwood Polished Calipers/Drilled and Slotted Rotors
- Shaved Door Handles
- Rolled 1 3/4-inch A-post
- 3-inch Chop
- 3-inch Hood Section
- 6-inch Channel by Scotts Hot Rods and Customs
- Paint: PPG O So Orange
- Pinstriping: Striper Josh
- Gauges: TPI Tech
- Upholstery: Don Vigarino
John is responsible for the overall design of the Delivery. “I did the roll pan with a camera fitted for a rear view mirror, all of the sheet metal work on the inside of the car (dash board, console, window moulding, metal detail for back window, raised rear floor, wiring, air tank, radio vacuum tank, and air bag system), core support, and radiator cover,” says John.
The front and rear of Extreme feature air bag suspension and Wilwood Polished brakes. Further custom work around the car is highlighted by shaved handles, a 1 3/4-inch rolled A-post, a 3-inch roof chop, a 6-inch widening of the rear end, and a 3-inch hood section. 1998 Mercedes headlights were swapped in and the fender line was welded to create a seamless body. Scotts Hot Rods also channelled Extreme 6-inches. John handled the paint job himself choosing PPG paint color “O’ So Orange.” The pinstriping adourning the side panels and running through to the rear was done by Striper Josh.
Extreme is no light weight and has won several awards in its six months of reincarnation – Nevada University Athletic Department’s Choice at Spring Festival, an honor at the Kick Off to Hot August Nights, Special Olympic Choice at Burgers and Cops, Best in Woodies, Panel, and Station Wagons and Champion of Show at the Beach Party, Summit Racing’s Best in Show for an Alzheimer’s Benefit and Summit Racing’s pick for A Benefit for David.
For a first project, John definitely tackled this Chevy Delivery hard. A lot of custom work was put into this build and looking at it, it’s truly a one off vehicle featuring a laundry list of personal styling cues and custom body details.
