Style and Speed: Rebuilt Buick Regal Gbody Unleases on the Street

(Tommy)>> You're watching Powernation!

(Tommy)>> Today is the day Street Regal is finally complete. We head to M&M Hot Rod Interiors as they put the final touches on our one of a kind interior.

(Marc)>> Then we put all our hard work to the test on the track and the streets making sure our Buick checks off all the right boxes. [ MUSIC ] [ engines revving ] [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Hey y'all, welcome to Detroit Muscle. Today is gonna be one great day. We're heading down to M&M Hot Rod Interiors to pick up our Buick. We dropped it off a while back and I got a phone call just recently saying that thing was pretty much ready for us to come check it out and drag it back home. Now they have done some work for us in the past and what they did, well they knocked it out of the park. So with that said I can't wait to check our Buick out. [ MUSIC ] Hey wild man you left the door unlocked. So I made my way in here.

(Wayne)>> Yeah sometimes we mess up and do that.

(Tommy)>> Is this our stuff?

(Wayne)>> Yep, this is it.

(Tommy)>> You got anything completed yet?

(Wayne)>> Absolutely we've got one seat finished.

(Tommy)>> Can I take a look at it?

(Wayne)>> Sure!

(Tommy)>> Where's it at?

(Wayne)>> Sitting on the table.

(Tommy)>> Man this is one trick piece bud.

(Wayne)>> Well thank you Tommy. I'm glad you like it.

(Tommy)>> How much time you got in on this thing?

(Wayne)>> Probably a day, day and a half.

(Tommy)>> Now to build this does it take a whole lot of different material to do it?

(Wayne)>> Well we start out with clear plastic to get the patterns, and you really need to do that on one of these that's got all the multiple pieces. So that way you get everything fitting right, and it sews up good, and so that and some foam and different textures of leather.

(Tommy)>> Now with the foam did you have to re-foam this entire seat?

(Wayne)>> The inserts are all new. The sides we just steamed the old foam and it kinda plumps it back up, and then we glue a quarter inch scrim over it with the scrim side out to make the cover slide on easier cause these are kinda tough to get the covers on.

(Tommy)>> I notice with the leather there's a couple of different ones here.

(Wayne)>> We used a smooth dark brown just for contrast because these cars need a little contrast, and then we used a perforated insert, which is a lot like the late model cars. The perforated leather will breathe and you don't sweat as much.

(Tommy)>> Is it a little more stretchy too?

(Wayne)>> It's a little more stretchy because of all the little needle holes and it is a little more pliable than say this leather.

(Tommy)>> Now I see the rivets here, and this is kind of a trendy thing. Is that very complicated to do?

(Wayne)>> Not hard at all. You want me to show you?

(Tommy)>> Absolutely! Now with part of this laid out here it doesn't look all that complicated but that seat, well that's a little different story.

(Wayne)>> Yeah it looks a little different when you just get the insert ready but we got this one stitched up and it's ready to put the grommets in.

(Tommy)>> Do we have to cut the hole first?

(Wayne)>> Yep, gotta punch a hole.

(Tommy)>> Now where you're spacing is there anything particular like a rule of thumb or anything?

(Wayne)>> Just depends on the seat and the width of the insert. The way the insert's laid out these ended up being three and a half inches, and then I center the grommet three and a half inches in between there. But you could do it if it's a four inch or even a two inch.

(Tommy)>> What do we need to do to get started then?

(Wayne)>> We need to punch some holes.

(Tommy)>> And to make those nice uniform holes he's using a specialized hole punch. [ metal clanging ]

(Tommy)>> After a few taps of the hammer you've got perfection.

(Wayne)>> That's all there is to it. [ MUSIC ] [ metal clanging ] [ MUSIC ] [ metal clanging ] [ MUSIC ]

(Wayne)>> There we go! [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Now what's this big hunk of metal you got?

(Wayne)>> Just a special grommet set, and they make different sizes for different size grommets. So I've got several, and then you do it bottom side up.

(Tommy)>> Can you damage the material putting this on there?

(Wayne)>> Not really, as long as you don't miss. [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> How do you know when it's compressed all the way?

(Wayne)>> Just a couple of licks with a hammer that's all you've got.

(Tommy)>> That looks nice. [ MUSIC ] [ metal clanging ] [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> Silly question, do you have any idea where them things came from?

(Wayne)>> The grommets?

(Tommy)>> Yeah, like where they originated. What was the purpose for them?

(Wayne)>> Just a breathing hole. They used to put them on the bottom of boat seat cushions and furniture cushions to let air escape.

(Tommy)>> Now people are using them for stylistic purposes.

(Wayne)>> Yeah just the coolness factor. [ MUSIC ] And there we go! [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> You're making it look too easy.

(Wayne)>> Nothing to it!

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(Tommy)>> Coming up we button up Street Regal's luxurious interior.

(Tommy)>> Our interior's turning out killer, and just like those fancy seats our door panels are fancy as well. Now Jeremy told me that fabbing up this stuff isn't as complicated as it looks. He's working on that driver's side. Let's check him out. So wild man what do you got going on here?

(Jeremy)>> Well we've got your driver's door panel here and we're about ready to laminate the second panel onto the first one.

(Tommy)>> How did you get to this point?

(Jeremy)>> Well we drew out the design. We cut our panels apart, and then we went ahead and glued this panel on just because that's easier. Foamed it, and then we've got the leather covered on it already.

(Tommy)>> So what's your next step?

(Jeremy)>> Next step is we're gonna bond this one to this one. We're gonna put the pins in these holes and go straight down with it. We'll press it down really well just to make sure that the panels stick together good. Now we're gonna press our edges down so that when we glue our other panel on it's nice and flat. [ MUSIC ] With the leather smoothed out now on the panel what we're gonna do is we're gonna glue the top panel on, and we need to go ahead and spray the glue on both sides.

(Tommy)>> How much glue are you putting on?

(Jeremy)>> Just a thin layer. You just want a good even coat. Not too thick or not too wet so that it takes forever to dry. Now when we spray the glue on this panel I'm gonna try not to get any on the foam cause we don't want the foam to stick before it needs to. Now we're gonna come back and brush glue along all the edges.

(Tommy)>> That's basically because it's more controlled?

(Jeremy)>> Yes, you get a lot more control over it with a brush. [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> I'd figure while you would be brushing you'd at least have your pinkies out.

(Jeremy)>> That would make me look more fancy.

(Tommy)>> Pin stripers do it. [ MUSIC ] Now if you got that a little excessive and it run off to the edge can you get that off?

(Jeremy)>> You can. You can use 3-M cleaner to clean the glue off.

(Tommy)>> When you spread that on there how long do you have to wait?

(Jeremy)>> It'll be about 10 to 15 minutes. Just enough time for it to tack up so you can stick them together. Now that we've let the glue set up on the panels we're gonna stick the two panels together. [ MUSIC ] Now with the top panel glued on we're gonna fold leather and the foam back and spray glue on the back side of the foam and on the top cap. Now we just need to give that a few minutes to dry and then we'll stick it together. With our glue dry now we'll just smooth out our foam. [ MUSIC ] Now we just need to take a razor blade and trim away all the excess. Now with our foam glued and trimmed you can kinda see the unevenness on the panel. What we're gonna do now is take our sanding block and our sand paper, and just sand that down and try to do away with this dip. [ MUSIC ] Alright Tommy, with our foam sanded all we've got to do is spray glue on the foam and the leather, and then fold the leather over and finish the panel. Once that dries we'll finish our panel. Alright now we're ready to apply our leather.

(Tommy)>> On the outside looking in it looks like for a creative person this would be an amazing job.

(Jeremy)>> Oh yeah, you've pretty much got freedom on all your designs and everything. Sometimes we work with renderings but a lot of the time it's just whatever we come up with. With that smoothed down all that's left to do is turn it over and finish it on the back side. Alright that's it. All that's left is to put it on the car.

(Tommy)>> I can't wait to see it. [ MUSIC ]

(Jeremy)>> Alright right and that's ready to go.

(Tommy)>> M&M took our Buick to the next level. She now has a full custom upholstery with high end Douglas leather. They showed off their skills by using multiple textures, rivets, and pleats to give us an aggressive interior, while yet keeping it refined to complement our Buick by selecting the perfect color combinations accompanied with pure craftsman style stitching. The only thing we have to do now is go enjoy our creation out on the pavement. [ MUSIC ]

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(Tommy)>> The journey has been long but worth it.

(Marc)>> We'll take Street Regal to the track and lay down some rubber.

(Marc)>> We are here at NCM Motorsports Park because this is where this car was built to perform right Tommy?

(Tommy)>> Not exactly. We built this car over the course of many moons and I'll tell you have it out here on a day like today is gonna be a great day.

(Marc)>> Well we built Sidewinder to battle this thing and unfortunately that car's long gone now, and I had a nice trip out to Tulsa with that car. I had a lot of fun, even though this car is really kinda focused for the street, thus the name Street Regal, I think even you will be surprised at what this thing can do out here.

(Tommy)>> Absolutely, this car's got the right combo under it. Big brakes, nice suspension, plenty of power up under the hood, and I'll tell you Marc the keys are in it. I'm gonna let you do the honors.

(Marc)>> Alright! That's what I wanted to hear!

(Tommy)>> Don't break her.

(Marc)>> I'll try not to.

(Tommy)>> You can abuse her but don't break her. [ engine revving ]

(Tommy)>> Now a few of you guys are probably curious why I gave the keys away to Marc so easily. Well Marc's a friend of mine and he's pulled a lot of hours putting that car together right there beside me, and you know out here on the track I know that's really where he shines. So heck sometimes you've just got to give good things away.

(Marc)>> Wow, this thing is super flat. [ engine revving ]

(Marc)>> Wow, this thing actually likes it out here. Well the first thing I notice lots of power, and lots of grip too. Lot of lateral grip. Big meats in the back, plenty of grip in the front. Plenty of braking, lots of braking. You know being that this thing is a Buick Regal, a grandma's car essentially. It's a little odd, especially with this steering wheel, and being an automatic it's slightly awkward. It's just not your normal track car, and I know this isn't a track car and Tommy will argue that's not what it was built for, but this thing's plenty capable. It's like kinda got an identity crisis to me because it's a street car but it's capable of doing anything you ask of it out here. Its limits are kind of what I can do. I can't really up shift and down shift very easily because it's an automatic. So limited there. As much lateral grip as it has I'm finding myself holding myself in the car, in the seat with the steering wheel, with my grip on the steering wheel. So I find myself putting less input in, or taking the turns a little more slowly because I can't stay in the seat, and it's actually kinda fun. It's awesome! Coming down the straight now. [ engine revving ]

(Marc)>> Easily surpassing 100. The gauges are happy, I'm happy! [ MUSIC ]

(Tommy)>> I'm not sure but this ole Buick may have converted you. What do you think?

(Marc)>> No I think we converted it.

(Tommy)>> That's a given. From where I was at up there this thing looked great.

(Marc)>> The complaint I have. It needs harnesses, if it had a stick, but I understand that's not what this car was built for. But if I had to blame something on it it'd be that. That's our fault. We didn't do it for that. The only other thing is it almost has an identity crisis. So it's like acceleration, plenty of acceleration. All the power you want, but then again when you're not under hard acceleration it's comfortable and it's quiet. It's like it's trying to be two different things at the same time and it's not doing either one of those really poorly. So it's a cruiser and it's a potential racer if it had those few components. Again it's not what it was built to do.

(Tommy)>> This car here, for me per se, I just wanted it to perform really well but I didn't want to sacrifice any comforts or even the appeal of it by going fast.

(Marc)>> Mission accomplished. The suspension, the brakes, the handling and acceleration, everything under the car is all there.

(Tommy)>> Sounds like we did alright then.

(Marc)>> Good job, I'll hand it to you.

(Tommy)>> I have say up in that crow's nest seeing this thing rip around it was quite the sight. This thing looks darn good ripping.

(Marc)>> You do it. See what I'm talking about.

(Tommy)>> I'll bet you burnt up all the fuel in this thing. Oh, what is the gas gauge?

(Marc)>> I think it's got an eighth of a tank.

(Tommy)>> You ran it out of gas. It don't have an eighth of a tank. That's why you wanted me to drive it. You wanted me to fill it back up you son of a gun.

(Marc)>> Make sure you put premium in it.

(Tommy)>> As its name implies we take our Buick to the street to see how regal it really is.

(Tommy)>> Getting out here on these back roads and stretching this thing out is definitely putting a smile on my face. We've been working on this car for a long time. We went through the suspension. We've done paint and body work on it. Had the interior redone. Basically this car has been touched from the front bumper to the back, and you know that in itself is quite the undertaking. [ MUSIC ] A key component of building a car that performs well going, stopping, turning and all is having a solid foundation. So whenever we went with a Street Rod Garage chassis we knew we had knocked it out of the park. [ MUSIC ] [ engine revving ]

(Tommy)>> Now whenever you're putting together a ride one thing that I can't stress enough is picking the right color because this is what everyone sees and you see. If you don't pick the right color every time you see the car it can leave you a little bit disheartened. Where this color we picked is deep cherry red, very tasteful. It's almost making my mouth water already. Ole Marc was pretty complimentary of the Buick when he was out there beating on the thing at the track, saying that it performed really nice. Now for me a track car is okay but the sweet spot is having a ride that you can take to the track and stretch out here on the highway. [ MUSIC ] Now with that Connect and Cruise that we put up under the hood of this thing the power level on it is 525 horse, and that's almost like the perfect number. It's got plenty of pep, it's got a lot of manners to it, and if you want to get a little rowdy that's as easy as smashing on the gas pedal. [ MUSIC ] Some people call it spirited driving. I just kinda call it goofing off. [ engine revving ]

(Tommy)>> There ain't no lying. This ole girl will rock 'n roll. [ MUSIC ] Put a car together like this it's pretty easy to have a good time. Sometimes I question myself. Did I pick the right occupation, and I have to say yes because sometimes it just seems like your project will consume you cause you're putting all your spare time, spark money into it and sometimes it seems like you're not really getting that far, but finally you get over that threshold and you complete it. This car here, yeah, I'm pretty proud of it. [ MUSIC ] The nice thing about being out here in the sticks is there's plenty of places to do a big pro mod burnout. [ MUSIC ] [ engine revving ]

(Tommy)>> That wasn't too bad. I wasn't even trying hard. All that smoke blowing around, that's a sign that this thing's plenty peppy. I guess you can say this Buick's got all the goods. Looks, performance, ride, comfort, home run! [ MUSIC ] I sure am glad you didn't crash my baby out there on the race track.

(Marc)>> Well I appreciate that but where I was there weren't any traffic laws to break.

(Tommy)>> I can probably say I stretched them out a little bit, but you know it was fun, but now it's time to wrap this thing up.

(Marc)>> Right so we've got to wrap up the project but as you can also see we've wrapped the car with this car cover that we got from CoverCraft. This is their most luxurious indoor car cover call The Form Fit.

(Tommy)>> It's made with polyester and spandex on the outside and 100 percent cotton sheered to a fleece finish on the inside.

(Marc)>> It's breathable, washable, protects against minor garage dings, and even comes with a four year warranty.

(Tommy)>> You can even add yourself a bit of a custom touch like we did with a logo.

(Marc)>> And my favorite part about it is all these covers are made right here in the USA.

(Tommy)>> This thing's been a lot of fun.

(Marc)>> I can't believe it's finally done.