Cheese shop's 1940 Plymouth is a rolling business card
The 20th annual World of Wheels earlier this month was a treasure trove of gleaming show machines. Participating vehicles came to Rosemont from all over the country and the story of each polished piece was as diverse as their wild colors, shapes and presentations.
Above them all, one vehicle's extreme transformation stood out and almost defied belief. Marty Ruhland purchased his 1940 Plymouth Sedan Delivery in 2002 for $200, thinking “even that was way too much.”
The voluptuous vehicle was sold new not far from Ruhland's hometown of Ottawa, west of Joliet. A grocery store owner purchased it and immediately put it to use.
Upon the close of World War II, the store owner sold it to a dry cleaning business. Years later and with the vehicle's condition ragged, it was passed off to a “junk man” who stored it in a back corner of his property. A mail carrier tipped off Ruhland about the vehicle's whereabouts.
“It was in horrible, rusted condition,” Ruhland said. “The engine was seized up and a tree was growing through the smashed windshield. It was probably past the point of no return.”
Still, Ruhland was determined to miraculously get the old heap back on the road and back to work. “I wanted something unique to advertise our family's business,” he said.
Ruhland and his wife, Sally, own the Cheese Shop ‘n' Deli in Ottawa, which he started in 1970. Their Plymouth project began and after passing through four different builders, emerged completed in the fall of 2014.
Parts off two other vehicles were necessary to reconstruct the body. The dented front fenders couldn't be salvaged and were replaced by new old-stock units. The car rides on a 1976 Corvette chassis, which was lengthened 20 inches.
The Vette's 350-cubic-inch V-8 and transmission were both retained. Other touches include disc brakes, Cadillac power seats, artillery-style wheels and a custom fabricated aluminum fuel tank.
Top Gun Red, a Rockdale shop, applied the custom-mixed Irish Green and Chocolate Cherry paint colors. Inside, all the cargo space and wheel wells were covered in glossy African Padauk wood, complemented with chrome strips.
Dean Hess of Ottawa handled the top-notch woodworking while Schober's Custom Hot Rod Interiors of Sandwich handled the cabin overhaul. As this is a rolling calling card, Ruhland hired Tom Kelly and Bob Behounek to apply the vintage-style lettering on the sides.
O'Connell Specialties in Plainfield completed construction of the Sedan Delivery.
“It was so gratifying to have it finally completed,” Ruhland said. “I kept thinking back on all the long years and it's still hard to realize it's done.”
His wife, Sally, is quick to add, “It was easy to see how very happy he was with how it turned out. When we returned from his first test drive, I told him he probably didn't smile that much on our wedding night!”
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