One-of-a-kind 1929 Ford Model A: Inspired by circle track racing.

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Andy Leserra

1929 Ford Model A

Instagram: @aleserra121

Photographer: Julian Brown

Instagram:  @datboiwithacamera

Performance Stats: 400 HP, Weight: 2300 lbs.

My name is Andy, I was born and raised in Florida and grew up surrounded by my father's metal fabrication shop. My family has been involved in the circle track racing community for as long as I can remember. My father raced Super Late Models in the 80s and 90s at Hialeah Speedway and Palm Beach Fairgrounds Speedway. Like him, I have a huge passion for racing and cars. I began racing champ karts at 13 years old, winning two state championships and many feature wins.

From Karting to Pro Truck Racing

During this time, I worked on my dad's friend's race teams, working on the cars in the shop and travelling to races working on the pit crew. When I turned 21, I sold all our karting equipment and started racing pro trucks. I have learned so many things while racing and working in my dad's shop; welding, metal fabrication, suspension geometry, weight distribution setups, etc.

I also took automotive and welding classes throughout high school. I financially supported my racing career on my own, working two jobs and going to college part-time. As most people know, racing is expensive, so some years later it was time to put a pause on racing and finish my mechanical engineering degree.

A Passion for Hot Rods and the Custom Car Scene

Currently, I work as a Design Engineer in the defence industry and help out my father's manufacturing business. I am a proud husband to a supportive wife and father to our two-year-old son. Ever since we stopped racing, we have been more involved in the hot rod/custom car scene. In my personal time, I keep up with my fabrication skills, building random projects, working on our new car builds, and cruising in my hot rod as much as possible. When not doing car-related things, I love spending quality time with my family.

My father encouraged this passion for racing and cars in me at a young age. He taught me how to weld and fabricate, which led us to building this car from almost nothing. I can only hope that I can inspire my son to be as interested in this lifestyle as I am.

Why the 1929 Ford Model A, What Did You Do to Customize It?

Ever since I started going to the Daytona Turkey Rod Run, I have wanted to build a car. The Ford Model A has always been interesting to me, but I wanted to make something wildly different from all the others. Having a background in circle track racing, I wanted to build a car that clearly looks like it came off the racetrack but also has that traditional hot rod philosophy. Conveniently, a friend of mine was selling an unfinished 1929 Ford Model A hot rod. I bought the car, kept the body, and sold everything else. The rest of the car is 100% custom-built.

What Does It Feel Like to Own and Drive Your 1929 Ford Model A?

The feeling is surreal. I love driving this car and love the reactions I get from onlookers. The sound it makes, and the overall stance of the car feels like the baddest thing on the road! It's a major feeling of pride knowing this car is the true representation of "built, not bought." Love it or hate it, this car gets everyone's attention.

What Do You Think Makes Your 1929 Ford Model Unique?

There is nothing like it on the road. It's fully custom-built to our design and has unique features that only the circle track racing community recognizes.

The 1929 Ford Model A Build

The foundation of this custom build starts with a chopped 1929 Ford Model A coupe body, housing a potent 350 Chevy small block engine. Power is channelled through a Muncie 4-speed transmission and a Winters quick change rear end, ensuring efficient power delivery. Wilwood Wide-5 hubs wrapped in Bassett Racing wheels provide both style and performance, while the custom square tube chassis offers a solid and adaptable platform.

For superior handling, the car boasts a fully adjustable front suspension and a triangulated 4-link rear suspension, both featuring Ridetech coilovers. Additional performance upgrades include a custom front sway bar, a Wilwood quad-piston disc brake system, and a removable roll bar. The interior features a custom sheet metal design with unique touches like roof-mounted ignition and start switches, cockpit-adjustable brake bias, and 5-point safety harnesses. Completing the package is a custom-fabricated fuel tank, ensuring this one-of-a-kind creation has the capability to perform as well as it looks.

Who Did the Work on the 1929 Ford Model A

My father and I built this car from the ground up. The inspiration for this build was an old-school open-wheel modified. We purchased an unfinished hot rod, kept the body, and sold everything else. The front clip is of a Port City Super Late Model race car. We modified the front clip to have coilover suspension. We fabricated an entirely custom square tube chassis and custom suspension components. The engine, rear end, and wheel hubs came out of my circle track race car. These Model A bodies are small and don't have much space to work with. This presented unique challenges, including fitting the pedals, locating the shifter, and many others. The build took us about three years, working on it only on the weekends.

Future Plans For The 1929 Ford Model A

As all hot rods are, it's a constant project. We are always finding little things to improve on. We have some other car projects in the works with a similar circle track racing inspiration.

Shout Outs

Shout out to Julian Brown for taking amazing photos of the car. Shout out to my wonderful wife for her continued support on this build and the overall car lifestyle. A big shout out to my father, Jeff Leserra. I have learned so much from him over the years working in his metal fabrication shop and racing together. To design and build this car with him has been a great experience and I can't wait to do it again.

Dream Car

1955 Chevy Belair, 2-door, restomod.

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UKTM no: UK00003572459