.jpg)
Normally, a shop truck is a purely utilitarian implement.
However, the Leader Electric truck isn't your normal parts-getter. This custom 1942 Dodge body has been paired with a three-quarter-ton frame from a 1992 Dodge. Old meets new and becomes something original thanks to the efforts of John Butt.
Butt owns both the Truck and Leader Electric. Originally, he had planned to use this black and orange monster for doing mud bags, hence the 39-and-a-half-inch tires.
"It didn't do very good (at the Lancer pits)," said Butt. "It still has the stock transmission."
Under the Hood, Butt has installed a 5.9 Cummins engine with custom cooling, producing a whopping 500 horsepower. The issue he runs into once he calls for all that power is that the transmission is only rated for around 180 horsepower.
"I still run it all the time," said Butt. "One day it will get pulled out and redone."
While it may not be the custom mudder he dreamed it to be, it still catches plenty of gazes whenever he takes it out for a spin.
One of the interesting pieces on the Truck is the sticker on the back that says Bill. It's not only the truck's name, but also the name of the man who owned the 42 Dodge first.
"I bought it from my neighbour, and it was his dad's," said Butt.
Honouring the memory while refreshing the build, the entire thing has been painted in the Leader Electric colours. Orange and black cover this truck from trim to bolts, front to back.
The truck didn't start out so put together. One of the first hurdles for the body works was the fact that the cab was smashed.
"We fixed that when we put it on the new frame and put on some new bumpers," said Butt.
Butt began this project roughly four years ago. He started the project in December and was able to take it out for a spin in the Eatonia parade by July.
"I spent every night from 9 p.m. to midnight working on it," he recalled.
These days, the truck is mostly a Sunday driver. It cruises around, taking Butt and his family for ice cream, or attending the odd car show.
He has plans to continue the project, keeping the improvements coming for Bill.
"It was supposed to be just a cheap truck that we were gonna run through the mud with big tires," said Butt. "Things got out of control and I started painting all the bolts and making it making it nice."
If anyone spots Bill or Butt at a car show, feel free to stop and take a look. However, you might need a step ladder to get up in the cab, as it currently sits over two feet up in the air.
Under the Hood is powered by Great West Auto Electric, your local Bumper to Bumper dealer in Swift Current. Long live your car.