Step Van Steps: How Rutledge Wood’s Chevy Step Van Came Together

and the new floor welded in. New diamond plate replaced the driver side step and floor, and was used to fabricate a removable transmission cover between the seats. Note the original piece of floor remaining in the door opening.

Lots going on here. The original dash (basically a glorified gauge panel) was ripped out and replaced with a frame of welded 1/8 x 1/8-inch aluminum angle covered by aluminum panels. The cardboard templates are for the front panels and the sides of the new engine doghouse. There’s also a cardboard mockup for Version One of the gauge panel. You can also see the ididit tilt steering column and the driver seat pirated from a Dodge Sprinter van.

The completed engine doghouse. You can see the finished passenger side front dash panel area as well.

Using Rutledge Wood sit—er, stand-in Joey Partee, the seat height and position was set…

…and fixed in place with these beefy square tubing steel supports. The Sprinter seats may not have fine Corinthian leather or six-way power memory, but they’re light-years more comfy than the sorry pieces of plank Chevy installed sixty-four years ago.

One reason the dash is so deep is the need to fit components like this Kugel Komponents power brake booster and master cylinder setup. American Resto Mods’ Joey Partee made the mount. Since the booster location is fixed, the seat had to be positioned so Rutledge could comfortably reach the brake pedal.

That box-looking thing attached to the end of the ididit steering column is a steering box from Wizard Fabrications. Designed for street rods and custom vehicles with limited space for a conventional steering box, the Steer Clear makes it possible to raise or drop the steering shaft, move it over, or change its angle, to increase clearance so you can fit just about any engine you choose. It fits 3/4 inch, 36-spline input and output shafts and works with commonly available U-joints and couplers.

A couple of things here. The most obvious are the 525 horsepower Chevrolet Performance Parts LS3 crate engine and Performance Automatic Street Smart 4L80E transmission being lowered into the chassis by American Resto Mods mechanic Dave Vinson. The LS3 has been kitted out with Summit Racing LS headers and a Vintage Air Front Runner accessory drive system that includes the A/C compressor, power steering pump, alternator, and an ATI harmonic damper.

The LS3 peeking out the front grille opening. This space will house a Be Cool cooling system and a Vintage Air A/C condenser. It will be covered with the van’s original grille bars—cleaned up and shiny, of course.

This mockup of the Be Cool system shows you how tight things are in the van’s engine room. The system is based on a Be Cool Direct Fit Cooling Module (radiator and dual electric fans) for a 1967-69 Camaro. Be Cool also supplied an engine oil cooler and a coolant catch can.

Under the dash on the passenger side of the van nestles the Vintage Air Gen-IV Magnum Climate Control System, the Smart Shift controller for the Performance Automatic StreetSmart 4L80E transmission, and the fuse panel box for the electrical system. The Gen-IV system is designed for large vehicles (which the van definitely qualifies as) and is electronically controlled—no cables or vacuum controls to mess with. The Smart Shift controller allows complete control over shift points, shift firmness, and torque converter lockup by using the dial adjusters on the box—no need for a laptop.

Rear seat passengers will enjoy the benefits of Vintage Air thanks to ductwork routed under the floor to a pair of vents between the front seats. According to Rutledge, a van full of folks was kept nice and cool during the Hot Rod Power Tour.

This is Version Two of the gauge panel. The aluminum panel is filled with Classic Instruments Moal Bomber Series gauges (speedometer, water temperature, oil pressure, fuel level and voltmeter).

Here’s a good look at the almost-complete dash area of the van. That turbo-looking tubing is the ductwork for the Vintage Air climate control system; the controls are just to the right of the ididit steering column. Note how the top panels on the dash are removable for easy access to the various components housed within.

Can you guess what vehicle the gas tank is made for? Hint: it isn’t a Chevy step van. It’s actually a 22 gallon Scott Drake Reproductions tank for a 1970 Mustang. “The tank fit perfectly—all we needed to make was a pair of fuel tank straps to hold the thing up,” said American Resto Mod’s Mike Karbowski.

American Resto Mods got together with MagnaFlow to concoct an exhaust system for the van. The system is based around a stainless steel MagnaFlow cat-back system for GM 2500 HD pickups, shown here. MagnaFlow also sent a bunch of stainless steel mandrel bends to help American Resto Mods fabricate the rest of the system.

Here you can see the muffler from the MagnaFlow cat-back system sitting roughly amidships on the passenger side of the van. It’s hard to make out, but the exhaust pipes snake out of the muffler and over the frame rail to exit out the side of the van. That’s where all those mandrel bends came in handy.

The exhaust ends in this pair of MagnaFlow tips peeking out just before the rear passenger side wheel.

Finishing up the details in the back. The rear seat is also from a Dodge Sprinter van. It looks like the inside of a coffee can, but Rutledge says it isn’t nearly as ‘boomy’ inside as you would think. Insulation and a more comfy interior are on the docket.

Believe it or not, somebody does make new glass for a ’49 Chevy Kurbmaster. The windshield glass was cut by LC Appling at Vintage Glass in Lawrenceville, GA. The rounded side glass is from U.S. Armor (Lexington, MA).You can also see the refurbished grille bars, headlight assemblies, and sideview mirrors. The roof lights are fully functional.

One step van and the crew that spent untold hours creating it. “It wasn’t the normal build we get in the shop, but it was a lot of fun as well as a learning experience,” said Auto Resto Mod’s Mike Karbowski. And Rutledge? He’s ecstatic about his new toy box. “The first time you see a project completed, it’s an amazingly emotional moment,” he said in his blog. “Was this a good idea? Am I going to love it? But by the time I walked up to it and sat down, I was in love. It was everything I wanted it to be and more.”