LOUISE

Have you ever met one of those people where everything they buy is for sale? That’s Carl Beall in a nutshell. He’s semi-retired now, but he used to run Beall’s Auto Sales, so he knows his way around a car lot. This is the kind of guy who is always on the hunt for something cool, and sure, he might just flip it, but there’s also the chance he could keep it. That’s exactly what happened with this 1958 Chevrolet Cameo. 

As the story goes, Carl’s son, Carl Jr., found the truck in a garage north of Houston with a blown motor. It had been sitting since 1979 but had a very small amount of rust or damage. Even better, the fiberglass bed was in pretty good shape, and since these trucks are pretty rare, Carl scooped it up and set it aside as a retirement project. Oh, and he gave her a name: Louise. 

The truck had this immaculate patina, and while at first Carl wanted to paint it something flashy, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. This was one of 1405 Cameos produced in 1958 after all, and it still had all its original paint and trim. But there was a little bit of damage and it would need some professional help, so to get the gig done, he went to Joel at Nobody Customs. Joel knows his stuff as he’s been building killer rides for years, and so when he found out about Louise, he was all about it. With a plan in mind, Joel and his team got after it and boy did they make an impact. 

Any great truck needs to sit on a solid chassis, and for that, they went with Porterbuilt Fab. The crew there have been building truck frames forever now, and they know these trucks inside and out. This particular truck now sits just right with airbags front and rear, a Watts link, limited slip rear end and all sorts of other goodies. 

Speaking of the suspension, let’s get into all of the detail work on that front. The front control arms are pulled in an inch to give Carl lots of turning room. The parallel four link is also inboard of the frame so he can stuff some meaty 20X12 rims out back. The hydroboost is stuffed under the cab with a special mount on the chassis, and if that 565hp LS7 gets squirrelly, the 14-inch Wilwood brakes on all four corners are certainly going to put that thing to a stop. It’s impressive. 

On that note, the engine is truly a work of art. First, it’s an LS7 that has stock internals and a few mods externally. But this wasn’t a drop-in swap. The team had to build a custom core support to push the radiator and fans out away from the engine so it could fit. The Holley LS Hi-Ram EFI manifold, and the Holley valve covers are black, as you can tell from the pictures. But to get there, the surface had to be machined smooth, then painted. That does not sound like a fun task. 

And then there was the body. There were only a few small rust spots, and otherwise, it was pretty clean. But that still required replacing a cab corner, which meant paint. Would he get rid of the patina or try to blend it in? So, Carl made a decision and kept the stock finish. Joel and his team blended the color into the factory paint, then cleared over the whole thing with a satin finish. This way the repaired sections incorporated nicely into the rest of the body, and everything just looked well preserved. That patina isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. The engine bay needed some paint love too, but now they decided to use a gloss clear. This way everything pops nicely, and it complements the engine. Similar moves were made on the interior as well. 

Let’s take a moment to address that interior, because while the outside was going to stay mostly the same, the inside was getting a full makeover. This especially went for the door panels that were expertly crafted with shotgun style handles and a custom trim that flows into the kick panels. Then there is the custom center console that’s merges styling and function. As you can see, everything was either painted, wrapped, or finished in red or black, which gives quite the striking result. Oh, and the stereo is pretty stellar, too. A RetroSound head unit pairs speakers and a 10-inch sub, all from Rockford Fosgate. 

The truck is all done now and ready for Carl to cruise, show, and enjoy. But there is one other thing to note. This truck has a sister. That one’s name? Thelma. As long as neither Thelma nor Louise drives off a cliff anytime soon, we’ll be happy.