SEMA held its seventh annual Battle of the Builders last week. Despite the pandemic, the virtual SEMA360 event had over 330 vehicles competing for honors.
We shared details about our five favorite builds. By Friday, SEMA had announced its official winners.
We’re proud to report that one of our picks took the Top Builder and best hot-rod prize: Brady Ranweiler’s 1963 Chevy Wagon.
The metallic marvel was the obvious choice. The wagon previously won the Detroit Autorama’s Ridler Award. The Chevy Nova wagon kept its Chevrolet nameplate, but just about every inch of the sheet metal was changed to bring out the two-door’s beauty.
SEMA Battle of The Builders Winners
There are three other prize categories: trucks/offroad, sport compacts, and young guns (for builders 27 or younger). All initial entries were submitted via photos and videos. Forty finalists—10 in each category—were then narrowed down to the final 12. Those vehicles were transported to Los Angeles for in-person judging.
Young Guns Winner
Chicago-native Cody Medeisis took the “Young Guns” prize for his 1968 Chevy Camaro. The red Camaro was transformed for the drag strip. Its Vortech supercharged Dart engine is linked to a custom Pro Series two-speed Powerglide transmission.
Its cowl induction scoop is dramatic. (See our article all about scoops.) And the setup is finished with a custom stainless-steel exhaust using MagnaFlow mufflers and Granatelli Motorsports electronic exhaust cutouts.
It is always nice to see what younger builders are doing. In this case, Medeisis puts big tires in back and a powerful engine up front on the drag-ready Camaro.
Truck/Off-Road Winner
Pennsylvania-based Mark Gaimbalvo snagged the truck prize for his 1965 Chevy C-10.
Giambalvo, who owns Creative Rods and Kustoms, started with a big-block 572 cubic-inch engine. He added an eight-stack intake with a six-speed transmission. Giambalvo kept the stock chassis on the Pro Street pickup but slammed the suspension. The lowered wheel well in back is a nice touch.
He brought this truck to last year’s show and got an overwhelming response. That convinced Giambalvo that a chopped and smoothed C-10 truck would be well received by judges and automotive fans. He was right.
Sport Compact Winner
The legendary Chip Foose won a builder’s prize for his custom 1974 Jaguar E-type. We have long considered the E-Type a dream car within reach.
Foose took more than two years for his build. He removed the old V-12 and swapped in a Chevy LS3 engine. The Jag’s striking looks came to life when Foose painted the metal body panels with a Palm Copper hue.
Despite all the design tweaks, Chip Foose kept the Jag’s signature style. Foose is known for keeping the best aspects of a classic vehicle while improving key features to bring them into sharper relief. In this case, he lengthened the trunk lid and rocker panels, reshaped the headlights and taillights, and introduced a wider grid-like grille (matched by the hood intake).
Chip Foose is a former contributor to the eBay Motors Blog.
Congrats to all the winners. We’ll keep an eye on where the award-winning vehicles go next. We won’t be surprised if, before long, they are offered to new owners on the year-round eBay Motors SEMA page.
