For many years, Gary Woolery wanted to marry a 1939 cab-over truck with a panel truck, but couldn’t figure out how to do it. Then he saw an online listing in Washington State for a vehicle that fit the bill—a 1951 Chevy Cab Over Engine (COE) mated to a 1950 Suburban body. So Woolery drove up from Redding, Calif. to check it out. “We made a deal, and I drove it home,” he said.
The 1951 Chevrolet COE Snubnose Suburban rat rod is now listed for sale on eBay.
With its distinctive design and mysterious paint job, the truck immediately garnered attention on the road. “People pass me on the freeway, then pull over, and slow down,” Woolery said. “When I pass them, they take pictures of the truck.”
The truck generated so many questions that Woolery decided to create his own imagined history for the vehicle—to add to its mystique. He brings the “Bunker Thrill” storyboard with the truck to display at shows. Try as hard as you like, but you won’t make sense of the convoluted storyline about transporting space aliens from Area 51, secret government vehicle projects, and an experimental line of Chevy performance cars. “I totally fabricated the entire story,” he said. “Some people believe it and some people know it’s nonsense. I have a blast with it.”
The Real Story?
In truth, Woolery spent a considerable amount of effort to rebuild the truck. The body shell was welded to the frame when Woolery bought it. “After I got it home, I went through the process of fixing everything the original owner did wrong. We cut the body loose from the S-10 frame and remounted it with rubber mounts.” With the help of his close buddy Tommy Lee, it took Woolery more than a year to get the vehicle back on the road.
The truck’s a work in process. Peer into the engine compartment and you’ll find a 292 straight- six Chevy engine sporting a four-barrel Holly carburetor, mild cam, and split exhaust manifold. Both the engine and 700R transmission have recently been rebuilt. The duel exhaust system is fitted with Flowmaster mufflers. The wiring, shocks, and power steering are new. The truck’s sitting on a solid set of Cragar S/S wheels, but could use a set of rear tires.
The mechanical bits work well together. The Snubnose fights the wind on the freeway and still delivers 16 miles per gallon at cruising speed. The doors have electric window lifts and poppers, but the cabin is unfinished. The front bucket seats were borrowed from an older Mercedes-Benz. The driver’s seat has electric adjustment. There’s a second row bench and room for a third, if the next owner should so desire.
So what’s it like to drive the 51/50? “I had a 39 Chevy cab over truck, it’s a lot like that,” Woolery explained. “You sit high and you don’t have a long nose in front of you.”
And what about its unique multi-color paint job that gives the vehicle an air of mystery. “A lot of it just came that way,” Woolery said. “I had a couple of friends that told me I should paint it over. So I went out with two or three rattle cans, masked it, sprayed it, and masked it again. Hey, I painted my truck.”
See Chevrolet Suburban Cars for sale on eBay.
