Culture|Garage

Chip Foose, Boyd Coddington and Troy Trepanier are probably three of the first names that come to mind when one thinks of custom cars. Likewise, lots of chrome, mag wheels and some sort of scoop or spoiler are probably the first images one has when thinking of muscle cars. Steve Strope, the founder and owner of Pure Vision Design, has a different way of doing things.

“You know what, the problem is, people have no vision, they all just buy shiny parts and throw ‘em on, they have no theme, they have no meaning,” said Strope, recounting his reasoning for getting into customization. It’s easy to see Strope’s vision in every vehicle that goes through his shop. Petrol, pictured above, is one of the more recent creations to come from Pure Vision, produced for Petrol Advertising.

To the uninitiated, Petrol seems to be a modified ‘70 Charger, sporting plenty of aftermarket goodies and doodads. In truth, Strope is inspired by the stock versions of these vehicles, and uses OE parts in his projects. On the exterior, a ‘70 Charger grille surround, which is typically chrome, sports a tangerine shade of orange. The tail panel on the car is actually a ‘68 unit, showcasing that year’s distinctive round taillights. Inside Petrol, the dash, which looks stock, is actually a slightly modified ‘71 Charger dash, with Redline Works gauges, XM radio, and integrated Blue Tooth. The seats still retain their factory shape, although the seat covers are custom made.

Strope isn’t your average high-dollar custom car guy, however, so the craftsmanship and thought that go into every car is real, just like Strope originally intended. Strope originally built a few custom vehicles for himself in a shared parking area, using a single chest of tools and an engine stand. Today, he operates a larger facility in Simi Valley, CA, building one-off cars for clients. Showing no particular brand allegiance, Steve builds any classic Ford, Chevy or Mopar into a serious street machine.

Strope also breaks from the pack in his method of dressing up engines, interiors, etc. by forgoing a liberal use of chrome, and using color instead. Valve covers, air cleaners, whatever- Strope will paint it, and it always ends up looking good. Adding different textures to metal has also yielded some fantastic results. Clean and simple is the name of the game at Pure Vision, setting a standard to which other customizers can only aspire to.

One of Strope’s more outlandish projects, GTX-R, brings together modern road racing, one big ‘ol honkin Plymouth, and a truckload of imagination. With a body style that at the time wasn’t very popular, Strope came up with a concept that blends old and new. The front splitter, modern wheels and tires, fuel injection (although it is mechanical) and amber lights are direct references to the Viper LeMans racers, while the paint scheme, exhaust tips and interior are clearly Ma Mopar.

Underhood, it’s all business, with very little pomp or circumstance. Sanitary doesn’t even begin to describe the cleanliness of the engine bay, which houses a 500-cube Mopar motor. Atop the engine sits a road-race inspired feulie unit, complete with induction stacks.

It’s obvious that Seve’s “out-of-the-design-box” thinking has produced some amazing cars, cars that leave some scratching their heads “why?” while others shout “cool!” Some may not get it-at least not yet- but when people remember the custom cars of yesteryear down the road, Steve Strope’s creations will undoubtedly be on their short list-love ‘em or hate ‘em. Listen- do yourself a favor, and check out the Pure Vision website. You’ll definitely come away with a new sense of the American musclecar.

via: Mopar Max, Mopar Muscle, Pure Vision Design

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