Every great build has a story, and Project 55 Revival started in the most unexpected way.
One day, while walking through the warehouse at Classic Performance Products, Jim and I were taking a casual tour when I spotted it: a 1955 Chevy sitting quietly off in the corner. It wasn’t shiny. It wasn’t perfect. But it had something. When I asked about it, Jim shrugged and said it was his car—one he’d owned for a while but never really did much with.
That’s when the idea hit. A Deal, a Vision, and an LS3 Heart. I told Jim I had a deal for him. If he was willing to let us turn this forgotten Tri-Five into something special, we’d go all in. The plan was simple, but ambitious.
We reached out to Chevrolet Performance and sourced an LS3 Connect & Cruise crate engine package, complete with transmission and computer. A true turnkey setup—ready to run, ready to drive.
From there, the blueprint came together:
- CPP front suspension
- CPP rear suspension
- CPP power brake system
- And a full lineup of CPP components throughout the car
We also partnered with a few other industry friends to handle interior details and other key upgrades.
But here’s the twist…
Why We Left the Dings (Much to Jim’s Dismay)
The body and paint? Untouched.
Right down to the big door dings and scars it earned over decades on the road.
That part nearly killed Jim. He wanted it painted. He wanted it perfect. But I had bigger plans. This wasn’t about building another trailer-queen show car—this was about telling a story.
A story about driving.
From Warehouse Find to Cross-Country Cruiser
Once the car was finished and running strong, we didn’t park it—we used it. The plan was to take Project 55 Revival on the road, starting with the Street Rod Nationals, then continuing on to the Tri-Five Nationals in Bowling Green, Kentucky.
Jim was hesitant at first. After all, this was his car. But after a long pause, he smiled and said, “You know what? That sounds like a great idea.”
And it was.
Not only did the car make the journey, but Jim got something even better out of the experience—his first-ever Tri-Five Nationals. He even set up a booth, with the car sitting proudly inside it, patina and all.
A Summer to Remember
By the end of it all, Jim summed it up perfectly: “That was a great summer.”
Project 55 Revival didn’t just turn heads—it delivered. Along the way, the car landed a great feature, multiple tech stories, and real-world validation of CPP parts doing exactly what they were designed to do: drive hard, drive far, and drive reliably.
This wasn’t about perfection.
It was about passion, performance, and proving that a well-built classic doesn’t need fresh paint to make a statement. And that’s what Project 55 Revival was all about.
