Bobby Alloway recently won the SEMA Battle of the Builders competition during the annual
SEMA Show in Las Vegas, adding another major award to his already jam-packed trophy case.
The winning PPG-painted 1933 Ford
Roadster, owned by Larry Olson of Sioux
Falls, South Dakota, was displayed in the
PPG booth throughout the show. The
award-winning entry featured Alloway’s
trademark black finish, set off with contrasting blazing orange flames running
down the sides of the roadster’s body.
At Alloway’s Hot Rod Shop in
Louisville, Tennessee, he exclusively
uses PPG products, and the roadster’s
prize-winning finish was achieved with
DELTRON DBU 9700 Basecoat and
DCU 2002 CONCEPT Clearcoat by PPG.
The car’s aggressive profile and stance resulted in an “old-school” street-rod look
that helped Alloway battle a standout
crowd of elite aftermarket builders to win
the honor.
“It feels so good to win the SEMA
Battle of the Builders,” he said. “This is
just as great as a Ridler or Great Eight
win. I almost didn’t enter because I didn’t
think I had a chance with an old hot rod;
it doesn’t have all the technology that the
other builders’ cars had.”
In the end, Alloway’s approach
won out. Expert judges Fred Williams
(Petersen’s 4Wheel & Off-Road), David
Freiburger (Hot Rod) and R.J. de Vera
(Meguiar’s) narrowed a field of more
than 200 car builders and customizers,
and the 260 custom cars they entered, to
10 finalists. The finalists then evaluated
the entries and decided among themselves
who would take Top Builder honors. Six
of the 10 finalists used PPG products to
finish their cars.
In addition to Alloway, these included:
Jeremy Gerber, 1973 Camaro (Roadster
Shop); Phil and Jeremy Gerber, 2015
Chevy Colorado (Roadster Shop); Alan
Johnson, 1953 Studebaker (Johnson’s
Hot Rod Shop); Andy Leach, 1962 Chevy
Bubble Top (Cal Auto Creations, painted
by Charley Hutton); and Kyle Tucker,
1970 Chevy Chevelle (Detroit Speed).
Alloway has built ageless street rods
since 1978, and he is no stranger to
winning major awards. He’s won the
America’s Most Beautiful Roadster
(AMBR) award twice, as well as the
Best Rod honor at the Grand National
Roadster Show (GNRS) in Pomona,
California, and he placed in the top 10 in
the Builder’s Challenge at SEMA last year.
Alloway’s cars have won the Goodguys’
Street Rod and Street Machine of the
Year awards and the prestigious Ridler
trophy, among others, and he has been
honored as Detroit Autorama Builder of
the Year and inducted into the National
Rod & Custom Car Hall of Fame. CW
Alloway Wins 2015 SEMA Battle Of
The Builders With PPG-Painted Roadster
At Alloway’s Hot Rod Shop, he exclusively uses PPG products and the roadster’s prize-winning finish was
achieved with Deltron DBU 9700 basecoat and DCU 2002 Concept clearcoat by PPG. The award-winning
entry featured Alloway’s trademark black finish, set off with contrasting blazing organge flames running
down the side of the car.
“It feels so good to win the SEMA Battle
of the Builders. This is just as great as
a Ridler or Great Eight win. I almost
didn’t enter because I didn’t think I had
a chance with an old hot rod; it doesn’t
have all the technology that the other
builders’ cars had.”
