This is a 1949 Chevy pickup originally sold new at Penor's Chevrolet later became Penor's Texaco in Bison, SD. My great-great-grandfather Harry Penor sold the pickup to a gentleman; I believe his name or nickname was Red. At the time of the sale my great grandfather Dean Penor, Harry's son, mentioned to Red that if he were to sell it, he would like a chance to buy it back, and about 3 years later he did. Since that time, my grandmother Gloria and her sister Vera learned to drive in it, followed by Gloria's two sons Robby (my dad) and Roger. My great grandfather Dean ran Penor's Texaco up to 2016 working everyday into his mid 80's. Since I was the only professional mechanic left in the family, my great grandfather, my dad, and I started the transformation. We started with the pickup and a 2012 Camaro 6.2L, 6L80, two S10 pickup frames, and a code 504 kit. We split the C-channel frames and welded them together to box in the frame, added a 4-link rear end with a 9-inch Ford from QP, and aftermarket upper and lower control arms in the front with coil overs all around. Brakes are the 14-inch Brembo off the Camaro with an electric e-brake from a late model Corvette. A new floor and firewall were fabricated by my dad and myself with aftermarket inner fenders. At this point we are just completing the 3-inch stainless exhaust. Next, it’s the wiring harness then it’s off to body and paint. So far this has been a 6-year journey. We lost Dean in 2021, and the build is dedicated to him.
