There are a lot of famous street-rod-builders out there. Guys like Boyd Coddington and Chip Foose get a lot of the press, but out of one quiet shop in a corner of Phoenix, Rick Dore has been building some of the cleanest rides in the country.
It's not like no one's ever heard of him, though. Rick's in six hall of fames, has won tons of awards at the prestigious Oakland Rod & Custom show, and has even been on TV a few times. For the past 10 years, he's been building head-turning rods, customs, and trucks.
For nine months out of the year, Rick and his crew of customizers are building customs for customers. High-profile people like rock stars, athletes, and others come to him when they require that one-off look. The other three months or so are dedicated to the show of all automotive shows-SEMA.
Rick does a lot of image work for major manufacturers, such as Ford and GM. He regularly turns out as many as 10 cars a year for SEMA. This year, one of his projects was this '06 Lincoln Mark LT.
It was just a few months before the SEMA Show, when Rick took delivery of the truck. The options were limitless-body drop and shave, lifted to the sky-but Rick wanted to go custom without taking away from the classy lines of the truck. There are lots of little details on the truck that most people would just glance past, such as the custom radius and sculpting done to the license plate box on the custom roll pan or the machined spears down the side of the truck that were built out of aluminum and then chromed. It's the little touches like these that really make this truck stand out.
True to his word, Rick had the Lincoln on the floor of the SEMA Show on time and looking awesome. It was just one of the many rides he built for the event, and each one was just as unique. You may not have seen him on a weekly TV show or watched him yell at a bald guy in a garage, but if you ever get the chance to meet Rick Dore, shake his hand. He's a living legend.
The 411
Owner/hometown: Rick Dore, of Rick Dore Kustoms / Glendale, Arizona
Year/make/model: '06 Lincoln Mark LT
Engine/drivetrain: 5.4L V-8
Wheels/tires: 22-inch KMCs / 265/40R22 Toyo Proxes
Suspension: DJM 3/5 lowering kit, installed by RD Kustoms in Glendale, Arizona
Fabricator: Rick Dore Kustoms in Glendale, Arizona.
Interior: All hard panels on dash and doors were removed and painted to match the exterior / seats done in tan leather
Body Mods: Custom-built side trim and grille inserts made from billet aluminum, then chromed by Tom Haltmier of Glendale, Arizona / shaved door handles / deleted factory chrome cladding / Optima battery
Custom Paint: Custom BASF mint-green hue
Paintwork: John Stromberg of Lucker Sever in Amarillo, Texas
Audio/video: Eight Clarion screens mounted on the headliner, dash, and headrests / Clarion door speakers / subwoofer mounted in a custom enclosure underneath the rear seat
Installer: Tim Jones at Cardenal Car Stereo & Electronics in Glendale, Arizona