THE CHICKEN COUPE

With an LS swap, coilovers, and a six speed, Matt Graves built a one-of-a-kind Cadillac.

- TOMMY LEE BYRD

Pro Touring cars have been following the same formula for many years now: lower the center of gravity, tune the suspension geometry and spring rates, install big brakes, and utilize some type of modern V8 and manual transmission. These methods have been applied to many types of cars, but when it comes to application types, most people gravitate to GM's F-body platform, or perhaps a Ford Mustang. But Matt Graves isn't most people. He has an affinity for obscure builds, and his 1983 Cadillac Coupe De Ville is the ultimate example of a funny idea that morphed into a real thing. "Pro luxury," as he calls it, is the concept of building a Pro Touring car out of a full-size luxury coupe or sedan.

Lowering a big Cadillac isn't exactly a groundbreaking new trend, but when you add in grippy rubber on all four corners, huge disc brakes, 600 horsepower, and a stick shift, things get wild. Thanks to many bench-racing sessions and some internet propaganda, Matt stayed motivated to keep chipping away at this project and the "Chicken Coupe" rolled out of his Greenback, Tennessee, garage in 2021, and onto the highways of the HOT ROD Power Tour. Let's dig a little deeper to find out how he pulled it off.