Street Surfer

When a friend of mine posted a picture of her Dad’s rat rod, I was intrigued… this car had so much detail and was so unusual, and I had to know more. I knew this car would be something special and different to share with our SA Hotrods readers!

- Clare Vale

Jan van der Walt set off for the Vaal early one morning with me, heading for Johann Bukes’ place on the river. This feature was an adventure from the start, with dense mist shrouding the road and only Google Maps for directions. Our navigator’s voice first led us, appropriately enough, to Wild Goose Lodge, but we eventually found our way to Johann’s house and our first view of the car in the metal.

Johann spends a fair amount of time in the US, and he was inspired to build a car after seeing a number of stunning rat rods in the States. Although he has built a number of bikes and customised cars previously, this is his first complete build.

The car started life as an Austin 16. Johann stripped the car down completely to the frame before beginning a painstaking rebuild. Almost all the work was completed in his own workshop – he is in the earth moving and construction business and was able to utilise much of his own equipment in the build.

Most of the original bodywork was retained and restored, before being painted in a unique pastel blue. Johann laughed when I asked him about the colour: “I took all the leftover paint in the workshop and mixed my own colour”, he says. The paint work was done in-house, and I must say the result is stunning.