HOW LONG DID IT TAKE 15 WEEKS
WHO DID THE WORK : RAY NEWTON AND THE CREW AT CALIFORNIA CLASSIC BODY AND PAINT (PTEAZER�S OWN CUSTOMIZATION FACILITY)
ENGINE STOCK NOT MODIFIED.
YEAR 2003
BODY
CUSTOM BODY WORK COMPLETELY CUSTOMIZED FROM THE GROUND UP
DONE BY PTEAZER
TOP CHOPPED SEVEN INCHES WITH YOUR CHOICE OF PHEATON REMOVEABLE HARD TOP OR RETRO PICK UP TRUCK STYLE.
HOOD PTEAZER COWL INDUCTION HOOD LENGTHEND THREE INCHES.
FRONT GRILL/BUMPER PTEAZER SMOOTHIE WIDE BODY FASCIA LOWERED AN ADDITIONAL TWO INCHES WITH THE ROADSTAR BRUSHED STAINLESS STEEL GRILL.
BED MODIFICATIONS CUSTOM RUMBLE SEAT WITH EURO STYLE TONNEAU COVER WITH RAISED HEADRESTS.
REAR BUMPER PTEAZER ILLUSION ROLLPAN LOWERED AN ADDITIONAL FOUR INCHES.
LIGHTS CUSTOM PAINTED STOCK PT CRUISER LIGHTS
COLOR AND PAINT PTEAZER SILVER AND PTEAZER SUNSET BRONZE METALLIC
THE PAINTER PAINT DESIGN BY RAY NEWTON
INTERIOR
ROLLCAGE
SAFETY EQUIP
SEATS CUSTOM DESIGN BY RAY NEWTON
MATERIALS BASKETBALL AND BRUSHED ALUMINUM
DONE BY FABRICATED BY RAY NETON, COVERED BY STITCHCRAFT, HUNTINTON BEACH
CITY
CUSTOM DASH CUSTOM DESIGNBY RAY NEWTON
INSTRUMENTATION CUSTOM DESIGN BY RAY NEWTON
STEERING WHEEL CUSTOM DESIGN BY RAY NEWTON
CARPET ALUMINUM CARPET IN RUMBLE SEAT AREA SUPPLIED BY STITCHCRAFT, HUNTINTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA
RADIO STOCK
SPEAKERS STOCK
DONE BY
CITY
OTHER MODIFICATIONS DVD PLAYER SUPPLIED AND INSTALLED BY CLASSIC GOLD CREATIONS, ANAHEIM CALIFORNIA
DRIVETRAIN: STOCK
CHASSIS: STOCK
Written by Ray Newton
PTEAZER ROADSTER
This revolutionary new concept in automobile design is the latest creation from Southern California based Aftermarket specialists PTeazer. In an amazing five minutes it can change from a retro style pick up to a removable hard top that resembles an old phaeton from days gone by. If that is not enough you can go completely topless to utilize the rumble seat for those persistent kids of all ages that just have to come for a ride. If you�re trying to impress that special someone there�s the sporty torneau cover that rivals any of the exotic European sports cars. But be warned choosing this look may evoke impromptu cruises along Pacific coast highway when you were just going down to the corner store for milk. Mind you there�s nothing like the sea breeze in your face when you�re trying to come up with a good alibi.
The idea was the brain child of PTeazer co owner and design guru Ray Newton who has been building custom autos and bikes since 1972. He was fortunate enough to have been taught the skills by some of the last of the old masters back in his homeland of New Zealand, where the term English Wheels dose not mean MG or BENTLY. Since moving to the States in 1980 Ray has amassed quite a following of hardcore rodders and vintage race car owners he has also been responsible for many of the coolest after market styling ideas on the road. �When I saw the PT cruiser I was immediately excited about the radical departure from the hum drum designs showing up from most of the manufacturers,� said Ray. �I built our first PT as a wide body two door panel delivery for our California Classic Body Shop as a parts runner and courtesy vehicle. It wasn�t long before the phones were ringing off the wall with people wanting to purchase the parts to make their PT look custom. So for the past three or so years we have been building and shipping parts all over the world from our web site PTEAZER.COM. The roadster was intended to push the limits of what a PT could be, and I think that from a visual design standpoint our mission was accomplished. We were able to build the roadster in a remarkable fithteen weeks even with loosing two weeks of valuable time trying to put Harley V Rod headlights into the wide body fenders. I just couldn�t get a good feeling for the look in practice even though it sounded so cool in theory, I repositioned those lights three times before I could accept the fact that the factory lights looked better. This is where the modern Cad systems can be an advantage over my old school trial and error methods but I do think that when you do things by hand you do it with love and that�s what makes all the difference. Maybe that�s why it�s called a labor of love.� The fist step was to reinforce the floor and side rails to prevent any bending or flexing. Once this was completed the windshield glass was removed and the top was removed. The windshield frame was cut down seven inches and given a nice rack before being heavily reinforced for safety. The rear doors were removed and the center pillar pillars were moved back five inches to allow the front door to be stretched. This was an important faze of the design because I wanted to show off another very unique feature when the doors were open. The floating seats, from the side profile make a radical statement with their ribbed silver shell and chromed spikes protruding out like Beatle Juice or some kind of a tribute to Kiss or something. At closer inspection you will notice that the fabric is Basket Ball surrounding brushed aluminum mesh ovals. As wild as they look they are actually very comfortable, The original seat mounts have been heavily modified and reinforced then mounted behind the seats making them invisible while still being completely functional, there�s an airplane throttle handle for an adjusting lever and the seats themselves are suspended on the end of a three inch chrome molly tube. keeping with the aviation theme the steering wheel was cut down from an original PT Cruiser wheel and styled after an old spitfire fighter plane, the nose art pin up girl was done by Dan Shultz .I was going for a minimalist look on the interior keeping only what was absolutely necessary, I wanted the gauges center mounted and the dash to wraparound you making a ride in the roadster an exciting experience and something you could never forget. Fortunately most of the exterior body panels were all ready in stock at PTEAZER or we would never have made the sema deadline. We modified one of our wide body kits by adding two inches to the bottom of the smoothie front fascia to give it a bit more attitude. We then added three inches to the cowl induction hood this gave it the appearance of a longer nose. Topping off the front look is our roadster grill with brushed stainless mesh to go with the seats. The rear panel got some subtle but rather extensive mods including rolling the top of the back panel inboard about five inches and center mounting the gas door. The five inches doesn�t sound like much but it makes a huge difference when the Phaeton top is on .The rear flares are five inches wider than normal to accommodate those humongous 22 by 11 inch Jessie James 44 Magnum rims and Goodyear treads .The extra cool factor comes by way of lowering and extending the side skirts and rear roll pan to incase the tires as close as possible without getting that burning rubber smell every time you hit a speed bump or dip in the road. (Mission accomplished pretty much). Dropping the roll pan an additional four inches gives the impression of a low profile while in reality not giving up any of that nice factory ride. Going with our Illusion style rear roll pan meant we could use our Illusion exhaust system which puts the tips out as far as possible to each side, this adds to the over all wide low feeling of the car, not to mention how the oval tips go perfect with the gas door and those oval side mirrors. Stitch craft continued the Basketball trim into the rumble seat area and bought with it some brushed aluminum fabric to blend with the bright silver paint and Porsche carpet. Classic Gold Creations came through with a DVD player that looks at home mounted dead center of that perfectly sculptured dashboard. Bob Iversons pinstriping and hand painted emblems put the final Icing on the Cake. As far as when you can impress your friends by pulling up there driveway in your very own Pteazer Roadster, well the answer is now. Either by ordering one of there turn key models built on a Pt cruiser base or they will build it custom with what ever powertrain you have in mind. Roomer has it that there may be a 507 crate Hemi in the future, now you must agree that would be as close to a modern day hot rod as you�ll ever see. For more info on the Pteazer Roadster or any of the other creations from Ray Newton and his team please contact us at WWW.PTEAZER.COM or TOLL FREE at 877 PTEAZER .
PTeazer TV Episode #1
