70-year-old Hudson restomod crashes Monterey party with V8, 638 HP

Icon, an auto shop from Los-Angeles, has come to the Monterey Car Week with an amazing 1949 Hudson Coupe brought back from oblivion and restored to peak condition.

The black vehicle was accidentally discovered sitting in an abandoned garage somewhere in Tennessee, USA, with only a couple miles on the counter. The finder immediately resolved to make this ride a restomod and contacted Icon for the job.

The tuner fitted the vintage coupe with a humongous 6.2-liter Chevrolet Corvette V8 rated at 638 horsepower (476 kilowatts). They preserved the rear-wheel drive system, but linked it to a new four-speed automatic transmission. They also upgraded the rear axle with independent (per-wheel) suspension.

The vintage car now sports Brembo brakes on both axles, and features a brand-new sub-frame specifically designed to support the bulk of the Chevrolet V8.

The cabin of the 1949 Hudson Coupe was re-trimmed using crocodile leather with occasional inserts of calf skin and virgin wool on the floor and the doors. The door grips are now aluminum, and there is soft ambient lighting along with a modern air conditioner.

Reportedly, the project took 400 hours to complete. The pricing remains unannounced.