One could present a strong argument about the 1932 Ford Highboy roadster’s legacy as the most iconic platform for a pre-war hot rod project.
Unfortunately, the last factory ‘32 Ford roadster left the factory over 90 years ago and too few of them have survived the long passage of time.
Jim Sutherland
However, the ’32 Ford remained very popular in the hot rod hobby and subsequently created an aftermarket industry that produced them for eager buyers. One company built a replica 1932 Ford roadster body named the Dearborn Deuce and added several improvements over the factory version.
Don Douglas became aware of the Dearborn Deuce replicas and got in touch with a supplier at a World of Wheels show in March 2004. He decided to buy a Dearborn Deuce from the supplier and became the proud owner of Number 291 out of 300 units built for sale.
Don is a traditionalist, so his project car had to be built out of metal–not plastic because few old school car guys would choose a non-steel body.
As mentioned earlier, a Dearborn Deuce roadster has some significant improvements over a factory ‘32 Ford. For example, the replica’s convertible roof is designed to fit better than an original ‘32 Ford’s top, plus it stores much better in the down position.
Additionally, a Dearborn Deuce roadster provides more room for passengers because of wider doors and a redesigned cowl. The car body manufacturer also understood the need to build a “more-power” car, given the basic philosophy of hot-rodders, so the Dearborn Deuce was built out of thicker metal with a very sturdy body design.
For these reasons, Don realized a Dearborn Deuce was the perfect choice for him back in 2004. But life got in the way of Don’s plans, a situation he described as TIMME: “time-intelligence-money-motivation-effort-but not necessarily in that order”.
As a result, Don spent the next 22 years juggling his TIMME factors and finally got his Dearborn Deuce ready in time for the 2026 Grand National Roadster Show held this past January in Pomona, California.
Don and his son Marshall trailered the Dearborn Deuce from their Alberta home down to the Pomona show and rubbed elbows with several greats in the custom hot rod industry. The list included Del Uschenko, Chip Foose, Rick Dore, Pete Chapouris IV, Jeremy Mang, Roger Kennedy, Brian Dee, Nate Tanquary, Owen Jeancart, and Rob Petty.
Even better, Don took first place in his Street Roadster class while competing against high caliber entrants because the Pomona show is rated as one of the best events in the car hobby.
Maybe it was Don’s choice to use a 5.7-liter Mopar Hemi coupled to a 727 Torqueflite 3-speed automatic transmission that won over the judges because most modern hotrodders lean toward a Chevy LS or Ford Coyote engine.
However, Don has strong roots in the Chrysler family and retired from the company after a long career with Mopar, so his choice to use a Hemi was heavily influenced by his loyalty.
Or maybe it was Don’s choice to carefully build his Dearborn Deuce roadster into the perfect hot rod.
Either way (or both), his car is a winner in every way.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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