1940s Rat Rod project with BMW turbo diesel built for £1000

This 1940s vintage rat rod project running bio-diesel TDi was built for £1000 by a clever bloke called Pete Bulbick, owner of Project Heaven, who decided to upcycle three scrap vehicles into one - a 1948 Rover P3 field find, a Morris 10 wreck and an Mot failure BMW E34 525 TDS diesel turbo.

Filmed back in the heat of summer 2020 (when Jonny also drove the Ferrari 250GT0 'restomod'), this British scrap rod told a fascinating story of automotive up-cycling.
Genius budget ingenuity build or a Frankenstein custom project? The former, if you ask Jonny, hence why it was filmed for The Late Brake Show.

What do you think? Comment below.

Pete Bulbick's 'scrap rod' Tech Spec:
1948 Rover P3 Chassis
1944 Morris 10M Body
4 linked rear axle with LSD
E34 BMW 525 TDS Engine and 5 speed manual gearbox Chipped to 165bhp
Custom made dual wire wheels using Jaguar E type centres
Vintage Blockley Tires x 6
Daimler Dart Seats
Aircraft gauges
Hydraulic handbrake
Fuel Cell
Custom Alloy interior

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Thank you for watching The Late Brake Show. If you haven't already, SUBSCRIBE for a broad-church of automotive appreciation spanning EV, classic, modified and future tech.
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Jonny Smith
Creative content maker, car presenter & car pervert for hire since '98

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CHAPTERS
0:00 Intro
0:47 Leno spec owner intro
1:12 Tree growing through it!
1:44 BMW 525 TDS engine
2:36 Rover P3 remains
3:12 The Morris body story
3:42 Tech spec
4:14 Runs on veg oil
5:28 Hard driving
5:52 Nearly crashing it...
6:20 'All the gauges work'
6:30 top speed run
7:12 The build cost
7:36 Original body is in his pond
7:50 Morris body
8:25 4 rear wire wheels/tyres!
9:16 Cost £1000 (ex. tyres)
9:55 Interior
11:22 Hidden ECU and wiring under cowl
11:37 Jonny drives it
14:36 Jonny can't get out
14:51 Verdict and more driving

#ratrod #classicprojectcar #biodiesel #hotrod #britishhotrod

[garethroberts]

Absolutely amazing. A very American auto style made out of UK parts. Morris and Rover of that era are usually museum pieces or grandads pride and joy. So cool, and who else would showcase this but the late brake show👍

[mrstanhope]

The perfect antidote to all the trendy influencers with their wrapped supercars. Nice start to the weekend, cheers Johnny.

[ironytony]

Saturday morning, breakfast, new video of Jonny, sunshine outside. Perfect weekend start.

[mc]

‘They all work!’...’well, that one doesn’t...!’, : while one handedly wrestling round a corner! Brilliant!

[jordanabraham]

We have all gotten so used to seeing Chip Foose “Ridler-level” perfection, that this is like a breath of fresh air. No doubt that it took a lot of time and expertise, but it still seems attainable to someone who knows their way around a shop. That was what hot-rodding was all about when it began. Thanks for reminding us what the hobby is about... passion doesn’t need to cost millions.

[daviddorson]

Great to see this. I remember having a few beers over at Pete's and talking about building this.. a week later he messages me to say he's bought a rover .. a week after that my mate Sam and him are talking about Horace, a Matt black BMW which gave up the engine and gearbox. Brilliant

[reijerlincoln]

Now that's a true hot rod.

Low bucks / high creativity.

[christianvann]

Agreed with others, perfect start to a Saturday. Those rear wheels are mental, you find the weirdest stuff and know the best people!

[stuffthings]

The creaky door is the concrete fact that I absolutely have fallen in love with this crazy car.

[tobyrosoman]

My kind of Homegrown hotrod, even better with a great combination of British and German ingredients 😍

[ZesPak]

Jonny,

Thank you for your love for these things. There's much to hate about the drivetrain in this car but I love his reasoning for fitting it. It looks amazing.

[paulbennett]

Brilliant video, love the car. Pondering: ' Three pennith of chips and top the car up please'.

[johnelbersii]

The fun, creativity, and enjoyment is so present to hear Jonny and Pete is wonderful they are like little kids

[Kit-and-Stoma-Bob]

I was just waiting for Pete and Johnny to spray their mouths with chrome and say “What a lovely day!”

[kevinslitt]

Excellent hotrod! Love the low cost build. Love how's he rags it!

[caffinemc]

Just PURE!!! motoring enjoyment and ingenuity - what a thing….🤗

[jonesieify]

Brilliant! I was grinning from ear to ear just watching it! True talent right there 👍

[grayfool]

You find the most incredible stuff Jonny. That's brilliant.

[williamclark]

My compliments to Heir Doctor Frankenstein and his Bride. This is a real labour of love and work of art.

[fhwolthuis]

What a great contraption, I love it. Not just well built but also esthetically very appealing! Well done Jonny