METALLICA Frontman James Hetfield’s Black Pearl Takes Custom Of The Year Award
April 2, 2014, 10 years ago
METALLICA frontman James Hetfield’s customized 1939 Lincoln Zephyr, that he calls the “Black Pearl” won the Goodguys 2014 Mother’s Custom Of The Year award.
A description of the car:
“Built from scratch, the body is heavily influenced by the full rounded contours of European and American cars of the 1930s and 1940s. Designed by the talented Rick Dore, the beautiful tear drop body sits on a custom 1948 Jaguar saloon chassis of which only the outer frame rails remain untouched. Hetfield and Dore were helped by famed panelbeaters Marcel and Luc De Lay to shape the Black Pearl's aluminum body panels.
Under the hood we find a 375 horsepower Ford V8 with a displacement of 302 cubic inches (liters), mated to a Ford C4 automatic transmission. Front suspension comes from a Mustang, while the rear breaking system is borrowed from a not-so-interesting Ford Explorer. The Pearl is painted in a luscious deep PPG black by Darryl Hollenbeck from Vintage Color Studio, a color that beautifully contrasts with the cream leather seats, the brushed brass trim and wheel caps.”
Walk-around video of the Black Pearl from this year’s Grand National Roadster Show:
