Lynn Pew is a retired General Motors (GM) executive with a passion for Hot Rods that extends back to his early teens. Growing up in the Midwest, Hot Rods were rare and difficult to find. Lynn learned the skills required to work on cars from his father, Merle, who could do everything. Lynn’s first car was a custom 1953 Chevrolet patterned after the famous “Moonglow” creation. After graduating from Millikin University, Lynn moved to Detroit with his wife, Jane, to work full-time for GM.
The Detroit News newspaper was the place to look for cars. When a mint-condition 32 5-window coupe was located, Lynn couldn’t resist and purchased the car for the grand sum of $500. After honing his skills on his first coupe, Lynn went on to build more than forty cars including twenty 32-Fords, five 34-Fords, fifteen 40-Fords, and four 46/48-Fords. His love for cars, along with his skills and knowledge, grew exponentially.
Working for GM, and moving approximately every two years, provided Lynn with a great opportunity to meet and work with the driving forces in the Street Rod and Hot Rod Industry. In the ’80s and ’90s, Lynn managed the Los Angeles GMC Truck dealership and was the first to offer custom trucks with conversions by some of the greatest names in the business – California Street Rods, Boyd Coddington, Roy Brizio and Thom Taylor, to name a few. Lynn made available items like rear-rolled pans, dropped spindles, custom paint jobs, billet wheels and high performance motors through the Los Angeles Truck Center. In conjunction with GM, Lynn provided custom trucks and trailers and sponsored many of the major builders on the West coast.
The natural association of Hot Rods and Street Rods with trucks provided a niche market that paid off very well. Lynn expanded on this niche market by becoming a high-level sales and marketing executive for GM in 1992.
In 2000, Lynn retired from GM but maintained his passion for Hot Rods. And PewsPlace was born. Lynn’s consulting company now focuses on buying, selling and building Hot Rods. Lynn’s preferred style is the dropped axle, quickchange and Buick drum look that Barry Lobeck made famous. Barry’s deep-maroon colored roadster, now owned by Bruce Meyer, will always hold the title for Lynn’s favorite car.
Today, Lynn lives with his wife Jane in Simi Valley, CA and he works full-time on PewsPlace and continuing his education, passion and love for Hot Rods.
To share your stories, talk shop or just browse pictures and stories, log-on to the PewsPlace blog at www.pewsplace.com or contact Lynn directly by clicking the “contact†button or by email at pewsplace@gmail.com.