1960 Buick Invicta by CAL Automotive Creations
There have been approximately one zillion custom cars built over the last century or so. Some are bad, some are good, and a few are really great. Those are the ones that get remembered. You know what we’re talking about; cars like the Hirohata Merc, the Deora, CadZilla. In the photos on this page, you’re looking at one of the great ones. George and Angela Eliacostas’s 1960 Buick Invicta will be a car that comes up in conversation decades from now, mentioned in the same sentence as a handful of others built by names like Barris, Ayala, Alexander, and Foose. Big words, right? Well, just look at this thing.
The X60 Invicta Custom was built by Andy Leach and the crew at CAL Automotive Creations in Bennington, Nebraska. CAL has a history of show-stopping cars that have won some of the biggest awards in the industry. So, we’re never surprised to see something next level roll out of their shop, but we’re always astonished that they keep raising the bar with every car. We’re also a little proud that these guys are customers and their shop just up the road from us right here in Nebraska is cranking out world-class cars that compete and win on the national stage.
This project began one fateful day about a decade ago when George Eliacostas was left alone parked in the Toys ‘R Us parking lot while wife Angela went in search of gifts for the grandkids. When she came back to the car and asked what he’d been up to, he replied “I just bought a ’60 Buick!” George then began shopping his project around to hot rod shops that could turn it into the custom that he’d been dreaming of. Andy was the only builder who didn’t want to turn the car into something that it wasn’t. His proposal honored the mid-century, aerospace-inspired vibe of the big Buick without trying to make it a caricature. Andy got the job.
Work began to make some subtle tweaks to the Buick’s lines to accentuate what was already great about it. But just because they’re subtle doesn’t mean they’re easy. The front wheel openings were moved forward 1 ½” and most notably, the body was wedge sectioned 2” in the front. This is major surgery, but is a key ingredient in the killer lines of a CAL car. The hood was lengthened, the cowl shortened, and custom bumpers and CAD machined trim tie all the sheet metal tweaks together.
Making a custom car look as good underneath as it does on the top is another CAL trademark. You’ve seen nice, high-end cars with well-detailed chassis before, but these guys take it to the next level. That means building rails and crossmembers from scratch to accommodate one-off independent front and rear suspensions. Easy to describe in a short sentence, but just think of the amount of work involved. Control arms and half-shafts were designed and fabricated to look as artful as the rest of the car while also functioning as they should. This thing even has a custom 4-link on the IRS that is pocketed inside the frame rails. It’s hard to describe the effect of all this work, so we’ll let the pictures do the talking.
As this work was progressing, our heroes were having trouble figuring out the perfect theme for the car. Should it have LS power? What about some big custom wheels and other high-tech features? Automotive design extraordinaire Eric Black was tapped in to help with the concepting. He brought the idea for the whitewalls and 60’s concept car vibe to the table. This vision won out and it was full speed ahead to create a car that honored the era that it came from. And this modern Invicta wouldn’t be saddled by compromises to mass production or mid-century tech.
Let’s talk about those whitewalls. They’re not what you might be expecting. The whitewall is actually machined aluminum and is an integral component to the 9-piece (!) custom wheels. They were designed to evoke a 15” factory-style wheel, but with modern touches to match the impeccable craftsmanship on the rest of the car. They end up measuring 19”x9” front and 19”x11” rear and are wrapped in 255/40R19’s and 265/50R19 Pirellis. Sneaky.
Often, car features like this can dig in on the handful of really unique details, then handle the engine or interior in a few sentences. Not this one. Every single aspect of this car is so clever and carefully executed that it needs some space to be truly appreciated. Such is the case with the engine. Oh man, that engine. It’s a 401 Nailhead with a crank-driven centrifugal supercharger. Take a minute to let that sink in. The block and heads were polished to eliminate any gaps or parting lines, and it was beefed up internally with a billet stud girdle, billet main caps, and capped with a billet oil pan. As you would imagine, the accessory drive on the front of the engine had to be built from scratch to work with the blower. That finned compartment on the front of the engine isn’t just there for looks, that’s the intercooler. We had this engine on the dyno at Speedway Motors Racing engines for some testing. We can tell you that it sounds nasty and made over 500 horsepower on what ended up being a partial pull. No doubt it would make some serious power with an aggressive tune on a full pull. It's backed up by a 4L80E with a billet pan to continue the artful design of the car’s undercarriage.
The interior of this car is sneaky. At a glance, it looks a bit like an extremely nice restoration of a factory interior. And that was by design. The crew used NOS seat material and rare Invicta Custom hardback seats to drive home the vintage vibe, but they also created custom rear seats, machined trim with custom logos, hand formed door panels, and fabricated dash panels to tighten everything up. It ends up looking original, but way nicer than what GM could pull off in 1960. The center console was custom machined and hides cupholders and a USB charge port. Even the stock Wonderbar radio was updated with modern electronics and will now work with Bluetooth devices. How cool is that?
As the long project neared its completion, George, Angela, and the CAL crew set their sights on the prestigious Al Slonaker Memorial Award at the 2023 Grand National Roadster Show. This has become one of those awards that owners and builders devote insane amounts of time, money, and sanity to win. It’s a big deal, and the competition is fierce. The Invicta’s display was impressive, evoking that mid-century GM design studio vibe, and even included a stock ’60 Buick to accentuate the effect of all the subtle tweaks made to the show car. As you might expect, the Invicta wowed the crowd and the judges and George and Angela took home the billet trophy.
We asked Andy about the experience of actually pulling off a project like this. Andy’s answer was simple. “If the crew here has a few spare hours on a project, they’re not going to let it be good enough, they’re going to keep pushing. That’s just how they are.” That effort and attitude shows up in every inch of this car. It was a team effort, and Andy is quick to credit the crew with the Invicta’s success. The CAL crew is: Dalton Keeler, Earl Boldra, Erik Hanson, Ethan Jansen, Jim Karls, Matt Summers, Paul Caruana, Sam Gengenbach, Scott Schneckloth, Steve Socha, and Rick Ulfers.
Some of us mere mortals might have trouble relating to a car like this. Few of us have the talent of Andy and the CAL crew or the money to see something like this through to the end. But we contend that cars like the Invicta are necessary to help keep us going as home builders and weekend hot rodders. Being in the presence of this car is not unlike the experience of standing in front of a painting or sculpture in a gallery. We might not be able to paint, chisel stone, or shape metal like the masters whose work we’re admiring, but the experience of the finished piece is transformative. It’s a monumental achievement, and it’s an inspiration for all of us to keep striving. That’s the power of great art.
We’re seriously thrilled that we’ll have the opportunity to experience this car in person, and you can too. On May 27th, 2023 Speedway Motors and the Museum of American Speed will be hosting the first annual Wheel Hub Live. The Invicta will be there, along with a long list of other jaw-dropping cars that have been featured in Wheel Hub Magazine. If you’re familiar with Wheel Hub, then you know what we’re talking about. These works of automotive art will be housed in the Museum of American Speed’s brand new 30,000 sq. ft. expansion. Plus, the Speedway Motors parking lot will be jammed with hundreds of hot rods, customs, muscle cars and more. It’s going to be so good, and we’d love to see you there.
Photography by Jason Lubken and Jess Coleman.