Jessica Lile is not an average gal, and suitably, she does not bring a mediocre piece of work to an art exhibit. At the recent Goodguys Rod & Custom Association show in Nashville, Jessica rolled up in her gorgeous, deep green ’56 Chevrolet pick-up and parked it in a way that the sun would shine on the flames just so. She’d clearly done this a time or two.
It was right around four years ago when Jessica and her husband, Shane, got the call from a friend at a body shop in Louisville, Kentucky, that turned out to be the igniting spark of this truck becoming part of their growing family.
“Our friend said, ‘you’ve got to come see this truck that’s for sale,’ so we went and saw it, and it just happened,” said Jessica, shrugging a little as a bit of a sly smile turned up the corners of her mouth.
The couple christened their new addition “Little Momma” and tapped it as the work of art that Jessica, who was then pregnant with son Tucker Nash, could cruise to car shows. It also made good business sense for Sewn Tight Custom Interiors, their family-owned and operated hot rod interior shop based 10 minutes south of Louisville.
Aesthetically, at least in terms of the exterior, this truck was exactly what she wanted. The sweet little step-side had been painted nearly 20 years prior and kept garaged since then, and the balance of age and preservation spoke to her.
“The paint job was so beautiful; that was the only thing we didn’t want to change,” she said.
The paint was ceramic coated to prolong its preservation, and the ’56 was overhauled in every other way for comfort, style, and sensibility. It was outfitted with a 350 Chevy crate engine and got a full suspension re-work, four-link rear end, disc brakes, overdrive transmission, air conditioning, and, of course, custom Sewn Tight interior.
“It shows its wear a little bit, but I drive it everywhere,” said Jessica. “My son loves it when I pick him up from school in ‘momma’s hot rod.’ Every now and then, I look over and he’s grinning ear-to-ear.”
We would be, too!
See more from the Goodguys Rod & Custom Association 2021 show in Nashville here.
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