The silhouette of the '71 Cuda is iconic. The secret to a good custom is to reveal all the best parts of the original designer's intent while updating it with modern build technology. This one, Elee, is one of the most successful iterations of this philosophy. And that is no surprise. The builder, Great Lakes Muscle Cars, has been quietly honing his craft for over 20 years. His book of business has been built by word of mouth, only taking on commissioned projects. That is why you rarely find a Great Lakes creation available for sale to the public.
Elee is not an exercise in moderation either. This '71 Cuda Custom is built around the monstrous Supercharged 426 HEMI engine Mopar unleashed on the world during the 2018 SEMA show. The order books opened on 4/26/2019, HEMI Day. Hellephant engine #34 was secured. Once the motor was in house at Great Lakes Muscle Cars, work on Elle began in earnest. The build was completed in Fall of 2022. The result you see before you are thousands of hours and years in the making.
EXTERIOR
Every distraction from the Cuda body shape has been eliminated. Side markers, shaved. Every panel, de-badged. Side view mirrors, gone. The glass flush mounted; the drip rails shaved. Rear exhaust valence, frenched. Bumpers tucked and tightened. Entry? Keyless, no need for handles. All that is left is a single block of 1971 Cuda sculpted from a solid block of Eiger Grey Metallic. It is a monochrome look with a satin finish on the hood and fender tops. The color-keyed vinyl wrap makes a subtle nod to AAR Organosol also serves a purpose, protecting the most damage prone areas during car shows while cutting sun glare on the open road.
INTERIOR
The minimalist theme flows from the exterior, inward. It is elegant, but not Spartan. At first glance, you may think- ""This thing has no Air Conditioning, where are the vents?!"" The Vintage Air controls are discretely placed to the right of steering column, in the space the OEM radio used to occupy. The Catastrophe Red leather, stitched and contoured to look as if hewn from a single hide, hugs the dash, styled and engineered to appear to carve from one continuous piece. When you aren't treating your ears to the staccato of the open exhaust cutouts, you can enjoy your favorite tunes with the custom Rockford Fosgate audio system, controlled by a Kenwood Bluetooth radio. The 12-way power seats are wrapped in color matched leather and coordinating black suede. The headliner and interior door panels carry the theme through the cabin. The carpets are custom cut premium imported polyester and latex backed German Square Weave in True Black for maximum durability and easy cleanup (which is evidently required, please pardon the unfortunate driveway dust on the driver's side floormat).
A well-tailored interior is nothing without its jewelry. The polished aluminum Dakota Digital gauges mirror the factory instrument cluster, with a cleaner execution while also providing precision data and more of it. The Silver Sport Pistol Grip Shifter looks at home in 1971 and today, fashioned from Carbon Fiber instead of faux wood-look plastic. The window cranks (yes, window cranks) come courtesy of Ring Brothers. The Aluminum and Leather Billet Specialties steering wheel and tilt column complete the look.
ENGINE BAY
The Cuda Rally hood was chosen over the Shaker hood because it shows the Hellephant off so much better than covering it with a bubble. While the hood is factory, the hinges at Ring Brothers billet.
Once you lift the lid, you'll quickly notice that the engine bay is finished using the same minimalist ethos as the rest of the car. Inner fenders shaved. Firewall smoothed. The Eiger Grey Metallic serves as the satin pillow for the diamond centerpiece, Hellephant #34. The motor is modified with a mid-sump oil pan to keep the motor low and the ground clearance high. From the Superior Triple-pass aluminum radiator to the hoses and wiring harness, everything looks like Marry Poppins magically placed it. A place for everything and everything in its place. Custom show car tidy. Practical organization for no hassle servicing. That is the hands of experience at work.
CHASSIS
All that power means nothing without the ability to put it to the pavement. That begins with fortifying the chassis, fully tied frame, reinforced radiator core support, and front upper bar. The transmission tunnel was enlarged to accommodate the Silver Sport 6-speed Tremec gear box rated to handle up to 1,500hp. The rear wheel wells were also mini-tubbed to fit the Boze 20x12.5 custom 2-piece wheels shod in 325/30/20 Michelin Pilot Sports. The fronts are 20x9's wrapped in 245/35/20's.
The ride and handling come courtesy of state-of-the-art suspension technology. Up front, the venerable Riley Motorsports AlterKtion SLA suspension incorporating Ride Tek 2-way adjustable coil-overs. The power is planted with Ride Tek coil-overs reprising their role out back, this time applied to a beefy 4-link rear 8 Sure-grip center section loaded with 4.10 gears; Axle shafts are shorted 4.5 inches on each side.
The spent gases are routed through 2-inch TTI headers, collected in 3-inch exhaust tubing out back with an optional early exit through throaty QTP exhaust cutouts. If you ever wanted to hear the full Hellephant thunder, its just a button click away.
