Local Designs Hot Rod for a Wheel Cause

There's a shiny, red pedal car on display at Los Angeles' Peterson Automotive Museum that has a special connection to the foothills: it was designed and constructed by La Crescenta vintage engine builder Mike Herman of H&H Flatheads.  

Herman's design is one of nine cars created by hot rod shops across the U.S. The vehicles mark the 80th anniversary of the 1932 Ford fondly called the "Deuce" and will be on display at the Peterson Automotive Museum lobby during Deuce Week, which includes a Rock concertat the museum on Friday night. 

The cherry automobile will be auctioned in January 2013 at Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale, Ariz. 

Proceeds will be donated to the museum for its Robert E. Petersen Free School Bus program, which buses in underprivileged students from Title I schools to the museum for field trips, said Chris Brown, Information and Marketing Manager at Peterson Automotive Museum. 

Each hot rod shop had the same car and created their own unique designs, Brown said. 

"We gave everybody the same pedal car to start with and they all ended up different, Brown said. 

H&H Flatheads committed to more than 150 hours of work, said Mike Herman, owner of  at 4451 Ramsdell Avenue. Herman has owned H&H Automotive Engine Company for nine years - the same location where his father started the company in 1972.   

He purchased Navarro Racing Equipment from Barney Navarro about six years ago and painted the Navarro name in white, in honor of the racing namesake.

"He was a pioneer in the hot rod world and he started his company in 1946," Herman said. 

The inspiration for design is from the Bonneville Salts Flats in the National Hot Rod Association Museum in Pomona.   

"His car is pretty famous and pretty well-known so I did a replica of his car and we did a ton of modifications to that car, in terms of bodywork, paint and roll bars," Herman said.

Herman wouldn't say the exact amount of money that he spent on the car, but did reveal that he donated his own money, time and enjoyed the challenge.

"It's been really well received," Herman said. "I've heard a lot of people want it. Because it's going up for auction at Barrett-Jackson and it's all for charity, all the money goes to the Peterson Foundation to bus kids in to the museum." 

The car could auction for anything from $1,000 to more than $10,000, Brown said. The more money it goes for the more students can attend field trips, he said. 

"It was a really generous thing for [Herman] to put in his time, and his employees' time, and we hope it goes for big money," Brown said.

Auction information will be found at www.Petersen.org as it becomes available, Brown said. 

Visitors can see the vintage-inspired wheels on display at the Bruce Meyer Gallery at Peterson Automotive Museum, 6060 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. For more information, call (323) 964-6320.