When you’re truly passionate about something, it shows. And if that passion translates into a desirable product, you are luckier than many. One such lucky individual is Jeff Mayes who owns Hot Rod City in San Bernardino. His passion has turned into a growing business, which is not something everybody can say in today’s reality.

So what can you find at Jeff’s Hot Rod City Garage? The answer can be found by looking at his customer’s cars. Jeff describes his operation as a full speed and custom store. And that’s what he wants his space to look like when he comes to Pomona too. “I want it to look as much as possible like our store so you can buy with confidence knowing we’re a professional operation,” said Jeff.

But one of the things you might not necessarily see if you’re looking at his customer’s cars are the hand-crafted aluminum gas tanks Jeff and his Hot Rod City crew make. Do you need a place to put the fuel on that custom ’57 Bel Air, or that vintage Ford? Not a problem, they can create something that fits perfectly into your vision and vehicle. In fact, Jeff and company can build a custom gas tank for almost any vintage ride and chances are they’ve already done it once before… or many times before as it may be.

Wait a minute, you say, how do you know that they can build a fuel tank that will fit your ride? Well that’s a question Jeff hears quite a bit. And here’s the proof.  A customer from the Pomona Swap Meet gave Jeff the specs for his ride and it was the biggest fuel tank Jeff had ever seen. But that’s what happens when you need to build a tank to hold the 480 gallons of diesel fuel that you put into a Sherman tank. Apparently, the original tank was so rusted that they needed a new one for the custom project and Hot Rod City was able to build it. Now it might be tough to get a gas tank into your ride, but imagine if you had to take the turret off of your ride to fit the gas tank. Oh, and the turret weighs in at about 4 1/2 tons! Wow. So if Hot Rod City can put a new tank in a tank, your ride should be a piece of cake.

In addition to custom fuel tanks, Hot Rod City also custom fabricates radiator fan packages. So bring your vision to Jeff and he’ll make sure you’re looking cool and running cool.

So how did Jeff fall into this gig? Jeff’s been a fan of cars and has been going to the Pomona Swap Meet since his dad, who was a former GM employee, brought him along when he was just a kid. He’s been going since then, sharing his dad’s passion for things mechanical. In fact, about two and a half years ago Jeff set up his own booth at Pomona and hasn’t looked back. His business at the shop and the swap meet are both growing and he’s enjoying meeting customers and creating custom fuel tank solutions for them.

“I’m in this for the long haul…” said Jeff.  In addition to finding Jeff at the Pomona Swap Meet on Road 22, Spaces 58, 60 and 62, you can also visit him virtually at www.hotrodcitygarage.com.

This article was written by Tony Barthel from the Curbside Auto Column and Car Show Calendar. For auto articles, news and an on-line calendar of automotive events, please visit www.curbside.tv.

 

Awesome Aluminum Fuel tanks is what Hot Rod City has become known for.

Hot Rod City’s Jeff Mayes is always available to help you get what you need.