Hot rod icons Beach Hop bound

Chuck Miller won the prestigious Ridler Award in 1968 and will be at this year's Repco Beach Hop 17. Photo/supplied

Repco Beach Hop is set to blast off in Whangamata for the 17th time next Wednesday - although many cars can be expected to arrive a day or two before and strut their stuff through town.

Every year the event provides more and more surprises, bigger and better prizes, and special overseas guests.

This year's guests are renowned in the United States for their many years of involvement in various aspects of car shows and performances.

Gene Winfield, known as the King of Kustoms, opened his first shop - Windy's Rod & Custom - in 1946, in what used to be a chicken coop at his mother's house.

Since then Winfield, now aged 89, has built many famous cars and been the star on numerous TV shows. His wild creations in the 60s made appearances in Bewitched, Batman and Star Trek.

He also built the cars for Back to the Future and Blade Runner.

Winfield has been land speed racing at the Bonneville since 1952 and still competes today.

He's coming to Repco Beach Hop 17 thanks to Custom Auto Glass, Day Haulage and Hauraki Tyre & Battery. If you would like to meet Winfield, he will be at the Custom Auto Glass stand during the festival.

The other well known US hot rodder to visit Repco Beach Hop 17 is Chuck Miller.

He built the Little Red Fire Truck hot rod which made its debut at the 1968 Detroit Autorama car show and won the prestigious Ridler Award.

Miller founded Styleline Custom in Detroit in 1963 and built several show-winning cars that toured the 60s show circuit including the iconic Red Baron, The Zingers, Bugs Buggy and the Sonic Cuda.

After retiring he created the Bunker Baron (a golf cart version of the Red Baron), a Detroit Red Wings golf cart, a customised 1957 BMW Isetta Taxi Cab named SLO-CAB - an acronym for Small Limo Orphan-Customer and Baggage.

Another of his personal projects was to construct a Miller's Mobile Gas Station and three false store fronts - a bar, a bicycle shop and a movie theatre - to resemble a town from the 60s on the grounds of his home.

He has been inducted into the Detroit Autorama Circle of Champions, Hall of Fame North at the St Ignace Straits Area Antique Auto Show, Kustom Kemps of America Hall of Fame and Darryl Starbird's Hall of Fame.

He was named Builder of the Year at the Detroit Autorama 2010 and Guest of Honour at the June, 2010 St Ignace Area Antique Auto Show.

His life story is featured in an automotive biography of his life in custom cars and hot rods.