When Cam Waugh restores a vehicle, the result is always a surprise.
It may be because it's always something rarely seen in Regina -- such as his newest project, a 1954 Cadillac Fleetwood 60 Special -- or it may be because what's under the hood doesn't quite match the body, such as a Cadillac Northstar 300 hp V8 engine in a 4-door Volkswagen Golf.
Waugh works with vehicles all day as the owner of CWS Tuning. He does many repairs for right-hand drive vehicles, and also works on hot rods for owners from around the city. And then he's had quite a few pet projects of his own. He's worked on everything from a Ford Festiva with a Turba Mazda motor to an Austin Mini 4X4 to a 1957 GMC bus. The finished product is never quite the same as the original car.
He had an idea of what he was looking for when starting his latest project. After recovering from a bike accident that included major surgery, Waugh got back into the car game four years ago after finding the 1954 Cadillac Fleetwood through word of mouth. The car had been parked since the '70s, so the body was pretty bad and the interior soon fell apart. Over four years, Waugh has been bringing the Cadillac back to life.
"We put some 20-inch chrome wheels on it; air, suspension, and did a lot of re-chroming," he said. "We're in the middle of putting a motor in -- a BMW V12. I bought a car with really low miles on it, and the V12s have a really unique sound -- like a Ferrari. I can't wait."
Waugh still has some work to do with the interior, but the car has already become his daily driver. The flashy vehicle turns a lot of heads as he comes down the street. And when it comes to a hot rod like this, he said nothing is ever really done. It's especially difficult to find parts for a vehicle that's not normally restored.
"I have a tattoo that says 'my philosophy' and then has a square peg through a round hole," laughed Waugh.
He has normally done most of his work on import cars, but since becoming a member of the Majestics Car Club two years ago, he's been steering more toward Classic American cars. After this project is complete, he's next going to tackle a 1959 Chevy and a 1955 Cadillac Hearse, which will become his family's new camping vehicle.
"Yes, my wife actually agrees with it," said Waugh, as his family all has the car bug. "It's got 6,000 original miles on it, I guess because it didn't have to drive that far. I'll put on air bags and lower it."
In fact Waugh's three-year-old son often asks if they're going to be driving the black Cadillac to day care.
Another challenge Waugh recently took on was Project Sipster for TopGear.com. The company set out to prove that for $7,000, they could build a vehicle that could go zero to 60 in seven seconds, and get at least 70 miles to the gallon. They gave Waugh and CWS Tuning a 1981 Volkswagen Rabbit, bought for $1,700. In it, Waugh put a 2002 Jetta TDI -- he's known for putting mismatched engines under the hood of nondescript cars. In the end, the car got 84 miles to the gallon.
It's always something new, different, and unique for Waugh -- and he wouldn't have it any other way.
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