Your Scotlea Idol Rods Questions answered by owner and founder Dr.Patrick Hagerman.

What does Scotlea Idol Rods stand for? The name "Scotlea Idol Rods" was actually my wife's idea. It is a combination of my middle name "Scott" and her's "Lea". Previously, I had done business under the name of Hagerman Hot Rods, but we wanted to change it. The "Idol" part of it comes from the idea that a lot of people idolize certain cars over others. We build cars that you idolize, or are seen as idols of the big-screen.

We heard you referred to as "professor patrick" on the internet...are you really a professor? Yes, I used to be a university professor, and hold a doctorate degree. I started out my college career studying mechanical engineering. I later completed my masters and doctorate degrees in Exercise Science because one of my other loves is exercise, and I found the human body's responses to exercise facinating, so I followed that. I actually put myself through college building cars, so that initial foundation wasn't wasted.

Being a professor - where did you also get this mechanical knowledge? I got most of my mechanical foundation from my father, who has owned a chassis shop for as long as I can remember. He primarily designs and builds drag cars, so I grew up around that, working with him, and developed a taste for engineering. I learned the mathmatical side of design in college, along with structural concepts and such. So much of automotive design these days comes from experimentation and imagination. I like to look at things for a long time and build them in my head before I ever touch a car - I have all kinds of ideas stored in my brain that I just haven't had an opportunity to build yet.

Scotlea Idol Rods is known for producing top of the line movie car replicas - care to give us some secrets you have learned along the way? We honestly are curious how it can be done affordably, let alone for profit - as many have put way more money into their replicas than they could have had one built for...... When I started building General Lees and other replicas, it was for fun. My base business is still in drag, road race, and pro-street cars. I was approached about building a General Lee, and thought it would be interesting. The owner didn't want anything fancy, just a basic charger so we did it. That kind of snowballed over the last few years to the point that we are now about 50% replicas and 50% race cars. I made the decision to start building only top of the line General Lees. I had people bringing me cars that would barely run, only want to have them cleaned up and painted, then gripe when they wouldn't run 80 mph or stop on a dime. These were cars that only had 20-22 thousand in them - which is nothing for a 69 charger these days (especially when $8000 of that is paint). I have a reputation to protect, which is why I will only build a fully redone from top to bottom General Lee now. Of course it's always cheaper to build your own car than have one done - that is, if you do it right the first time. I think the key to a good car is to use professionals for key parts. If you don't know how to build an engine - have a machine shop do that part for you - don't learn on the car you want to drive. Same goes for bodywork - you can do it yourself, but work under the guidance of a pro. You can save a lot of money on the little things that take a lot of time - like wiring, interior, and assembly. Probably the biggest expense most of us run into is parts. There are a lot of sources for parts these days. I rarely buy from the big catalogs since a little searching will often net you a few dollars saved and the same quality parts from a little company. Also, don't scrimp on cheap parts that you will have to replace later. Spend the money right the first time.

Do you have a personal GL? I do have a personal General Lee, or I should say my wife has a personal General Lee. She wanted one for herself, so we built one for her that was over the top. I put all my racing knowledge into that car, which made the car completely different from any other General Lee you have ever seen. It's a true 69 big-block charger that now sports a 543 big block with aluminum heads and dual 4-barrel carbs. The engine has a lot of special features that I'm going to keep secret, but I will say it's good for
over 800 horsepower with the custom cold air intake. We used full TTI 3" headers and exhaust, a specially built 727 trans, 8 3/4 rear with 3.55 gears and Auburn posi, Strange axles, specially designed suspension and sway bars. It is Corvette Flame Red, and the interior is fully custom. The stock dash was modified and smoothed (no lower dash pads), all Ultralite gauges, Painless wiring throughout, custom seat covers (took a set of Legendary saddle tan, cut out the inserts and replaced them with light tan suede), power door locks and windows, Alpine sound system, 6-point rollbar, and other small touches. It's a combination of old general with new street custom that makes it special to me. It will undoubtedly get some heat for not being accurate, but it's a showcase for what we can do.

Give us some details on your GLs...what color do you typically use? Interiors? What sets your cars apart from the rest? What kind of time frame do you put on each car? So far each of the GLs we have built has been a little bit different - engine combos, colors, small details here and there - but I am moving toward more of a base model that can be modified a little bit. I am actually more fond of Corvette Flame Red, but we will go with whatever color the owner wants. We use a new orange primer under the paint which really brings out the final color more than a black or grey primer does. Our upper door panels, dashpads, and arm rests all all covered with the same color seat vinyl, and look amazing - way better than dying them. In fact, the only interior parts we dye are the lower dash pads (glove box door, etc.). We also only build true rollbars - not exhaust pipe. We've just started updating our gauge panels as well, the original oil, temp and amp meters are replaced with new Autogage units that are mounted in the original locations, which gives us perfect analysis of our engines. What sets our cars apart will be all the details - everything works as it should. The doors shut easily, windows are adjusted to keep wind noise at a minimum, every mechanical part is in top shape, etc.. It takes about 8 months to complete a General Lee from start to finish, and we are currently scheduling about 6 months in advance. At any one time, there are 4-5 cars in our shop. When we build a car, the owner knows what's going on at all times. We keep a photo diary of the entire process, and send the owner between 20-40 pictures every week. We are in constant communication with the owners because they are putting up big bucks for a car and I want them to know what is happening, and keep them informed.

We know you are also doing replicas of other tv or movie cars...any info? We will build just about anything a person can thing of. Right now, we have done a KITT replica that went to a happy owner; several General Lees are in the shop in the restoration process, a Christine replica is in the design and parts procurement phase, an A-Team van and Hazzard County patrol car were finished last year. We are also searching for just the right Volkswagen bug to turn into the NASCAR version Herbie from the last Herbie Fully Loaded movie.

Any final thoughts? To anyone interested in a General Lee or movie car replica - just do it. Now is the time because the 69 Charger is only going to get more rare and expensive. Never listen to people that tell you your car isn't accurate - nobody knows what that really is accurate unless they cite a specific episode. Your car is yours and should reflect what you want it to be. And finally, drive them!! Cars are meant to be on the road, not on trailers or in garages!