WHILE in Cheyenne Wyoming for the 2nd Annual Angelina’s Summer Showdown, I had the pleasure of handing out my own award at the show. The Cruise Culture Magazine Pick. I was one of the first people to arrive at the show that morning and would be keeping my eye out all day for the one too crown my favorite. The award came with the honor of being featured in the magazine and here we are. This 1982 Cadillac Coupe Deville was one of the first to arrive at the show and happened to be parked almost directly across the main aisle from me. From the moment I saw it I had the feeling that it would be the one. All day I looked through the sea of cars looking for other contenders, and there were, many. But I kept coming back to this one.
In 2016, Dustin Roybal drove the city of Cheyenne curiously observing the aftermath of a hailstorm that rocked the city when he spotted this Coupe Deville on the southside of town with a for sale sign and some unfortunate damage from the storm. A few of the windows had been shattered and there was some body damage from the hail. Dustin offered the seller a fair price and took home the 70,000 mile, one owner Cadillac.
The first thing Dustin did with the car was make sure that everything under the hood and the car was running, driving and working properly. After the drivetrain and brakes were dependable, he replaced the windows to seal it in and then got down to doing his research so that he could be certain of the work to be done and who would be doing it.
Dustin’s Uncle, Alex Sandoval, painted the car as one of his last projects before his passing, may he rest in peace. Alex owned a local shop named Cheyenne Auto Body and in his 70’s still managed to lay down this beautiful Hot Chocolate Pearl brown, a BMW color. That was paired nicely with a new vinyl top. To wrap up the paint, Dustin went to Adam Steif of HoldFast Customs who laid down some epic stripes, gold leaf, and an eye catching metal flake roof.
The air ride is a bespoke system built by Rick Murray with Krazy Kreations in Brighton Colorado. Dustin’s biggest push on this car was reliability, so Rick built the system using industrial hydraulic hoses and heavy duty bags. Rick also built a custom rack in the truck and hid all the wires and solenoids.
The car also has a custom exhaust built by Big Al’s Exhaust and has had some work done by Elite Auto Upholtery.
Dustin has always loved large bodied cars with straight lines and this Cadillac was king. Dustin and his family have a history of cars and lowriders. He built a beautiful 1973 Riviera and gifted it to his son (Phillip aka PJ) several years prior, who now works on the car with his son and Grandpa Dustin. In true lowrider style, these cars span generations and Dustin is part of a large community of Uncles, Cousins, and friends in the scene. Dustin says that customization is a way to have a voice without speaking, cruising down the street in something you’re proud of says “I’m here.”
Dustin looks forward to one day building something with his grandson, and maybe an El Camino. He would also like the thank his wife, Valerie for her support, his sone, Phillip for keeping him enthusiastic and for his talks and opinions, his uncle, Alex Sandoval, and the local clubs, artists, and shows that allow everyone to show off their hard work.
We also can’t end this article without mentioning Barbie featured here in some of these photos. Barbie is a gothic celebrity model from Texas who attended the show to help raise money and awareness for the show to donate to charity. She tagged along for some awesome photos with Dustin’s Cadillac and was a blast to have around. You can find her on Instagram @omfg.its.barbie
Article by Brian Holzli
Photos by Brian Holzli and Nate McDonald (Nate McPhoto)
