Ant Anstead Master Mechanic

Ant’s got the summer off and a baby due in 12 weeks.  Rather than put his feet up or paint the nursery he decides to fulfill a childhood fantasy… to own a 1950s Alfa 158.  Unfortunately, this would set him back around $20 million to buy… so he’s going to build one himself from the ground up!

It’s week 2 of Ant’s ambitious Alfa 158 build.  He’s found a donor 1950s chassis and is about to find out if it’s fit for purpose with a healthy dose of media blasting.   Once that’s done the build can begin in earnest. Ant and the crew cram into his classic Porsche, named Agnes, and hit the streets of Huntington Beach in search of life’s essentials.

It’s week 3 of Ant’s Alfa 158 build and he visits an Alfa specialist hoping to buy a live rear axle.  After a test drive in an unloved Alfa Spider with no clutch pedal he ends up getting more than he bargained for.  The axle, plus gearbox and engine.  Win win.

Ant is beginning to feel the pressure of his ambitious Alfa 158 build. The only place he can get the correct body mold on short notice is his own shop back in England, more than 5,000 miles away.

As the Alfa build nears the halfway point, a torn bicep threatens to derail the entire project. When Ant's wife Christina stops by to make sure he isn't overdoing it, she's surprised to learn that the 158 is a single-seater.

Ant's 158 and injured arm are both progressing steadily, but he still needs lots of help from the camera crew. Making matters worse, the body is still in transit from the UK and might not fit the chassis.

Ant hits week seven of his Alfa build and takes the team on a surprise pilgrimage to see an original Alfa 158. He is starstruck and even squeezes into the $20 million beauty for a selfie.

Ant is not a patient man, and the engine for his Alfa 158 is still missing in action. There are still loads of work to do, and he's been working early mornings, late nights and weekends, sometimes without the camera crew.

Ant hopes to sweet-talk a few bigwigs into giving him permission to take his completed Alfa 150 to the US Grand Prix in Austin. But the car isn't done, and his arm still isn't fully healed, leaving the heavy lifting to his crew.

There are three weeks to go in Ant's ambitious Alfa build, but his new baby could come any day now. With the clock ticking as the project enters the home stretch, he gets good news about his plan to unveil the finished car at the US Grand Prix, but there are a million critical details to sort out before he can make that dream a reality.

With the deadline looming on his Alfa 158 build, Ant has yet to even start the engine, let alone give the car a test drive. He also needs to finalize the look of his creation, so he seeks out legendary designer Chip Foose.

Ant has to strip the Alfa 158 down, paint every part and rebuild the car in time for its debut at the US Grand Prix. After that, he puts the car through its paces on the track to see if performance lives up to expectations.