Osoyoos car builder JF Launier, centre, won the Builder of the Decade trophy at the recent Quebec Sports Auto Show 2019 for his work on a 1964 Pontiac Acadian. He’s joined by owners Cody Jadresko (left) and Danny Jadresko. (Contributed photo)

By Vanessa Broadbent

Osoyoos Times

What Osoyoos car builder JF Launier calls “basically the best car” he and his team at JF Kustoms have ever built is gaining global recognition.

The ’64 Pontiac Acadian, dubbed Anvil and owned by the Jadresko family of Victoria, is garnering a collection of show wins across North America, most recently from the Quebec Sports Auto Show 2019 where the car won Best in Class and Most Outstanding Street Machine, and Launier won the Builder of the Decade trophy.

In March, the car was named the 2019 Motorama Grand Champion at the Toronto Motorama Expo, and made the Great 8 at the Detroit Autorama, contending for the highly-coveted Ridler Award.

The accolades are only a few on Launier’s continuously growing list. His previous projects have won best car in Europe, Detroit, North America and even the world.

And this wasn’t Launier’s first car to contend for the Ridler Cup. In 2014 his 1964 Buick Riviera made him the first Canadian to win the award in 45 years.

“We put a lot of effort into the cars and they are super special,” he said. “We always build that really amazing unique work of art.”

• Read more: Osoyoos hot rod builder JF Launier wins global acclaim

What made this car an even more unique project for the JF Kustoms team was the story behind it.

Owner Danny Jadresko has owned the car for 35 years and drove it on his wedding day 33 years ago. He and his son Cody worked with Launier to design the new build.

“I just thought it was cool that it was a father son project and that it was a family heirloom that they held on to all that time and waited for me to be the guy to do the wicked job of it and make it special,” Launier said.

But it was also one of the largest budgets his team’s ever had to work with. With over $1 million invested in the rebuild, Launier was able to put all the “cool s—” in it.

“We didn’t know we had (a large budget), we just kept spending his money until he said no, and he didn’t say no,” Launier joked.

“I tend to over create cars. I add more cool s—, I add more design, I put more elements in it that make it very interesting.”

Now the car is heading to Osoyoos for its Western Canada debut. It’ll be on display at the Cactus Jalopies car show from May 30 to June 2.