Ryan Carrillo states drag racing taught him invaluable lessons he continues embracing. The former NHRA drag racer has taken the same commitment to Unruly Speed & Kustom, where he and his team continue restoring classic hot rods and adding their own kustom flair. Carrillo recalled his tenure in NHRA and as a wrencher for funny cars.
“Looking back, I learned a lot from my dad who also raced. I chased a dream and worked on NHRA funny cars for years. There was very little room for error. When cars complete 1,000-foot runs and return to the pit, the motors are completely broken down; pulling rods, pistons, and bearings. You have 75 minutes to complete the job and return the car to the track. I learned to respect the process because everything can be boiled down to simply not tightening a bolt properly. No matter the size of the task, full focus was always necessary,” shared Carrillo.
Carrillo launched Unruly in 2015 after his passion shifted to more traditional ‘40s and ‘50s kustom rods. The shop resides in Washington, which is home to a vibrant hot rod community. Unruly resides in a former ‘60s classic car club meeting space and will be expanding into a former Packard dealership. Carrillo feels it’s important to preserve history and working within historically significant spaces makes him feel even more connected.
“I’ve lived cars and kustom kulture forever and I feel there’s something in it for everyone. We do our best to preserve history but move it forward with our kustom work. I don’t run from challenges and one example was our repair on a ‘54 Buick Skylark; manual tranny and 327 nailhead motor. Needed a new clutch so where do you go for that when the car you’re working on is 1 of 8 made? It’s crazy but I do my best because cars were meant to be driven after all,” laughed Carrillo.
Additionally, Carrillo recently restored a ‘37 LaSalle, which proved exceptionally challenging due to suffering fire damage.
“No two projects are alike. I tell people that something may take a few months or a few years. The LaSalle took almost two years and we used almost all NOS stuff. It was worth the effort because the car only had 17,000 original miles and was in the owner’s family forever! What’s crazy is that the owner was only able to enjoy it for a little while before passing and turned out his son is not really into cars and was looking to sell. I’m a purist and do my best to make them all come alive again,” said Carrillo.
Unruly Kustoms appears to run on the simple premise that hot rods deserve to be driven, and most every example has its own unique soul. Despite Carrillo’s extensive experience and involvement in the subculture, he shows no signs of slowing down.
“I don’t expect everyone to be as excited as me because I have been passionate about this since I was 6, watching my dad, handing him tools, and always making an effort to be around cars. This business part has been tough because I never went to school for that or had formal training. I have my business partner Clay Ward who brings a lot to the table and Unruly is not a result of any one individual. You can’t be great at every aspect and sometimes, reaching out for help is the best thing,” said Carrillo.
Unruly Kustoms continues making its mark on the local community. From preserving historical landmarks by operating their shop to facilitating an all-inclusive kustom kulture mentality, Carrillo is still adamant that vehicles are meant to be driven, and this passion for motion fuels him daily.
“Look at the history of hot rods. The early communities didn’t spend their time simply gathering in a central spot merely talking, they were drag racing, they were cruising, they weren’t driving round and round neighborhoods just waving. We can be a rambunctious group and we wanna put hot rods to good use, so we host shows and do our burnouts. We have a blast and I just like to haul ass. Cars were meant to be driven so let’s work to keep ‘em going!”
