On Saturday afternoon his hard work was rewarded when he unveiled his hot-rodded 1932 Ford Coupe, and swept the field at the Canberra Hot Rod Association's Australia Day Show'n'Shine at Queanbeyan Town Park.

Mr Carvolth's car took out the Mayor's Choice award, People's Choice, Entrant's Choice, and was listed in the Top Six category for the best cars in show.

He said he's had a life-long love of cars and engines, but this was the first time he'd ever built or restored one.

"I've had cars all my life and I've always been tinkering with cars since I was about 16," Mr Carvolth said.

"It's just getting the time to do it that's the hard part. You've got to do everything and make everything yourself, from the wiring, the brakes, the trim, painting it.

"It's just time consuming because it's such a big job," he said.

Local mayor Tim Overall said he was impressed by the attention to detail shown on Mr Carvolth's vehicle and awarded it the Mayor's Choice award.

"It just caught my eye with the level of detail shown. It's a stunning machince," Cr Overall said.

After showing off his new wheels at the park, Mr Carvolth joined his fellow hotrodders for a drive up the highway to Eaglehawk, and said his car handled the open road with ease, despite only being registered two days beforehand.

He said he's been well and truly bitten by the hotrodding bug, and is planning to build another hotted-up vintage ride in the future.

"I'd like to do another one," he laughed.

"That's half the fun of doing it. I enjoy building them and seeing it develop," he said.