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Mark and his team build a Rat Rod in Episode One Season Four of Car Masters: Rust to Riches to bring some money into the cash-deprived Gotham Garage.

Gotham Garage's Car Masters: Rust To Riches is back with another season on Netflix. The crew is kicking things off with a survival build which we were introduced to at the end of season three. As Mark and his crew were unable to sell their concept duo (for obvious reasons!), they needed a revival project to bring back money into the cash-deprived custom house.

Their answer was to do a zero-budget build using a classic car body that had been acquired. At the end of last season, we say Mark took up the responsibilities and assured the team that he would take care of all the expenses; and also not take a cut of the profit. This was supposedly his way of saying sorry for the botched concept car and motorcycle deal.

But Mark being Mark, cleverly went for a near zero-money build and brought in salvaged parts from a junkyard to convert the Essex skeleton into a Gotham Garage rat rod. The team uses some cleverly improvised bits for the fuel cell, gear shifter, and taillights; to build a proper rat rod. Mark, obviously, gave his touches at the end of this build; and the Essex-based rat rod actually turned out quite well.

Now, being a zero-money build, the selling price was deemed to be its profit. So, the higher the price, the better each person's share. Let's see how Mark and his team manage to put their creative brains to full use with this Essex build.

Mark and his team build a 1928 Essex Rat Rod in Episode One Season Four of Car Masters: Rust to Riches to bring some money into the cash-deprived Gotham Garage.

Though short-lived, the Essex has been a pivotal car in American automotive history. It was a series of automobiles that were produced by the Essex Motor Company which was owned by Hudson Motor Car Company. The Essex was designed to be a cheap car that was affordable for all. But it also is credited with being one of the first cars to bring about the enclosed passenger compartment trends.

Before this, it was mostly open-top cars. Upon launch in 1919, it was a smashing hit; and by the end of its journey sold more than 1.13 million cars. The Essex was the third best in terms of US sales figures just behind the big guns - Ford and Chevy.

Rat rods are quite the bold type of custom cars. These are deliberately stripped down and rusted to give it an unfinished character. All the attention goes into being creative with various components. Rat rods are basically the alter ego of hot rods. These rusty creations are built with the intent of being driven around; unlike hot rods which mostly end up being show cars.

The whole concept started off in the 80s and influences are said to be many including punk, various forms of early rock culture, greaser, and even biker clubs. Rusted body panels are the most common attribute of showing a rat rod off. But the more interesting aspects include the usage of salvage parts to build various components. It is all about being creative on a tight budget.

Related: This Lamborghini Espada Rat Rod Breaks All The Rules

The Gotham Garage team slaps in a 383 Chevy Stoker motor which is considered to be the best performance bundle that can be attained for cheap money. There are various iterations of this Chevy small block with power figures ranging from 415-450 hp. We suspect Mark Towle and his team to have gone for the base 415 hp variant, because of the budget build.

But things get spicier as the stoker motor gets crowned with a 471 supercharger kit, which will be elevating its performance appeal. To hear this motor rumble, the custom straight pipe exhaust system was given a side-mounted exit.

The Essex was already in the garage on a "rusty" note. But there were a few of its body panels missing. So, Mark cut out some fresh metal and fitted it onto the rat rod build. And to give it a raspy look, he used the clever method of spraying a mixture of salt, white vinegar, and hydrogen peroxide to oxidize the metal instantly.

Blowing a flame torch over this cocktail was enough to immediately rust the metal and give it the desired look. While mostly a rat rod is all around rust, Mark decided to give his twist to the build. He painted the top half of the car until the window frames in sea foam green to give it a unique two-tone finish.

Related: Classic Chevy 210 Rendered Into Rat Rod Inspired By Two-Lane Blacktop

Putting creativity to use, the team used a vintage lantern as a single taillight housing at the rear. An old steam trunk was repurposed and hung at the rear to house the fuel cell. And a toy gun that Mark found at the junkyard was used as the gear lever. Apart from these bits, this rat rod build also got a slew of "Gotham Garage" visual touches around the front fascia and fender flares.

It even got a cool hood ornament made from scrapped metal parts. The interior was given a "mechanical" makeover with most of the beauty bits being confined to the dashboard. The seats were bare metal, to give this bad boy an overall rusty appeal.

Mark wanted this zero-money build to bag as close to $30,000 as possible. So, as soon as the car was complete, Shawn was able to get hold of an eccentric buyer - Johnny Travis who was well into funky and loud stuff. They take the car over and after a bit of to and fro, Johnny shakes hands at $28,500.

Tijo is an engineer, mechanic, and an avid content creator. He is a grease-monkey who loves tinkering with automobiles every now and then, when not busy penning down his passion for them. He has always had a soft spot for JDM and is keen on diving deep in for anything that involves wheels and engines.