Street Trucks August 2018

“ AS WE BEGIN THE JOURNEY I ENCOURAGE YOU ALL TO GET INVOLVED, WHETHER IT’S SENDING IN YOUR TRUCK PICTURES, INTERESTING STORIES, SUGGESTIONS, OR SIMPLY JUST TO GIVE US A SHOUT TO SAY HI. ONE THING I’M CERTAIN OF IS THAT WE WON’T GET WHERE WE’RE GOING WITHOUT YOU ALONG FOR THE RIDE.” WHAT STARTED OUT AS A REGULAR PHONE CALL FROM A BUDDY ON A RANDOM THURSDAY AFTERNOON HAS BECOME ONE OF THE MOST MEMORABLE CONVERSATIONS I HAVE EVER HAD. I was informed of a potential editorial position with a custom truck brand my buddies and I have been following since we were kids. Fast forward past the telephone conversations, emails and seemingly endless red tape, and I find myself taking the reins of one of the…

SOMEWHAT BURIED WITHIN A QUARTERLY FINANCIAL REPORT, FORD RECENTLY ANNOUNCED THAT IT WILL BE PHASING OUT SEDANS BY 2020 IN ORDER TO FOCUS ON ITS TRUCKS. “… by 2020, almost 90 percent of the Ford portfolio in North America will be trucks, utilities and commercial vehicles. ”Given declining consumer demand and product profitability, the company will not invest in next generations of traditional Ford sedans for North America. Throughout the next few years, the Ford car portfolio in North America will transition to two vehicles, the best-selling Mustang and the all-new Focus Active crossover coming out next year. The company is also exploring new “white space” vehicle silhouettes that combine the best attributes of cars and utilities, such as higher ride height, space and versatility. While this…

CHEVROLET RECENTLY ANNOUNCED THAT THE NEXT-GENERATION SILVERADO HD WILL DEBUT NEXT YEAR AS A 2020 MODEL. It will be the third all-new truck in the Silverado lineup revealed in just 18 months, joining the 2019 Silverado 1500 and the 2019 Silverado 4500/5500/6500HD. The next-generation Silverado HD is designed for the specific priorities and needs of heavy-duty truck customers. On-road testing of the new Silverado HD prototypes will begin in the near future to reach Chevrolet’s increased durability and validation standards, and the bolder, larger proportions of the truck will be instantly apparent. More product information will be provided next year, with the first production models scheduled to roll off the assembly lines in Flint, Michigan, in the third quarter of 2019.…

“PINSTRIPE” CHRIS DUNLOP HAS MANAGED TO WOW US YET AGAIN WITH AN IDEA THAT WE THINK WOULD LOOK AWESOME IN THE FLESH, A SQUARE-BODY ROADSTER. Why a roadster pickup instead of a Blazer? As Chris explains: A Blazer would be simple. A full-size short-bed would be much easier to come by, so why not start there? Shaved bumpers will be replaced with roll pans, but not molded: Once you eliminate bumpers it’s nice to see a few seams for detail, plus it makes repairing these inevitably damaged areas later much easier. Front fog/ driving lamps are a must to break up the simple front roll pan. And instead of cutting exhaust out of the rear, I’ll have it in front of the rear tire. Notice the chopped glass has no…

ADJUSTABLE C-10 COIL-OVER SUSPENSIONS Classic Performance Products’ (CPP) complete front and rear coil-over conversion kits for 1963-87 Chevy trucks are fully ride height adjustable from standard height to a 3-inch drop. This allows a full 5 ½ -inch drop when combined with CPP modular drop spindles. The rear coil-over kit offers a full 5 inches of ride height adjustment (stock to 5-inch drop) and is specifically designed to work with CPP’s rear C-notch kits. Classic Performance Products Inc. 714.522.2000 Classicperform.com ON THE SPOT REPAIRS Koul Tools is proud to introduce the latest addition to its line of hardline sealing tools, the Fitting Fixer. The Fitting Fixer uses an inverted cone with diamond-dust-coated lapping material to repair the conical sealing surface on 37-degree fittings. But what if the fitting…

NOT VERY MANY PEOPLE CAN TELL YOU THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF THEIR RIDE, BUT TRENT BRIGGS’ ’92 CHEVY HAS PRETTY MUCH ALWAYS BEEN AROUND. He recalls the very first time it came into his family’s life, “My story with my truck began 25 years ago when my parents bought [the truck] brand new off the lot. I was 5 years old but can distinctly remember being there with them to pick it up and being excited since it was bright red and white factory two-toned. My dad used the truck for construction work throughout the years, and I even remember a time when round bales of hay were hauled in the bed.” The truck certainly earned its place in the family, but eventually it was retired from work duty. “Fast…