Street Trucks February 2020

WELL, HERE’S TO 2020! The new year has arrived, and it promises to be one of the wildest years for the culture of our industry, along with many other mainstream fields of interest in the U.S. This year brings a handful of super intriguing stories, such as our continued push toward a digital truck-space dominance, the fast-rising emergence of electric vehicles hitting the road and, of course, a U.S. presidential election that is sure to make headlines. This new year is determined to “bring it,” so we hope you’re ready to keep up with the curves. The content team here at Street Trucks is made up of die-hard truck guys who live, eat and breathe the custom scene. We know what’s happening, we have insiders at very corner, and we…

HYUNDAI SANTA CRUZ TO BE BUILT AT ALABAMA PLANT HYUNDAI Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA) announced the Santa Cruz compact utility vehicle will join the Santa Fe SUV and the Sonata and Elantra sedans at Hyundai’s U.S. automotive assembly plant in Montgomery, starting in 2021. The company first introduced the Santa Cruz as a concept at the 2015 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. The plant will require a $410 million expansion to support the addition of the vehicle. This includes additional space in the stamping, welding and parts processing areas of the manufacturing complex. Direct employment will increase by 200 jobs and local suppliers and logistics companies that support HMMA are projected to employ an additional 1,000 people in Montgomery and the River Region. “Bringing the Santa Cruz to…

2020 CHEVY LOADMASTER AFTERMARKET AIR SUSPENSION MANUFACTURER AIR LIFT COMPANY HAS RELEASED NEW LOADLIFTER 5000-SERIES KITS FOR THE 2020 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 2500/3500 AND GMC SIERRA 2500/3500 SINGLE-REAR-WHEEL, FOUR-WHEEL-DRIVE MODELS. Air Lift air springs are designed to work with the vehicle’s existing suspension to eliminate squat, poor headlight aim, unresponsive steering, body roll and bottoming out. This properly levels the vehicle, allowing users to tow and haul with safety and comfort. The LoadLifter 5000 (Part #57341) offers up to 5,000 pounds of load-leveling capacity through the use of double-bellow air springs, paired with upper and lower roll plates, and ultra-high-strength nylon end caps. The Loadlifter 5000 Ultimate (Part #88341) offers all of the benefits of the LoadLifter 5000, with the addition of an internal jounce bumper, which helps to smooth…

THIS ’72 GMC SIERRA HERE IS RUSTY AND COVERED IN NATURAL PATINA, AND ALTHOUGH IT HAS BEEN LEFT IN ITS ORIGINAL AGED CONDITION, IT LOOKS QUITE A BIT BETTER NOW THAN IT DID WHEN JESUS MANCHACA PURCHASED IT ABOUT 10  YEARS AGO. Of course, it stood quite a bit taller back then, but there was just something about it that had to be changed up. “The truck was originally a three-quarter-ton camper special truck and, just like it sounds, had a huge camper on top of the bed,” Jesus says. “When I tore the truck down, I found the propane tank connections in the back under the frame, so this thing must’ve seen its fair share of camping trips in its lifetime.” Some trucks look good with camper shells on…

OWNER Jesus Menchaca 1972 GMC C15 Baytown, Texas CHASSIS ■ Shop: Drops R Us & Bernal Auto Designs, Pasadena, Texas ■ Factory ’72 GMC short bed frame ■ Porterbuilt front and rear dropmembers installed ■ KYB front and rear shocks ■ Rack and pinion steering ■ Factory front disc kit from CPP, rear six-lug conversion kit from CaptFab ■ Corvette master cylinder ■ Hydroboost assisted from hydroboost.com ■ Metalworx.com custom fuel cell WHEELS AND TIRES ■ •22 and 22-inch US Mags Kompressor wheels ■ 255/30/22 and 275/30/24 Win-Run tires ENGINE ■ 2008 Chevrolet 376 LS3 ■ Porterbuilt LS engine mounts used for the Dropmember ■ PSI LS swap harness ■ Dirty Dingo A/C bracket ■ Kwik Performance accessories bracket ■ LS1 water pump ■ Texas Speed camshaft ■ Ported and…

FROM SEMA TRUCKS TO BEST OF SHOW WINNERS AT MOST EVENTS AROUND THE COUNTRY, MOST OF THE TOP-BUILT TRUCKS ON THE PLANET HAVE A GSI LOGO WELDED INTO THEIR FRAME RAILS. Like almost any great business in this amazing country we call home, however, the road to respect wasn’t always so smooth. The team at GSI International has been designing and fabricating parts for classic trucks and cars since the shop opened in 2000. The team is passionate about hot rods and custom cars, and they have a mission to channel that passion into creating quality products. To support the growing demand of their highly engineered products, they officially launched GSI Machine & Fabrication in 2015 specializing in Chevy C10 air-ride suspension. Now they offer a full line of products…