Professional build. 2-inch chopped top, awesome paint, perfect stance. Tan leather interior with A/C, power windows, tilt, and Alpine stereo. L98 Corvette power with EFI. Ready to cruise!
The first modification you’ll notice is the chopped top, from which about two inches have been sectioned. Such a chop is more than just cut and paste, and there’s an extraordinary amount of work involved in getting the windshield rake just right and making the doors fit properly. It’s not a radical chop, just enough to give the truck a custom look, but it doesn’t eliminate the truck’s practicality—there’s still plenty of headroom inside, even for tall people. While they were re-shaping window openings, you’ll note they added a vee’d windshield, which eliminates the center divider and gives it a cleaner look. The hood was nosed and decked, with the original emblems and hood ornament removed, the door handles were shaved, and the headlights were frenched into the fenders, all traditional tricks that pay off big on this pickup. Viewed in profile, it looks long and sleek, yet remains an icon, attracting attention without having to make a lot of noise.
That high-gloss paint is beautifully done and you already know that painting anything black means you need to get the bodywork absolutely right. As you can see from the reflections, this truck doesn’t have waves or ripples, and someone obviously spent a ton of time and money getting it flat and smooth. The paint is almost deep enough to swim in, and while it’s probably not quite show quality now that it’s been driven and enjoyed for a few years, it certainly earns my respect just because of straight it is. The grille, bumpers, and mirrors are all drenched in the same black paint and the original tailgate has been punched full of louvers for a traditional custom look. There’s also a custom fabric-covered hard tonneau cover that lifts with a strap to reveal a finished cargo bay that’s still useful, complete with black painted wooden planks, polished stainless rub strips, and a full-sized spare tire, just in case.
A custom tan leather bench seat replaces the original vinyl church pew and includes individual seat backs and a center arm rest, so it’s great for two passengers and reasonable for three in a pinch. All the creature comforts are included, ranging from power windows and locks (part of the remote entry system with electric door poppers), to a tilt steering column and cold A/C. The interior was completely wrapped in sound-deadening insulation, so it seals up beautifully and it makes the Alpine AM/FM/CD stereo system sound great. A polished billet aluminum panel holds a full array of functional VDO gauges, a look that continues on the passenger’s side purely for style points. There’s some minor wear on the leather and carpets, but nothing substantial and quite in line with the truck’s age and mileage.
For power there’s a tried-and-true 350 cubic inch L98 from a C4 Corvette. Virtually indestructible and bulletproof reliable, it’s a fantastic choice for a street rod. It’s plenty powerful to make the truck fast and fun, but if you just want to cruise, it’s happy to do that, too. Thanks to factory Tuned Port Injection, it starts instantly and idles smoothly every time and it’s one of those rare hand-built trucks where you won’t ever worry about hitting the road for a long trip. They paid attention to dressing the engine, skipping the usual shiny stuff and going with the same theme as the exterior: basic black. There’s torque available at any speed and thanks to a giant radiator up front, it never seems to get hot or grouchy when you hit those inevitable traffic snags. And yes, both power steering and power brakes are part of the package. The transmission is a TH350 3-speed automatic with quick and seamless shifts, and thanks to modest 3.08 gears out back, this truck just loafs along on the highway. There’s a brand new stainless steel exhaust system with glasspack-style mufflers and turn downs just under the tailgate, so it has a fantastic sound that’s pure hot rod. They also invested a great deal of time getting the rolling stock just right, selecting custom-offset 17-inch Torque Thrust wheels with staggered performance radials.
There’s a lot of very impressive work in this truck, not intended merely to make it pretty, but also designed to make it fully operational. You could comfortably drive this truck on the next cross-country Power Tour or blast it up to the local cruise night where it’s sure to be a hit. It’s not exotic, but it gets the basics right, which is something many custom builds neglect to do. Get in, turn the key, and it works like a real truck. Sometimes you really can have it all!
For more details and photos, please visit www.HarwoodMotors.com
