The DeBerti team shipped Tonka off to Neirras Auto Body in Bakersfield, for a fresh blanket of color. The crew at Neirras delivered the goods by topping Tonka with House of Kolor Chrome Yellow. Once the fresh color sealed the envelope, the DeBerti crew rolled the truck back into the shop and began fabricating one-off billet aluminum components to highlight various portions of the truck's exterior. Custom, billet satin-aluminum bumper caps, a grille, bumper inserts, Tonka-style door handles, Ford logo-embossed aluminum towhooks, and fender vents were made to lend a high-tech touch to the otherwise monochromatic exterior.
Once the design team completed the outside flavor, the inner realm received its own share of wild updates. The dash, door panels, and center console were smoothed off and covered in a rich contrast of black and yellow. Classic Soft Trim was commissioned to wrap the seats, door panels, and headliner with a new satin-aluminum material. Complementing the off-the-hook interior is a full-throttle Sony sound system complete with a DVD player and two headrest monitors. Privileged pilots navigate Tonka in style behind a one-off DeBerti Designs' steering wheel while listening to the burly roar from the Borla stainless exhaust system.
Tonka is a high-quality, life-size version of one of America's most popular sandbox toys, and it does a great job of exhibiting the customizing potential inherit in Ford's F-150. The vehicle successfully blends the softer elements of a street truck with the rough-and-tough feel of a genuine off-road trail pounder. Doug DeBerti and the entire DeBerti design team has once again outdone themselves and created a ride that is built Tonka-tough and definitely hard to beat.