2003 Chevy Silverado - Rollin' Champagne

Stare at the outside of Jonathan Garcia's '03 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Stepside at a show and you might think that the horizon somehow acquired a distinct lean. The truck, not the natural curvature of the Earth, is what may be throwing off your perception. This is due to a bed tilted sideways, beneath a hard tonneau, that itself opens from the left side of the cargo box, rather than the expected front.

But a trick bed isn't the only thing this Chevy has going for it. Tony (aka Brocha) and Jonathan shaved the truck clean of the more obtrusive protuberances, such as the door handles and fuel filler. They replaced the rear bumper with a roll pan and installed a vertical Trenz Grille. M&M Kustoms in Miami applied some cool paints, a two-toned scheme of Champagne over a black basecoat, scored with ghosted, House of Kolor Pagan Gold candy graphics. Gold leaf forms a narrow beltline that flares into a triangular pattern at the front doors. White-gold flake and gold pearl lend their own subtle luminescence.

The interior is a half-deaf audio fanboy's playground. The boxy center console is built from MDF and fiberglass. It runs from the dash, down the center of the cab, then terminates in the back row. At the front end of the console near the dash, two Kicker NX850.2 amplifiers were sealed beneath a plexiglass window. On top of those rest the box of switches for the air suspension. At the rear of the console, between two rear bucket seats, a pair of 15-inch Kicker L7 subwoofers and a PlayStation 2 share an enclosure that looks like an open-mouthed cube. Pioneer's AVH-P6800DVD head unit plays DVDs and has a six-disc changer, all of which feed tunes and video to the vehicle's A/V system. Kicker subs and 6x9 speakers from Pioneer radiate the sounds, while a total of 11 screens dot the truck: 10 7-inch monitors in the cab and 4 15-inch models in the bed. The seats were wrapped in tan vinyl, accented by champagne piping. The dash is stock, except it was smoothed and painted a champagne color. SE17 in Miami handled the mobile electronics-related installation, while Nuez Brothers worked on the upholstery.

This truck lies inches away from actually laying rocker, thanks to a C-notched frame, a four-link, which was built by Jonathan and Jose; Strong Arms, spindles, Slam Specialties airbags, and deleted sway bars. Edelbrock shocks were also added to damp the asphalt's rougher topographies. Jonathan deviated from the usual air compressor setup by rigging an engine-driven compressor. Rolling stock includes 24-inch D'Vinci Ragno wheels and 275/30R24 Toyo tires. Rads, which is also located in Miami, cut the frame for this part of the project. Peeking under the hood elicits a cry of, "There's nothing to see here!" Jonathan's pickup has a practical, stock engine configuration, except for three modifications: A K&N air intake, 190-amp alternator from Powermaster to help deliver the juice to the augmented audio and video extravaganza, and a 2-inch exhaust setup from Flowmaster, which is technically not under the hood, but you get the idea.

We already noted who did the work on the truck-Jonathan and friends. But, he also would like to mention the contribution of family and friends who simply lent their support, and he thanks them, too. Good job with the assist, guys. The truck looks great.