Have you ever met the ultimate minitrucker? You know, he's the guy who's always super-stoked just to go on a cruise night, hang out with his buds, and talk trucks 24/7. That's the case for many of us, but Joel "Gromit" Sadenwasser took it one step further. His first truck run was Spring Splash '93, when he was only in the fourth grade! Joel's ex-brother-in-law, Lani Ho, promised if Joel helped him work on his car for the show, he would take Joel along for the ride. Little did Lani know, this would spawn into the obsession of a lifetime.
Years passed, then after messing around with a custom Tundra and a couple of cars, Joel finally got his hands on his dream project: a '99 Toyota Tacoma. He slowly began to tear into it, whenever time and funds permitted him. But before long, he couldn't hold back any longer. After maxing out a few credit cards, Joel began working at Extreme Audio in Murrieta, California. This was the final straw on the camels back, as building insane interiors for everyone else was leaving Joel itching for more. After the 'bags, body-drop, suicide doors, chop top, and sheetmetal galore, Joel still wasn't satisfied and lusted for more.
Talking with Danny Albert from Albert Design Studio only made the itch spread, Joel threw up his arms and told Danny to go crazy. Danny worked for nearly three months straight and had the blisters to prove it, as he created a true work of art using Joel's truck as his canvas. His insane airbrushing flows through every square inch of the truck: through the heavily modded exterior metal, into the interior, over the roof, through the bed, onto the bridge, through the doorjambs, under the hood-you name it and Danny's handiwork is surely there. All told, the entire build of Joel's Taco took more than four years to complete. The last six months of paint, interior, and finish work left Joel, Danny, Adam, and friends sleepless, but they did create the amazing work of art that sits before you, today!
Prelude bucket seats were wrapped in black suede and black vinyl with blue stitching. The dash is a full custom with vents on top, a custom gauge cluster, 9-1/2-inch monitor flushed into the passenger side, 10-1/2-inch monitor flushed into the center, with Adam "Handmade" billet accessories and a one-off steering column. Extreme Audio in Murrieta, California, performed all of the work. | 
Adam "Handmade" Joel and Cody from Extreme Audio went to town on the interior and completely overhauled it from scratch using only their mad skills, and the finest Memphis Audio gear. | 
The 2.4L four-cylinder is equipped with a custom-made chrome intake, chrome plenum, chrome valve cover, aluminum radiator, electric fan, all steel braided lines, billet overflow bottle, chrome hood latch, chrome hood prop, and a 170-amp alternator from Ohio Generators. An Odyssey battery was relocated into the cab, and a MagnaFlow exhaust completes the upgrades. |