Franky Hernandez, despite being only 21 years old, is the owner of The Drop Shop in Palmview, Texas. The shop specializes in suspensions, so why is it that his own truck doesn’t even lay out all the way? Did his airbag install not go as planned? The answer is no, there’s nothing wrong with his airbags. This truck doesn’t have any. What you see is what you get, the ability to tuck 24s due to some one-off suspension trickery.
Beginning with McGaughy’s components, Franky added some DJM control arms that were modified for even more drop and proper wheel travel before bolting them in under McGaughy’s springs. The grand total of drop up front is 9 inches. McGaughy’s leaf springs out back were good for another three inches, which, combined with the flip kit and shackles, dropped the rear 12 inches into a bridge notch. Not bad for a truck without ‘bags, huh? The custom powdercoated components share the limelight with Baer brakes that peer out from behind 24x10-inch Intro Twisted Vista wheels enveloped in 295/30R24 Toyo Proxes rubber on all four corners.
Franky’s truck is not just about looking good, his ride has to move too. We love the 5.3L V-8 as much as the next guy, but Franky must hate ‘em, as this truck’s engine was ruthlessly tossed aside in favor of some serious artillery. An HKE Enterprises-built 5.7L iron-block beast now sits between the framerails. Filled with a forged Callies crank and rods and Wiseco pistons, the engine breathes through ported Trick Flow heads with valves operated by a Comp cam. The exhaust is handled by a set of Kooks long-tube headers with 2-inch primaries and 3-inch Corsa exhaust. Not satisfied with just a single power-adder, Franky had Pro Truck Performance in Palmview, Texas, install a Procharger supercharger that blows into an Edelbrock intake that’s also plumbed with a TNT nitrous system. Once the nitrous teams up with 22 pounds of intercooled boost, Franky has 827 hp on tap! We wish we could bring you this magazine with a scratch-and-sniff panel, because Franky runs his Victory Red missile on racing fuel, so the exhaust is something you won’t soon forget. Of course having over 800 horses at the ready means that the drivetrain needs to be beefed up, so Jr. Transmission built a 4L65E automatic with billet steel internals to hold up to the punishment.
The intercooler is a not-too-subtle...
The intercooler is a not-too-subtle indicator that there's more to this Silverado than its wicked stance.
A TNT bottle in the bed is...
A TNT bottle in the bed is another hint that this truck packs a wallop.