Jonah Stephanson of Glendale, Arizona, had a plan: build an understated truck, but go big along the way. It had to keep every aspect simple, but still be unique. When his plan involved body-dropping an '04 Ford F-150, he knew he'd have the unique part covered, but that didn't make anything easy.
Jonah wanted to lay rocker on 24s, which is no small feat on a late-model F-150. Enter Mason Rush, from American Built Customs in Phoenix, Arizona. Mason and his crew took up the task of applying a body drop on the Ford. The body mounts were lowered on the frame and the floor was raised throughout the center of the cab to meet midway between channeling and a stock-floor body drop. To eliminate compromise, Mason relocated the A/C system to make room for the body to be lowered and installed a rack behind the front bumper to mount two Optima batteries. With the creature comforts taken care of, it was time to turn his attention to the suspension. The rear frame was bridged and the bed floor was raised nine inches to remain flat. A custom-fabricated four-link locates the axle and 2600 Firestone 'bags were plumbed with 3/8-inch lines and are fed by two Viair 380 compressors. The front uses DJM control arms and relocated mounts to custom tailor the camber. Easy Street Dominator 'bags and Rancho RS9000 adjustable shocks combine with Easy Street's digital controller to adjust the ride height and driving characteristics. With the bottom of the frame and the rocker panels all on the same plane, Jonah had to take advantage of this slammed stance and mounted a set of 24x91/2-inch Boyd Coddington Harm wheels on 275/25R24 Nitto INVO tires. Yep, that's a lot of billet wheel wrapped in not a lot of rubber, so Jonah drives carefully, but the looks speaks for itself.
American Built wasn't done yet, however, as they also tackled the bodywork on the Ford. The door handles were shaved, along with the fuel filler door, and tailgate handle, while a roll pan was fabricated to seamlessly finish the rear. Both front and rear fenders were flared slightly to better accommodate the wide wheel and tire package before the crew prepped the Ford for paint. American Built sprayed the whole truck in a factory Ford white hue and accented the truck with a House of Kolor Sunset Pearl stripe and gave the stripe some depth with a HOK Pink Kandy tiger stripe effect.
More of American Built's fabrication and paint skills can be found in the interior, as a custom center console was built using MDF and fiberglass. The console was then wrapped in vinyl and suede to match the interior plastics and upholstery before the Easy Street Auto Pilot digital controller was mounted in place. An Alpine CD/DVD head unit was mounted in the dash and was backed up with Polk Audio components that are all tucked away and unseen, completing the custom, but still OEM look.
For those of you keeping track, this is the second white truck we've had on our cover in the past three issues. Granted, Jonah's SuperCrew does have a graphic, but it gets the job done with its clean look, slammed stance, and thorough attention to detail. It just goes to show that it's all about the total package.
The custom-fabricated roll...
The custom-fabricated roll pan perfectly integrates the factory body line.
Boyd Coddington 24x9 1/2-inch...
Boyd Coddington 24x9 1/2-inch wheels and 25-series Nitto rubber make for a low-profile combo.
Jonah, on his truck's 4 1/2-inch...
Jonah, on his truck's 4 1/2-inch body drop: "It's a Ford, you just don't see it done."