2006 Chevy Silverado - Western Alliance

Our American Racing Cryptic... 

   

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Our American Racing Cryptic black wheels and Continental ContiCrossContact tires were the last parts to go onto the truck, and they made the whole thing look complete. With the low-slung stance and minimal sidewall over the black-face wheels, this once mild-mannered Chevy has taken on a whole new look that definitely says custom and cruisin'.

From The Driver SeatProblems, stutter steps, and general trip-ups seemed to pop up too often with this assembly. If you noticed, we made absolutely no mention of the Slam Air Load carrying kit. Although advertised by Sport Truck Direct as a bolt-on with the Western Chassis kit, it is in fact only a bolt-on for the Belltech C-notch setup. The hardware holes aren't even close to aligning correctly with the Western Chassis C-notch-and for that reason-the Air Lift Slam Air kit is still in the box. This Chevy tows a boat during the summer and a motorcycle trailer during the cooler months, so this modification is mandatory and we will put it on; although the mounts will have to be entirely customized from scratch. We love the transmission crossmember, but no mention of the part was referenced in the directions or the fact that we had to cut and weld steel into place to make the framerails truly flat. Western Chassis' flip kit worked just fine, but our Crew Cab's driveshaft hits one of the frame crossmembers on the upstroke long before the axle contacted the bumpstops. By our own fault, we had to extensively cut the front inner fenders to allow suspension clearance for our chosen tires, as well as cut and flare the rear bed sides so they did not drag on the tire sidewalls. Now, the truck can be driven, but the tires bottom out against the front inner fenders before the lower A-arm contacts the bumpstops. Slow and low is how this Chevy rolls. Western Chassis offers a 3/5 drop kit that would have been better suited for our wheel and tire size. Volant's equipment went on flawlessly and added power without noise; and that is new for us. So, we must be getting old because we like it like that. The Continental tires worked out perfect in this build, as the tires were actually designed for a truck and not a car. Load ratings are way above normal for a tire this size and not that our truck could get there, but the tires are Y-rated for sustained speeds as much as 186 mph. Yeehaw!