As soon as Tom Moscato was able to walk alongside his dad he started attending motorsports events. From truck shows to monster truck races and professional drag racing, Tom's been involved since the start. His dad made sure he included Tom in one of his own passions: custom motorsports. When Tom turned 16, his parents gave him this truck to use for trips back and forth to high school, so it was really no surprise to anyone when he started working on his '96 S-10 to turn it into something special with help from his dad. Just after graduation from high school, Tom lost his father, and this propelled him to finish their show truck with a passion. Now that it's completed, he looks back on the years he spent with his dad with a newfound respect for all things, including his truck.
Owner: Tom Moscato
Ride: '96 Chevy S-10 Extended Cab
Hometown: Palm Desert, California
The Low Down
Wheels/Tires 17x7- and 17x8-inch Budnik Trilogy-3 billet aluminum wheels with 215/45ZR18 Nitto NT450 radial tires.
Suspension Airbags reside at all corners using 2,500-and 2,600-pound Firestone 'bags. Up front, the truck received the 2,500-pound versions and relocated front shock absorbers. In the rear, you'll find the most unique aspect of this truck: a completely detailed TCI four-link suspension setup. Specifically, the truck's suspension is controlled via 3/8-inch lines, M.I.C. valves, and a nitrogen tank, and a 150-psi compressed air system is used as a backup. The cantilever rear suspension setup was fabricated and installed by Chris Daley at Totally Polished in Simi Valley, California.
Body Modifications Changing the external appearance of the truck was implemented by shaving the door handles, shaving the truck's antenna, shaving the windshield wiper squirters, shaving the fuel filler door, shaving the tailgate, and adding a Sir Michael's steel roll pan where the rear bumper once resided. All body mods were performed by Tom at home in his spare time. After the body was smoothed, Tom desired even more, so he instructed Chris Daley at Totally Polished to perform a body drop on his truck to make it lay body pinch molding. The easiest part in changing the truck's appearance was adding updated sheetmetal to the nose of the truck, which came in the form of an '00 front bumper.
Performance Performance has been slightly increased by the installation of a K&N conical filter and a handmade intake setup. Additionally, a custom exhaust was built specifically for the truck using a Magnaflow muffler.
Detailing Plenty of attention to detail was taken when the truck was in its final assembly stages. The rear frame clip exhibits this detailing with chrome and flawless powdercoating.
Interior Inside, you'll find some pristine stitch work to go with the rest of the truck. The seating was upholstered in true hot rod fashion and sports gray vinyl. On the floor, you'll find Mercedes Benz wool carpeting, while the door panels and headliner were reworked in matching vinyl and tweed.
Stereo The stereo system inside Tom's S-10 was professionally installed by Mike Cox at Professional Autosound in Agoura Hills, California. The components that help make the truck sound just as good as it looks includes a Pioneer head unit, MB Quart mid- and high-range speakers, JL Audio subwoofers, and power from a pair of Precision Power amplifiers. Wiring for the system came from the folks at Scosche, and the system is further amplified and managed by a 1-farad capacitor and a 130-amp output alternator.
Miscellaneous When asked what he learned from the project, Tom said that if he built another custom, he'd start with a used vehicle rather than one he'd owned since new.